The German Judges’ Association has called on the future coalition government to better protect the judiciary against authoritarian forces. “The improved protection of the Federal Constitutional Court against targeted political interference can only be a first step” said Sven Rebehn, the executive director of the Judges’ Association, to the newspapers of the Funke Media Group (Sunday editions).
“It is becoming increasingly clear that further initiatives are needed to make the rule of law weatherproof and to secure the independence of the judiciary against illiberal forces’ attempts to interfere” Rebehn warned. He specifically warned against a political misuse of prosecution. “The outdated directive power of justice ministers for investigations by the public prosecutor’s office is poison for people’s trust in an objective criminal justice system” said the federal executive director.
The new federal government should follow the example of Austria and remove the justice minister from the chain of command in prosecution. “In the wrong hands, a political interference right in specific criminal cases would be fatal” said Rebehn.
The Judges’ Association also urges the new government to regulate the appointment of judges in a new way. The process must be designed so that it cannot be politically instrumentalized. “To ensure this, strong co-determination rights for the judiciary in appointments and promotions are needed” Rebehn demanded.