The General Council of the Judiciary aims to stop the escalation of insults and accusations against certain judges who have cases linked to the process taking place in the Congress of Deputies. The Judiciary feels assaulted by the level of criticism of the deputies of the Lower House and that is why yesterday they held an extraordinary plenary session to unanimously sign an institutional declaration in which they call for restraint from politicians and respect for the division of powers, despite who recognize that they cannot go beyond a request, because they are protected by parliamentary inviolability.
The acting president of the body, Vicente Guilarte, had called the extraordinary plenary at the request of the nine members of the conservative bloc to try to stop the expressions used by some parliamentary speakers in the debate on the Amnesty law last week . Criticism when the holding of the extraordinary plenary session was called focused on the president of the Congress, Francina Armengol, for her “acquiescence” and “mutism” in view of the attacks against the judges by the members of the Government of Pedro Sánchez.
In the statement, endorsed by both conservative and progressive members, the “seriousness” of the accusations of political leaders against members of the Judiciary is evident, especially since the existence of lawfare has begun to be talked about more lightly , the alleged judicial persecution against pro-independence leaders, which was already referenced in the investiture agreement between the PSOE and Junts.
In the Lower Chamber, references were heard on Tuesday to judges Manuel García-Castellón, Joaquín Aguirre and Manuel Marchena, who have cases linked to the process. Criticism is primarily focused on the first, the judge of the National Court who is investigating the Democratic Tsunami case and who has reactivated the case in recent weeks, while the central government was negotiating with Junts the Amnesty law.
From the pro-independence group, it is considered that the former president of the Generalitat, Carles Puigdemont, has been charged with a crime of terrorism in order to prevent criminal oblivion from being applied to him.
It was precisely for this reason that Junts finally decided to vote against the law last week and thus be able to continue negotiating with the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, to manage to include all cases of terrorism linked to the process among the amnesty beneficiaries. With the current text, cases that “manifestly and with direct intent have caused serious violations of human rights” are excluded.
The president of the CGPJ aims to reduce this tension between powers that has been experienced more intensely in recent months. In the statement, the governing body of the judges “firmly rejects certain demonstrations and behaviors carried out by members of the legislative power”, and states that they will continue “defending the independence of the Judiciary residing in each and every one of the judges Spaniards”.
They also demand respect for the independence of the Judiciary and that deputies avoid “disqualifications that could undermine the public’s confidence in the judicial system.” The CGPJ once again defended the “institutional respect” that must exist between the powers of the State.
For his part, the Minister of the Presidency and Justice, Félix Bolaños, is juggling so as not to disqualify members of the Spanish Government or their partners, but trying not to continue escalating the climate of tension and unrest within the judiciary in view of the which they consider an attack from the executive and legislative power.
In this puzzle, the situation of the CGPJ does not help either, with an increasingly tense atmosphere after five years in office. The conservative bloc is trying to force both the plenary session and the permanent committee to intervene following the public statements of politicians against court rulings. Meanwhile, the progressive bloc aims to lower the tone of frontal shock in the statements that are issued.
The declarations of both members of the Spanish Executive and other parties have received a response from the body that regulates judges. Two weeks ago he issued a statement after the words of the third vice-president of the Spanish Government, Teresa Ribera, who questioned the impartiality of the instructor in the cause of Democratic Tsunami.
The permanent commission understood that those demonstrations were “contrary to the principle of institutional loyalty, to the general duty of respect for judicial independence inherent in a State governed by the rule of law and an integral part of the European Union, one of whose essential values ??is the separation of powers, essential to realize the value of justice”.
