EU finance ministers had approved the Polish recovery plan, endowed with 35.4 billion euros in European funds, in return for a “very important” commitment from Warsaw on the ‘independence of the judiciary “.
Le Monde with AFP
The four main European magistrates’ organizations seized, Sunday, August 28, the justice of the European Union (EU) to have the green light of the twenty-seven on the Polish recovery plan, granted in June despite the breaches of breaches. Reproach to Warsaw in matters of independence of justice.
The conditions set for Poland to unlock the payment of European funds “are below what is necessary to ensure effective protection of the independence of judges and judicial power, and do not take into account the judgments of the EU court of justice, “said these groups of judges in a joint press release.
These organizations (Association of European Administrative Judges, European Association of Judges, Rechters Voor Rechters, European magistrates for democracy and freedoms) filed an appeal to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to cancel the States decision and “prevent the release of EU funds” to Poland.
Following the European Commission, the EU finance ministers had approved the Polish recovery plan, endowed with 35.4 billion euros in European funds, in return for a commitment ” Very important “Warsaw” on the independence of the judiciary “. This investment plan has been blocked for more than a year due to the disputed judicial reform implemented by Warsaw. 2>
prejudice to the position of suspended judges
Brussels has laid down three conditions to start paying funds: the dismantling of the disciplinary chamber of the Polish Supreme Court – whose European justice has been claiming suspension for more than a year -, the reform of the disciplinary regime of the magistrates, and the possibility for judges sanctioned to see their case reviewed.
Now, “this is prejudice to the position of the judges suspended in Poland: for example, the CJEU has ordered that the Polish judges affected by illegal disciplinary procedures are reintegrated immediately, without delay or procedure” while the third condition ” would introduce a procedure of more than a year at the end of uncertain, “argue magistrates organizations.
According to them, by fixing these criteria and approving the recovery plan, the commission and the member states have contravened the decisions of European justice, which they are required to “execute unconditionally and complete”.
The CJEU, based in Luxembourg, had pinned the disciplinary component of the judicial reform in Poland in July 2021, considering in particular that the disciplinary chamber of the Supreme Court did not offer “all the guarantees of impartiality and independence “And was” not safe from direct or indirect influences of Polish legislative and executive powers “.
The green light of the twenty-seven “also prejudice to the European judicial system as a whole”, which is destabilized “if the judicial system of one or more member states no longer offers guarantees of independence and respect for the fundamental principles of the rule of law “, underline the magistrates.