The European Commission (EC) in the annual report on the status of the rule of law issued on Tuesday stated that Slovakia has made too little progress in meeting recommendations, which him submitted within last year’s report. She has recently released Slovakia seven recommendations. SR has, among other things, To introduce sufficient independence guarantees in the appeal of mainly judges of the non -elected members of the Judicial Council and ensure an effective and independent investigation and prosecution of cases of corruption in high places.
In this context, it is also recommended to limit the use of the jurisdiction of the Attorney General in the abolition of the decisions of the investigators and prosecutors. The EC also invited to strengthen the editorial independence of public service media, informs TASR.
According to the EC report, the SR has not made progress in the introduction of guarantees to improve the physical security and work environment of journalists or to ensure the proper participation of the public and stakeholders in the process of making legal regulations – Among other things, it was to limit the excessive use of shortened legislative proceedings.
EC recommends SR to It has set sufficient legal insurance policies in inferring criminal liability for judges for the offense of bending the law. Also recommended to take proposals for lobbying regulation, Strengthen the system of property declarations and verification of assets and continue the ongoing efforts to reform the rules on the conflict of the interests of public officials.
The jurisdiction of the Attorney General to annul the final decisions of investigators or prosecutors of lower instance in combination with the recently announced reorganization of the General Prosecutor’s Office, according to the evaluation of the European Commission, continues to raise concerns. At the same time, the EC pointed out that the Department of Serious Crime on GP does not have the same level of independence as the abolished Office of the Special Prosecutor’s Office (ÚŠP).
In connection with the recommendation regarding cases of EC corruption, she stated, among other things, that The redistribution of the former prosecutors of the ÚŠP to other tasks other than corruption poses a risk that in practice there will be criminal proceedings relating to complex cases, And in a situation where this process is generally lengthy.
With the entry into force of the Criminal Code reform, according to Brussels, the EU’s financial interests are being protected In the SR to some extent have fulfilled pre -identified risks – Several corruption cases have been statute -barred or reclassified for offenses.
For example, the European Commission noted that the changes concerning mainly the limitation periods had an impact on several ongoing investigations and criminal prosecutions in connection with corruption, Even in the case of high -ranking officials, politicians and entrepreneurs closely linked to politics.
The European Commission found that The court system continues to be deficiencies in terms of its effectiveness, especially in cases relating to administrative law, whose estimated time of the solution in the court of first instance increased sharply from 648 to 1040 days in 2023, thereby becoming one of the highest in the EU. Last year, the civil and commercial dispute solutions also slightly increased from 168 to 173 days. Cases of money laundering have been resolved on average in 791 days, which is a significant increase over 520 days in 2022.
According to the EC report, the polarization of public debate increased in Slovakia, and politicians “attack” NGOs and media. Civil society is issued to further pressure and burden as a result of new obligations of reporting and disclosure of information arising from the amendment to the Act on Non -Profit Organizations.
In connection with the abolition of the Radio and Television of Slovakia (RTVS) and the establishment of Slovak Television and Radio (TVR), according to the EC, concerns about the consequences of the independence of the public broadcaster persist.
