SkopjeDiem Macedonia in English
On Wednesday, Parliament, at a plenary session, adopted the changes to the Criminal Code. Prior to the adoption, there had been a lot of reactions. First, at a committee debate, it was Deputy Justice Minister Viktorija Madic that tried to justify the changes to the Criminal Code. According to unofficial information, Minister Krenar Lloga disagrees with the changes that will reduce prison sentences for abuse of official position and criminal association.
As VMRO-DPMNE MPs pointed out, Government members are preparing themselves for the period when they will not be in power. With the changes, they added, even those found guilty over the Oncology Clinic case will get reduced sentences.
On the other hand, SDSM parliamentarians said the long, “19 th -century-type” sentences were not a solution in the fight against crime. When it comes to BESA, Alternative, and Democratic Movement, they said the changes would result in the statute of limitations expiring over almost all crimes over which ex-PM Nikola Gruevski was charged.
The EU Delegation said it was considering the draft-changes and still couldn’t comment on the use of the European flag. However, it once again pointed to the general rule that the use of the procedure should be limited to proposals aligning domestic legislation with EU norms and standards.
