President of the Supreme Judicial Council (French: CSM) Youssef Bouzakher said on Tuesday it was clear the President of the Republic’s remarks Monday about a CSM law is a reference to the development of a relevant decree-law. Yet, if there is an intention to remove the council, he said, this could only be viewed as an interference with matters of justice.
The removal of the CSM means eliminating guarantees granted to the juduciary and the chapter on judicial power in the Constitution, said Bouzakher on the sidelines of his participation in a seminar held on the ‘International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists’.
Such a decision will have a direct impact on the chapter of rights and freedoms as magistrates are the guarantors of freedom, he argued.
Bouzakher said he is not opposed to an overhaul but this requires a participatory approach. The existence of the Supreme Judicial Council is in itself a safeguard for the judiciary and an independent judiciary., he added.
“The CSM is being criticised for not fighting corruption and not showing keenness to give judgements on pending cases in reasonable timeframes at a time when its mechanisms do not entitle it to do so.”
Source: Tap News Agency