The Supreme Court of Justice rejected judge Domnica Manole’s request to suspend the Supreme Council of Magistracy’s decision by which this gave the go-ahead to take legal action against her. The judge made the announcement in a news conference at IPN. Domnica Manole is the judge who obliged the Central Election Commission to hold the constitutional referendum initiated by the Platform “Dignity and Truth”. According to the Supreme Court of Justice, this decision is evidently illegal in character.
The judge’s lawyer Viorica Grecu said the Supreme Court of Justice’s judgment didn’t meet the impartiality criterion as it was passed with the participation of judges who shouldn’t have taken part in the deliberations because these were given a reprimand by the Disciplinary Board. “The motivation of the judgment includes standard stipulations that can be found in any judgment of the kind. We do not agree with such an approach because the case of Missis Manole Domnica is a special one, related first of all to the guarantees of the principle of judicial independence,” she stated.
Domnica Manole said they submitted a statement about the conflict of interests with some of the judges of the Supreme Court of Justice, who, by passing such a judgment, seriously flouted the law. “They defied my right to a fair, independent trial in the most serious way,” stated the judge.
According to her, on May 31, when the Supreme Council of Magistracy passed the decision by which it gave its consent to prosecuting her, an unprecedented attack was staged on the independence of the judiciary, all the judges of Moldova being humiliated. “They pointed the finger at all the judges of Moldova, warning that those who will have the courage to pass correct decisions, in accordance with the law and their convictions, will be penalized as judge Domnica Manole is,” she stated.
The ruling by which the Central Election Commission was obliged to hold the constitutional referendum initiated by the Platform “Dignity and Truth was made by Domnica Manole on April 13 this year. The application to the Supreme Council of Magistracy whereby this was asked to allow prosecuting the judge was taken following the Supreme Court of Justice’s judgment about the evidently illegal character of this ruling and the CEC chairman Iurie Ciocan’s request to hold the judge accountable.
