03/04/2021 20:09
Clarín.com
Politics
Updated 03/04/2021 20:09
In very harsh terms, the Argentine Association of Prosecutors (AAF) defined the latest pronouncements of the national government on Justice as "a plan
aimed at eliminating -in practice- the republican form of government
, through party political control of the Judiciary and of the Public Prosecutor's Office ".
Under this characterization of the events, the organization expressed through a statement that the official proposal for the creation of a
"Bicameral Commission"
in Congress for the monitoring of Justice
"is nothing other than an inquisition court dedicated to hunting. of witches".
The two-page text issued by the AAF has two events as background: the most recent,
Cristina Kirchner's 50-minute speech
this Thursday before the Criminal Cassation judges, in the run-up to a trial against her.
There, the vice president argued why the case raised for alleged irregularities in the sale of the future dollar in 2015 should be annulled and spoke that the Judiciary is a
"rotten and perverse system", "corporate" and governed by "lawfare"
.
He also compared them to the military, saying that the judges "are
the new permanent power
."
On the other hand, at the opening of ordinary sessions last Monday, Alberto Fernández said that Justice seems to live
"on the fringes of the republican system"
and announced that he will initiate a
"criminal complaint"
against the government of Mauricio Macri, for the debt contracted. in 2018 with the
International Monetary Fund.
The president added that day:
"The Judiciary is in crisis [...]. They
enjoy privileges that others do not enjoy: no official of the Judicial Power pays profits, and in the case of members of the Supreme Court, access to the declaration of your assets is almost impossible. "
Cristina, for Zoom, criticized the Justice.
The words of the two highest authorities of the Executive coincided in a package that already accumulated previous risks, such as
the administrative request of the ANSeS
, which María Fernanda Raverta commands, so that judges and prosecutors update their pension procedures or
decide to retire
.
Thus, for the prosecutors grouped in the AAF, the attempt to "politically control" the judiciary
"is channeled not only through legislative reform projects",
but also "
the announced failure of creating an Arbitrary Tribunal,
and the of composition of the Council of the Magistracy ".
They expanded: "As a clearer example,
the attacks on the interim Attorney General (Eduardo Casal)
can be seen
,
due to the sole circumstance (or impotence) of not being able to find consensus among the majority political forces in proposing a person who satisfies the guarantees of impartiality. And that is where it is evident that this condition is not sought, but quite the opposite,
a political party militant akin to the ruling party
".
Eduardo Casal
took office in November 2017 when Alejandra Gils Carbó announced that she would no longer return.
As Acting Attorney, he waits for the Government to reach an agreement and appoint someone to his post on a permanent basis.
The president wants that place to be occupied by Judge
Daniel Rafecas
.
The opposition is divided over that appointment.
In that direction, the prosecutors spoke of
"permanent attacks"
on the members of the Supreme Court of Justice, the aforementioned Casal
and "any judge or prosecutor who has to intervene in processes that involve people or interests of the ruling party."
"Thus,
unprecedented levels of symbolic institutional violence
are reached
,
putting in crisis public confidence in the justice system and in a State that must protect the values, principles and rights that give identity to our Constitution," they argued.
Finally, the Argentine Association of Prosecutors understood that
"political party disagreement does not make judicial activity erroneous
and much less allows pressure on judges and prosecutors to obtain a desired result."
The text bears the signature of
Marcelo Varona Quintián
(president) Walter Fernández (first vice president) and Matías Michienzi (general secretary).
DS
The full statement
The Argentine Association of Prosecutors expresses deep concern about a series of events, all interrelated, which reveal a plan aimed at eliminating -in practice- the republican form of government through party political control of the Judiciary and the Ministry Public Prosecutor, violating the National Constitution and international human rights treaties.
These actions are not only channeled through legislative reform projects, among which may be mentioned those that seek to modify the designation regime of the Attorney General of the Nation, the term of his mandate, the procedure to sanction Prosecutors, but also also the announced failure to create an Arbitrary Tribunal, and the composition of the Council of the Magistracy. The unconstitutional proposal to create a "bicameral commission" to "monitor" justice is nothing more than an inquisition court dedicated to witch hunts.
As a clearer example can be seen the attacks on the interim Attorney General (Dr. Eduardo Casal), due to the sole circumstance (or impotence) of not being able to find consensus among the majority political forces in proposing a person who satisfies the guarantees of impartiality. And that is where it is evident that this condition is not sought, but quite the opposite, a political party activist akin to the ruling party. There is no other explanation that justifies the claim to appoint him with a simple majority of legislators.
The different voices of officials of the ruling political party must also be added, tending to constantly disqualify the acts of the judiciary, and the institution in general. Permanent attacks on the members of the country's Highest Court, the interim Procurator General of the Nation, and any judge or prosecutor who has to intervene in processes that involve people or interests of the ruling party.
Thus, unprecedented levels of institutional symbolic violence are reached, putting in crisis public confidence in the justice system and of a State that must protect the values, principles and rights that give identity to our Constitution, which -among other things - Eliminates personal privileges and all blood prerogatives based on the democratic equality of all inhabitants.
We seek an intelligent, wise and respectful relationship between the powers of the State. In the same way that Prosecutors and Judges do not express their opinion in the media on the mistakes of public policies or on laws in the abstract, it must be understood that officials of other powers must also respect this ethical-functional obligation. And it is that the disagreements with the prosecutions, convictions and acquittals, in addition to the possibility of being questioned by the corresponding legal channels, do not concern the Executive or the Legislature.
The same Constitution provides for the mechanisms of pardon and amnesty for cases of judicial error or popular pardon by the congress of penalties applied by the judges. But partisan political disagreement does not make judicial activity erroneous, much less pressure judges and prosecutors to obtain a desired result.
As always, we believe that the popular vote legitimizes the actions of the political powers, but always within the law and the Constitution, because ultimately, all inhabitants are equal before the law.
Without independent justice, each inhabitant is at the mercy of the immeasurable power of the State and defenseless against corruption, illegality, injustice. We believe that -contrary to what is happening- the Public Prosecutor's Offices should be strengthened and endowed with a genuine capacity to act free from pressure of any kind.
Remember that since the 15th century, justice is usually represented as a woman blindfolded, and this represents objective and impartial decisions without the influence of wealth, politics, fame or infamies.
For all these reasons, we call for reflection, to show that all the measures and actions indicated at the beginning lead to "politicizing justice in a partisan way." And that the imputation to a person of the commission of a crime, is not "to judicialize the policy" since the author's criminal law is prohibited to the authority of the judges and prosecutors. Facts are judged, not ways of being.
Look also
The impact of Cristina Kirchner's criticism in Comodoro Py: "The slogan is to resist the attacks"
Leopoldo Moreau described Justice as a "serpentarium": "They were left naked with this intervention by Cristina Kirchner"
Elisa Carrió said that "Cristina Kirchner is so destabilized that she already says stupid things"
