Viola von Cramon-Taubadel wrote that the previous European Commission report on Serbia is a blatant example of how the rule of law standards have been compromised under the leadership of the commissioner representing Viktor Orbán’s ideology.
Viola Von Cramon-Taubadel is a member of the German European Parliament, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and a member of the delegation of the European Union-Serbia Stability and Association Parliamentary Committee from the Green/EFA Group.
For many years, we have been listening that the basic principles—mainly the rule of law and other principles contained in Article 2 of the TEU—are this The conditions for a country that aspires to become a mature EU member state. Specifically, if you do not have an independent judiciary and equal treatment before the law, you cannot enter the Union.
Since the Copenhagen Standards were established in 1993, many things have changed, including our own internal rule of law crisis. This article will not talk directly, but it will inevitably be related.
Since the establishment of the Von der Lein Committee, the Green Party has been warning that Olivér Várhelyi, the commissioner responsible for expansion and neighbouring affairs The wrong person in the wrong place.
For countries such as Montenegro, Serbia, or Albania that are struggling with their own democratic transition, people appointed by governments that violate the rule of law and undermine democracy cannot be a good role model.
this Early signs of increased influence and politicization Since the beginning of Várhelyi’s tenure, he has not adopted a fair attitude.
However, the worst has arrived Give away the expanded package in 2021, The Committee’s annual assessment of the preparedness and achievements of the Western Balkan countries on their EU roads.The committee has officially fallen below its own and European standards Downplaying Serbia’s 2021 progress report Especially the rule of law standards.
The goal is clear-judicial independence, because this model has been implemented in Hungary and Poland. In short, Serbia is undergoing constitutional amendments aimed at increasing the independence of the judiciary. Among other things, the constitutional amendment should modify the composition of the national prosecutor’s office that selects prosecutors.
The European Community has 2014 Serbian Judiciary Screening Report (p. 25) Prosecutors must represent at least 50% of the National Prosecutors Committee to avoid politicizing the appointment of prosecutors. Nonetheless, seven years later, the committee welcomed the constitutional amendment, which expects prosecutors to account for only 5 of the 11 members of the National Prosecutors’ Council, so it is below the 50% threshold.
In addition, on October 18, 2021, just one day before the release of the progress report, the Venice Commission issued a View It criticized this solution (paragraph 110). It also explicitly recommends that the prosecutor represents 6 of the 11 members, and that the minister and chief prosecutor should not be members of the prosecution committee.
Therefore, this is a blatant example of how the European Commission has been politicized for the benefit of the Orban-Vucic axis. Under the supervision of the Commission, the rule of law standards may be compromised.
Assuming that the evaluation of the rule of law—which is the essence of the EU’s legal order and an area that affects the overall progress of the accession negotiations—cannot be fully trusted. In this case, the entire expansion plan for 2021 must be carefully considered because it is clearly unreliable and flawed. This is also a major example of why the Commission’s overall assessment of Serbia, and possibly some other countries, cannot be a reliable source. Therefore, the proposal to open a new cluster is wrong.
The Serbian opposition, NGOs, and independent media are under tremendous pressure from the regime and recently held demonstrations, arguing Political spin on positive achievements in progress reports This may be the last nail in the coffin of Serbia’s integration into the European Union. The EU must restore its credibility by applying strict conditions and fair assessments, not just pretending to do so.
In addition, we must thoroughly investigate the extent of the agency’s capture and restore the integrity of the committee, which should once again become the guardian of the treaty.
The rule of law in Berlaymont or Budapest and Belgrade cannot be compromised. What is at stake is the integrity of the European Commission in the Western Balkans and the entire European Union.
[Edited by Alice Taylor]
