The President of the Bar Association of Vojvodina, lawyer Vladimir Beljanski, speaks to "Vreme" about the reasons for the one-day suspension of work. He emphasizes that this is a protest for greater autonomy and independence of the judiciary, the courts and the Prosecutor's Office
The Vojvodina Bar Association (AKV) decided on a one-day event suspension of work in order to draw attention to the problems in the judiciary that have been encountered these days.
The president of AKV, lawyer Vladimir Beljanski, tells "Vreme" that he and his colleagues believe that there are four problems that they wanted to point out with this decision.
"Advocacy cannot exist as an independent and independent profession if the judiciary suffers the kind of pressure it suffered in the past days from the executive power," says Beljanski.
He adds that, if there are pressures from the highest legislative and executive power holders to start ongoing proceedings or not, to order someone into custody or not - then a situation is created that there is no separation of powers in the state, as is necessary in every democratic system.
"The judiciary must be independent, and according to the practice of the European Court of Human Rights, such public statements by holders of other branches of government represent a direct influence on the judiciary."
To provide the Prosecutor's Office with information on how it happened falling canopy, whether it has been reconstructed or not, to mislead someone or anything like that, that must not be done", states Beljanski.
The Bar Association of Vojvodina first reacted with a statement, and then with a decision to suspend work.
Problematic amendments to the criminal code
"The second problem is the protest and dissatisfaction with the way of working criminal legislation reforms.
For example, the draft of the criminal law that was in the public debate was not the result of the work of a public group in which the legal profession participated. We pointed to that, and we think that the draft contains a considerable number of very bad solutions, which we pointed out during the public hearing", adds Beljanski.
By procrastinating to the point of corruption in the cadastre
The third problem is dissatisfaction with the work of the cadastre.
"Cadastre is very slow to act. Communication between lawyers and the cadastre is reduced to electronic complaints that we can send when they do not implement what is required, in terms of changing ownership, deleting notes and similar things. It is then endured indefinitely, waiting for something to happen. A huge number of pending cases and an almost complete absence of lawyers who are necessary to solve the issue of registration of ownership rights. Because it's a legal, not a technological issue, that is, it's not a job for IT experts who don't have adequate training," Beljanski points out.
In the past, he adds, it was the jurisdiction of the courts and they kept the land registers.
"The judges wondered whether something is allowed to change when it comes to the issue of ownership and property, which is a very important issue in every state. I also heard from my colleagues that corruption is increasingly occurring in the cadastre precisely because of slowness, and that is why citizens decide to resort to other solutions to problems that they cannot solve through a lawyer", explains Beljanski.
It is necessary to prosecute rioters
The fourth problem due to which the lawyers of Vojvodina believe that it is necessary to take action is the failure of the police to respond to rioting, and then the arrest and detention of students who were protest in Novi Sad at the beginning of October.
"I wouldn't call it a protest, but a kind of expression of condolence and concern and a request for justice and truth, because that's what the citizens of Novi Sad came to show on the street then." Then the destruction of the City Hall was staged by the intervening elements and the police did not react at all. That case must be investigated. "Who are the people who were involved in that protest and how is it possible that the police did not react, but instead arrested students who obviously had nothing to do with all of that," states Beljanski.
According to the interlocutor of "Vremena", the aim of the one-day suspension of work is to preserve institutions.
"I think that we have already received the action." I notice that after our announcement, in the last two or three days since we announced on Friday that we would be in protest, there are no more appearances by the highest executive power holders, as it happened until then. I did not notice statements that would influence the court and the Prosecutor's Office to do something one way or another. Until then, those statements were drastic," Beljanski recalls.
As for other things, we will see, he adds, they certainly cannot be solved overnight.
"I would also emphasize that this is not a protest against the judiciary, the courts and the Prosecutor's Office." Rather, this is a protest that should give them greater autonomy and independence in their work. In order for us as lawyers to be able to practice our profession, we have to protect them from influences that they should not be exposed to," says Beljanski.
He quotes a verse from a song that reads "God made us dream, but he didn't give us freedom".
"So, if we want an independent judiciary, we have to fight for ourselves," concludes Beljanski.
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