Majority Submits No-Confidence Motions against Five Judicial Council Members

The ruling majority has submitted no-confidence motions against the five members of the Judicial Council elected by Parliament (Vesna Dameva, Milazim Mustafa, Tanja Cacarova-Ilievska, Pavlina Crvenkovska, and Selim Ademi).

The main reason, its MPs explained on Friday, is the low level of confidence in the judiciary, corruption within judicial organs, EU criticism precisely over the Council’s work, and Parliament’s negative evaluation on the institution’s work in 2023.

PM Hristijan Mickoski has said that if the motions are successful but the members do not resign, his hope is that they will do so due to public pressure. SDSM, on the other hand, has adhered to its stand that what’s actually needed is a working group within the legislative house that will work on judicial reforms through consensus.

PM Hristijan Mickoski has extended a hand to the reaction. However, he believes the dismissal process should be carried out jointly.

DUI representatives, off the record, have said the party is against the motions because the EU’s peer review mission didn’t recommend dismissals, which is why such a step could endanger the 750 million euros from the Growth Plan. Levica, on its part, has filed draft-changes to the Criminal Code concerning accountability of judges responsible for abuse of office.

The motions can enter parliamentary procedure in 20 days at the earliest. However, even if a no-confidence motion against a member is successful, that doesn’t mean they will automatically be removed from membership. Mustafa’s term expires in July, while those of Ademi and Dameva expire in December.