The PSOE asks that the Judiciary rule on the legal reform
of the Judiciary, he 20 December. LUIS SEVILLANO
For the PP, universal justice “is not effective” and “it promises a lot”, but it achieves nothing but diplomatic conflicts”, as explained yesterday by his spokesperson in Congress, Alfonso Alonso. That's why They propose eliminating any possibility of action by the Spanish justice system outside the national territory, through a bill that will be processed urgently in the Congress of Deputies. The proposal has been drafted by the Ministry of Justice headed by Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón to respond to requests from governments such as China after the National Court issued an order of search and capture against five members of the Beijing nomenclature.
Spain is at the forefront in the world in this universal jurisdiction, even after was pruned in 2009 with an agreement between the PSOE and the PP. Affects to cases like the death of Telecinco cameraman José Couso in Iraq, the torture in Guantanamo or the genocide cases in China and Rwanda. All those summaries that are investigated in the National Court should be archived when the reform of the Organic Law of the Judiciary is approved. Judges, Prosecutors and opposition reject it because they understand that it represents a setback.
“It is good that we review it and adapt our regulation to what is common in International Law”, Alonso assured. He only left the door open for the text to be qualified by ensuring that they will also analyze “the impact it has on the issues that are currently open and that could be affected.”.
The Government has preferred to leave the reform in the hands of the PP so that it is processed more quickly and, above all, to avoid the request for reports to the General Council of the Judiciary, the Fiscal Council and the Council of State. With this, the processing time is reduced to a minimum and it is only necessary to wait for the 30 days provided by law for the Government to make allegations. This route is so unusual that in the last two years of the legislature it is the first bill of the Popular Group.
The spokesperson for the Socialist Group, Soraya Rodríguez, yesterday in Congress he presented a document in which he asks the Board to forward it to the General Council of the Judiciary, chaired by Carlos Lesmes, to issue a report. It is based on the article 561.1 of the Organic Law of the Judiciary. This provision ensures that “preliminary bills and general provisions that deal with modifications to the Organic Law of the Judiciary” will be submitted to the Council for a report..
The socialist spokesperson invokes a precedent of 1997 in which a report was requested from the Council on a proposal for an Organic Law Regulating Criminal Precautionary Protection that was presented by the PNV. Now, The socialists claim that in the 30 days in which the Government must report on the PP initiative, be used for the Judiciary to issue a ruling.
It so happens that, otherwise, It would be the second time that a report on this matter has been evaded. If this happens, the Council will never have ruled on the phasing out of universal justice.
The Congress Board must study the request of the socialists. Also the requests from PSOE and IU for the Minister of Justice to appear in the Chamber, the attorney general of the State and the president of the Judiciary to establish their position.
The leader of IU, Cayo Lara, He regretted yesterday that the PP Government wants to “suppress what little remains of universal justice”. “It allows us to act anywhere in the world against crimes or direct attacks against fundamental rights.”, as in the Pinochet case. We do not understand that at this point, in the 21st century, “go backwards like crabs”, he added.
