Although the ruling Bosniak Party (BS) has announced that it will not vote for the two proposed candidates for judges of the Constitutional Court, their colleagues from the parliamentary majority could, with the possible help of the Civic Movement (GP) URA and several other opposition MPs, try to secure the support needed to elect the judges in the first round of voting.
According to the Constitution, the election of judges of the Constitutional Court requires a two-thirds majority in the Assembly - 54 votes, and if this is not achieved, a second round is held in which three-fifths support is required for the election - 49 "hands". If a candidate does not receive the required majority in the first round, a second round will be held no earlier than a month later.
If BS maintains its position of not voting for two candidates at the plenum, it means that the ruling majority, which without the party's six MPs, will Ervin Ibrahimović has 46 "hands", at least eight opposition members will be needed in the first round of voting, or three in a possible second round of voting, to elect judges.
The majority could seek support from four MPs from the GP URA, representatives of United Montenegro. Vladimir Dobričanin who has repeatedly sided with the ruling party, independent MPs Jevrosime Pejović i Radinke Ćinćur, and code Mehmed Zenka from the Democratic Union of Albanians (DUA), who supported one of the two candidates proposed at the Constitutional Committee session. It is likely that they cannot count on the votes of the strongest opposition parties, the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) and the Social Democrats (SD), the ruling parties.
The Constitutional Committee proposed to parliament on Tuesday to elect a deputy protector of human rights and freedoms as judges. Mirjana Radović and a judge of the Higher Court in Podgorica Jovan JovanovicHowever, BS did not support the candidates because, as the party's deputies pointed out, they demand that at least one judge of the Constitutional Court be a member of the Bosniak people. During the vote, DPS and SD deputies left the hall, dissatisfied with not being consulted in the process of nominating candidates.
BS-OV “KOMPROMIS”
The Constitutional Court currently has four out of the seven judges it should have. The Constitutional Committee announced the appointment of two judges on December 23 last year and heard all candidates in mid-March, but only proposed them this week. The Legislative Chamber has not yet ruled on the Mirjana Vučinić, a candidate for judge of the Constitutional Court who was proposed by the President of the country in May Jakov MilatovićMeanwhile, the head of state has issued a new advertisement for the selection of a judge, because the judge Desanka Lopičić His term expires at the end of the year.
The Parliament told "Vijesti" that MPs will vote on the candidates of the Constitutional Committee and Milatović's candidate on Tuesday, at the first session of the autumn session of parliament (which begins the day before).
When asked whether there is a compromise solution for BS to support Jovanović and Radović, the party responded to the editorial staff that completing the court that protects constitutionality and legality "is not and should not be a subject of compromise of party interests, but rather the obligation of decision-makers to ensure constitutional and legal protection of the citizens and state of Montenegro." However, they say that they have a compromise and are offering it to all MPs, parties and parliamentary groups, as well as to the President of Montenegro.
"And it reads: 'You respect the Constitution and the Law on the Constitutional Court in terms of proportional representation of all, and especially the most numerous minority people, and we will vote for Constitutional Court judges who, with their competence and biography, deserve that position,'" Ibrahimović's party announced.
They added that anything else would be a "compromise to the detriment of the Constitution and the smaller nations, and thus to the detriment of Montenegro", and that therefore, other options are unacceptable to them.
"A broad socio-political consensus is needed regarding respect for the Constitution and the Law on the Constitutional Court, and the choice of Constitutional Court studies will come as a result of that," BS underlined.
WHO COULD SUPPORT A CANDIDATE?
The GP URA unofficially told "Vijesti" that they will decide on Monday how they will respond to the proposed candidates for judges. A source from the party Dritan Abazović claims that the "ruling majority is lobbying" to give them (the ruling parties) support so that the Constitutional Court will be filled.
As for the United Party, its MP Dobricanin has voted for some of the ruling majority's proposals on several occasions. He told the newspaper that his party has not yet made a decision on this issue.
