CoE report laments unchanged selection process for top judges, prosecutors

The Council of Europe’s anti-corruption body GRECO had criticized Greece’s refusal to allow peers to be involved in the process of appointing senior judges and prosecutors.

In its report released on Tuesday, the body said that, overall, Greece had “satisfactorily implemented or dealt with in a satisfactory manner” 13 of the 19 recommendations the Council of Europe body had previously made to the country, while five have been “partly implemented” and one “has not been implemented.”

But while Greek authorities have said that the revised Code on the organisation of the courts has introduced a limitation to the absolute discretion of the government in selecting the top judicial officials, it has not altered the method for the selection.

“It is regrettable that the selection of the most senior positions of judges and prosecutors remains the responsibility of the government, without any involvement of the peers in the process,” the body said. “This part has thus not been complied with, even partly.”

It also criticised the law whereby disciplinary proceedings against judges and prosecutors remain the “exclusive responsibility” of the Minister of Justice. 

“No evidence has been provided that this issue has been subject to a reflection process, in-depth discussion, and thus, due consideration, as recommended,” GRECO said.

As far as members of parliament are concerned, GRECO welcomed the introduction of a Code of Conduct for parliamentarians and the role of the Committee on Parliamentary Ethics, which was responsible for the Code’s implementation, and to provide confidential counselling.

However, it noted that the conflation of roles entrusted to that Committee, which, in addition to giving confidential counselling to parliamentarians, is responsible for the supervision of the Code of Conduct, “is open to misgivings about its impartiality and perceived conflicts of interest” when dealing with the same issue in respect of the same parliamentarian. 

“It may be best if these two distinct functions were assumed by two different parliamentary committees,” the report said.