ZAGREB, May 14 (Hina) - Transparency International Croatia (TIH) said in a press release on Friday any pressure on courts, regardless whether in connection with the publication of confidential documents or paid advertisements, brought
into question the objectivity of the judicial authority and increased the likelihood of corruption.
ZAGREB, May 14 (Hina) - Transparency International Croatia (TIH) said
in a press release on Friday any pressure on courts, regardless
whether in connection with the publication of confidential documents
or paid advertisements, brought into question the objectivity of the
judicial authority and increased the likelihood of corruption.#L#
Said pressure is particularly dubious when the public is given
incomplete information relevant in a case and not all the data the
court had when ruling on a case, since this may create the impression
that the court is biased, the press release read.
TIH maintains that the publication of transcripts of conversations
involving persons suspected of wrongdoing influences public opinion
and questions the justifiability of court decisions.
The media's right to publish information at its disposal is beyond
question, as is the need to establish who leaks confidential
information, the press release said.
TIH recalls that an independent and effective judiciary is fundamental
for combating corruption and contributing to a society's progress, and
that the prerequisite for removing problems in judicial performance is
raising the level of transparency of the entire system, which TIH says
will provide every citizen with access to court rulings.
The TIH press release came in the wake of yesterday's publication of
transcripts of a conversation involving former foreign minister Mate
Granic, who was suspected of bribery. The Zagreb County Court decided
against investigating him due to insufficient evidence.
Speaking to reporters in Zadar earlier today, Justice Minister Vesna
Skare-Ozbolt too slammed the publication of the transcripts.
(Hina) ha