Executive approves action plan for reforming justice sector

The Government Tuesday endorsed the draft action plan for implementing the justice sector reform strategy for 2011-2016. Minister of Justice Oleg Efrim said the plan will create additional preconditions guaranteeing the correct interpretation of the strategy measures, will clarify the order in which they must be implemented and specify the institutions responsible for carrying out the planned measures Info-Prim Neo reports. The minister said that among the measures defined in the plan are drawing a judicial map, optimizing the number of judges, reviewing the court costs, laying down clear and transparent criteria based on merit for selecting, appointing and promoting judges. The plan also envisions applying such specific instruments as the periodic integrity tests, appropriately implementing the mechanism for controlling the property and income statements, reviewing the immunity of judges that now protects all those who committed acts of corruption, or tapping the work phones of the magistrates, prosecutors and prosecution officers who protect them from interference from the political and economic spheres. The strategy will be implemented at a cost of about €124 million, by €26 million less than planned initially. The financing will be provided by the Government, but a large part of the necessary money - €70 million – may be offered by Moldova’s foreign partners. The action plan will be sent to Parliament for consideration and adoption, which thus assumes responsibility for monitoring how the strategy will be implemented. The strategy was passed by the legislative body on November 25.