Libération, 2 September, 2009.

Magistrates, an endangered species

Published on 2 September 2009 at 10:46
Libération, 2 September, 2009.

Cover

A report on the reform of French criminal law procedure, presented on 1 September to president Nicolas Sarkozy, recommends doing away with the examining magistracy and reinforcing the role of the public prosecutor, under the supervision of the minister of justice, Liberation reports. Although this reform would align French procedure with the adversary system in many other democratic countries, which pits the prosecution against the defence, Libérationfears it might jeopardise the independence of the judiciary from the executive branch of government. In other countries, the daily points out, “The authorities traditionally let justice run its course. Nothing of the sort in France. For ages politicians…have been craving revenge on the little judges guilty of meddling too vigilantly in the affairs of the powers that be.” The examining magistracy, “the old flagship of judicial investigation in most Continental countries”, was phased out in Germany and Italy 20 years ago, and has only been retained in Spain, Belgium and former People’s Republics."

Tags

Was this article useful? If so we are delighted!

It is freely available because we believe that the right to free and independent information is essential for democracy. But this right is not guaranteed forever, and independence comes at a cost. We need your support in order to continue publishing independent, multilingual news for all Europeans.

Discover our subscription offers and their exclusive benefits and become a member of our community now!

Are you a news organisation, a business, an association or a foundation? Check out our bespoke editorial and translation services.

Support independent European journalism

European democracy needs independent media. Join our community!

On the same topic