MP Pejović also claims that she has not decided how she will declare herself, while her colleague Ćinćur told "Vijesti" that she cannot support "persons who do not meet the requirements to be judges" for the Constitutional Court, adding that she will not raise her hand for a candidate who does not have a bar exam - Radović, while when it comes to Jovanović, she stated that she will "think about it".
As for MP and DUA leader Zenka, he supported Jovanović at the Constitutional Committee session, which should mean that he will do the same at the plenum. However, he did not answer the editorial staff's question as to whether he will do so.
“BS DID NOT TIE A 'DEAD KNOT'”
A source for "Vijesti" from the ruling majority claims that BS has not "tied a dead knot" and that there is a possibility that Ibrahimović's party will support a candidate for judge and thus "balance between the European agenda and the party's needs."
Another government source said that there is a possibility that BS will vote for one candidate, but that they cannot count on it with certainty.
The procedure for the election of two judges was suspended after the hearing of the candidates, pending the opinion of the Venice Commission on the case of the former Constitutional Court judge. Dragan Đuranović.
The parliament, based on the conclusion of the Constitutional Committee, declared her to have ceased to hold office at the end of last year because she had attained the retirement age under the Pension and Disability Insurance Act, and not the Labor Act, under which Constitutional Court judges retired. In protest, the opposition left parliament and blocked the work of the Electoral Legislation Reform Committee. After part of the opposition signed a memorandum of understanding with the Prime Minister on March 15, Milojko Spajić (Europe Now Movement) agreement on resolving the political crisis, opposition members returned to the parliamentary benches, and a request was sent to the Venice Commission for an opinion on the disputed case.
The Commission stated that the Parliament should have followed the procedure requiring formal notification of the Constitutional Court on the fulfilment of the conditions for the termination of judicial office, emphasizing that it is not within their jurisdiction to interpret national constitutional norms and disputed provisions of domestic legislation, nor the constitutionality of specific actions taken by the Parliament and the Constitutional Court.
BS: The Constitutional Court must be a mirror of the Constitution in terms of composition
BS told "Vijesti" that respect for rights guaranteed by the Constitution and laws, including the rights of minority peoples, is "an indicator of the rule of law, the essence of European values, part of several negotiation chapters and a condition for EU membership."
As they stated, the Constitutional Court must be a "mirror of the Constitution" in terms of its composition and operation, and in this context "in full agreement with the Constitution and the Law on the Constitutional Court".
"This also implies that those who decide on the composition of the Constitutional Court adhere to the Constitution and the Law on the Constitutional Court, which prescribe and imperatively require that candidate nominators take into account the proportional representation of members of minority nations, other minority communities, and gender-balanced representation," said the BS.
Milatović's Cabinet: Biographies to be the only criterion for decision-making
The Office of the President of the Republic said that by reviewing the biographies of candidates for judges of the Constitutional Court, the public can easily be convinced that the candidate proposed by Milatović possesses the "best professional references."
"We hope that during the election of a judge of the Constitutional Court, the biography of the proposed candidates will be the only criterion for voting by MPs. Unfortunately, experience so far shows that party agreement is key in the selection of candidates, which should not be the case, considering the importance and role of the Constitutional Court," the Office of the Head of State told "Vijesti".
At Milatović's request, an extraordinary session of the Parliament was scheduled for September 15th, at which the deputies were to express their opinion on his candidate, lawyer Vučinić. However, the majority of the government deputies decided to sabotage the session, the agenda was not adopted, with a message from some of those deputies that before making a decision, they should wait until the opinion of the Venice Commission on the Đuranović case was implemented.
Vučinić has little chance of being elected as a judge. "Vijesti" wrote that the Democrats have stated that they will not support the proposal, and according to unofficial information, it does not even have the support of the strongest ruling party, the Europe Now Movement, which has called for the implementation of the "Venetians'" opinion to be waited for.
In response to criticism from some government constituents that Vučinić also represented the company "Bemaks", Milatović said that this move was dangerous because it targeted the legal profession. He added that such criticisms are "a blow to every honorable lawyer."
"If 'Bemaks' is controversial to them, why did those in the government give over 40 million contracts to that company?" he asked.
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