[ad_1]
In ancient Rome, the people’s courts enjoyed special protection to be able to freely exercise their functions. Punishment and even execution awaited whoever broke this rule. The EU legislation knows the institution of immunity since 1965, according to which
Members of the European Parliament shall not be subject to any type of investigation, judicial proceeding or arrest for the opinions expressed or the votes cast by them in the performance of their duties.
The immunity of Members of the European Parliament primarily protects Parliament as a democratically elected institution. Immunity allows Parliament to maintain its independence, free from external pressure, to guarantee freedom of expression and fulfill its obligations as a deputy.
It is interesting that Chief Prosecutor Péter Polt wrote a doctoral thesis entitled “Parliamentary immunity as an obstacle to criminality” in 2010. Dissertation VI. Chapter (“Immunity in the European Parliament”) deals specifically with cases where the EP has granted a request for suspension. These cases can be divided into three groups:
- acts that pose an increasing threat to the democratic rule of law or to the individual;
- defamatory crimes;
- cases in which the violation of criminal or administrative law is, on the one hand, clear and, on the other, cannot be linked to any political activity of the Member.
In the case of the two groups mentioned above, the criterion is that the act or omission of the deputy in question must not be linked to the political activity carried out within the framework of Parliament.
– wrote Péter Polt in his dissertation.
In other words, parliamentary immunity does not protect illegal parliamentarians from justice. If Parliament considers it appropriate, it may request the waiver of the immunity of a Member. Nor can immunity be invoked in cases where a Member is caught in the act of committing a crime.
The Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament will specify how the immunity of a Member can be waived:
- A request addressed to the President by the competent authorities of a Member State that the immunity of a Member be waived will be announced in Parliament. Every Member shall have the right to defend his immunity.
- The EP Committee on Legal Affairs recommends the adoption or rejection of the application to maintain immunity and privileges. The committee can ask the authority concerned to justify its request.
- The committee may issue a reasoned opinion on the competences of the interested authority and on the admissibility of the request, but in no case will it declare the guilt or innocence of the deputy or if the opinion or the acts attributed to him justify a criminal process.
- The report of the commission will be debated by the deputies in the next part-session, which will then be put to a vote in the first vote after the debate.
- The President shall immediately notify the Member concerned and the competent authority of the Member State concerned of the Parliament’s decision.
However, neither can one ignore the fact that MEPs are elected on the basis of the electoral laws of their Member State. Therefore, when they are on the territory of their own state, they enjoy the same immunities and privileges as members of the parliament of their country.
(Cover image: Detail of the European Parliament building complex. MTVA / Commissioner: József Balaton)
[ad_2]
