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This decision was made by the conference after the last remote meeting, D. Žalimas proposed to remove these tribunals from the associate members of the conference due to incompatible and politicized decisions.
“The European Conference is based on the principle that only an independent court can be a member, and I think it is clear from the decisions that it will be difficult to talk about independence and also about a court based on the rule of law, democracy and respect. for human rights “. D. Žalimas told BNS
“It is clear from the decisions that these principles are not being followed, but rather that they are being acted upon,” he added.
The CC chairman also said that he later learned that the Russian Foreign Ministry had sent notes to almost all the countries’ constitutional courts that “we would not dare to examine this issue at all, as it is not online. with cooperation “. and similar spirit “.
“I have never before recalled that a political institution interfered so directly in the activities of the European Conference of Constitutional Courts,” Žalimas said.
Belarus Law on Mass Events is unconstitutional
According to him, the Constitutional Court of Belarus violated the principles by passing the Law on Mass Acts and related articles of the Code of Criminal and Administrative Offenses.
“It is because of this act, first of all, that I propose to remove the Constitutional Court of Belarus from the associate members of the European Conference,” said D. Žalimas.
According to the president of the Lithuanian CC, the Belarusian court also recognized the apparently rigged presidential elections as legal and announced their position, although no law allows them to do so.
“This (position – BNS) really has no legal basis in the Constitution, nor does the law in any way allow the Constitutional Court to adopt on its own initiative, I emphasize – formally it was on its own initiative, although we all understand that, – said Mr. Žalimas.
The removal of the Belarusian court from the conference is also proposed because it has declared the Coordinating Council unconstitutional, which, according to Mr Žalim, is the last possible measure of Belarusian civil society under the current circumstances.
Such a decision deprived the public of the only way to achieve change, as there is no legal way to challenge the officially announced election results.
“The position of the Constitutional Court of Belarus has influenced the fact that the members of the Coordination Council are now being persecuted and the participants of peaceful meetings are being persecuted,” emphasized D. Žalimas.
The CC of Russia has violated international principles since 2014
Referring to the decisions of the Russian Constitutional Court, D. Žalimas stated that the first of them, which mentions the principle of the rule of law and the norms of international law, was adopted in 2014, when the annexation of Crimea by Russia was justified.
“The case is unprecedented, never before has any Constitutional Court in the world been involved in such activities,” he said.
The Russian court, according to D. Žalimas, has also created grounds to ignore the rulings of international courts, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).
“When the ECHR ordered the release of Alexei Navalna and that decision is not being carried out, the basis for this was laid by none other than the Constitutional Court of Russia,” he said.
Another decision, which did not comply with any principles of international law, was enacted last year when the court justified amendments to the Russian Constitution, which provided for the possibility of Vladimir Putin serving as president for two more terms.
According to D. Žalimas, the court not only approved the amendments adopted in a different order from that provided for in the Constitution, but it did so “as a completely populist argument that is favored in such authoritarian countries”, as if that were the will of the NATION.
According to him, these amendments are incompatible with the principles of the rule of law and democracy and violate European rules on term limits.
“The Venice Commission has repeatedly said that if such a restriction is removed, it already represents a threat to authoritarianism. In this sense, the Commission has been very critical precisely of the provision entitled” ad hominem exception “for President Putin, which could apply to former president Medvedev … in practice allowing the current president to live, “said the president of the Constitutional Court.
The principles of constitutional law are also violated by the expanded powers of the president in Russia and the transformation of the Council of State into an executive authority, which violates the principle of separation of powers, he said.
A discussion on common standards is needed
According to Žalimas, after raising the issue of the removal of the Constitutional Courts of Russia and Belarus, it was decided that a broader debate was needed on what it means to be a member of the European conference, but because the meeting took place remotely, it was decided to keep him alive.
“I can only be glad that if I had really seen in the past that a minority would be inclined to discuss these issues in general for Russia and Belarus, now half of all members were inclined to discuss them remotely.” This shows that the attitude of the state constitutional courts towards the activities of both the Russian and Belarusian constitutional courts is really changing, “he said.
At the last meeting, this debate was supported by 17 out of 34 countries, who promised to do so even remotely.
Meanwhile, in 2015, when Lithuania raised the issue of considering the actions of the Constitutional Court of Russia, it received support from the constitutional courts of only seven states.
“Indeed, there is hope that the issue will move more actively, but this is already the task of the future president of the Constitutional Court of Lithuania. I am glad that, in general, we at least managed to establish a desire to discuss”, said D. Žalimas.
“The activities of constitutional courts, such as those of Russia and Belarus, discredit constitutional justice itself, we need to speak openly here,” he said.
The President of the Constitutional Court stressed that he considered it necessary to defend the position that no court can be a member of the Conference of European Constitutional Courts, but must adhere to common principles and values.
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