Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev and Deputy Prosecutors General Daniela Masheva, Plamena Tsvetanova, Krassimira Filipova and Desislava Pironeva held a video conference meeting with representatives of the European Commission responsible for the horizontal rule of law mechanism in connection with the forthcoming annual report on EU member states.
The leadership of the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Bulgaria expressed concern about the continuation of the systematic political pressure on the institution, which puts at risk the rule of law and the effective work of the independent judiciary.
During the meeting were discussed the consequences of the forthcoming closure of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office and the Specialized Criminal Court, which were established following recommendations in numerous reports of the European Commission.
The reduction of judiciary budget for 2022, adopted at the end of February by the National Assembly, was indicated as one of the risks for the activities of the Prosecution, which in practice violates its constitutionally guaranteed financial independence and the principle of separation of powers.
In the conversation with the representatives of the European Commission it was noted that the annual report on the activities of the Prosecutor’s Office for 2020 has not been discussed yet in the National Assembly and the report for 2021 is to be submitted.
Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev stressed the readiness of the Prosecutor's Office to actively participate in the implementation of a comprehensive reform of the judiciary, which will also respond to the recommendations addressed to Bulgaria by the Venice Commission, the Council of Europe and others, in the conditions of dialogue between the different authorities in order to ensure the stability and efficiency of the justice system in the country.