ODIHR promotes strengthening independence of Ukraine’s judiciary

Identifying ways to strengthen the independence of Ukraine's judiciary was the focus of a two-day conference co-organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on 20-21 December 2011 in Kyiv.

State officials, judges, representatives from the judicial administration and civil society as well as local and international experts, including those from the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission, came together to develop recommendations for helping ensure a transparent judicial administration, merit-based selection and professional training of judges, fair performance evaluation of judicial staff and improved overall accountability.

“Building a strong judiciary that enjoys trust of society and is immune to undue influence and interference from political institutions or politicians is directly linked to ensuring the independence and public accountability of judges,” said Serhiy Holovaty, the Chair of Ukraine’s Commission for Strengthening Democracy and Rule of Law.

Discussions at the conference highlighted the Kyiv Recommendations on Judicial Independence in Eastern Europe, South Caucasus and Central Asia, a document compiled by a group of experts from 19 OSCE participating States in June 2010 in Ukraine’s capital.

“The added value of the Kyiv Recommendations is that they provide to participating States specific and pragmatic suggestions for strengthening the independence of their judiciaries,” said Benjamin Moreau, the Chief of ODIHR’s Rule of Law Unit. He added that ODIHR seeks to support governments in their reform efforts and offers a wealth of expertise and best practices from the entire OSCE region.

The conference was organized by ODIHR in co-operation with the U.S. Agency for International Development and the National Commission for Strengthening Democracy and Rule of Law.