Tag: justice

The Ukrainian prosecution will press murder charges against the country’s former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko in two weeks time, Deputy Prosecutor General Renat Kuzmin, who is responsible for her case, announced yesterday (9 May). 

The EU has gained valuable experience in recent years in achieving visa-free travel for the citizens living in its neighbourhood. After the countries of the Western Balkans, the next on their way toward achieving visa-free travel are its eastern partners, with Russia, Ukraine and Moldova leading the way. However, this goal is unlikely to be achieved in the short term.

Bulgaria passed a new law yesterday night (3 May) allowing the treasury to confiscate private assets that cannot be validated by a legal source of income, reported Dnevnik, EurActiv's partner publication in Bulgaria. The measure marks a further step in the country's attempt to win the EU's confidence in its judiciary system.

Greece cannot control its borders without the cooperation of its Turkish neighbour, Greek Minister for Citizen Protection Michalis Chrisochoidis told the European Parliament on Wednesday (25 April), denouncing France's lack of solidarity on the matter and Turkey's attempts at "blackmail".

Central and Eastern European countries, long lands of emigration to the West, are beginning to see these flows reverse as economic growth and opportunity shift eastwards, argues Stratfor.

In a joint letter to the Danish EU presidency, French and German Interior ministers have asked to repatriate powers from the EU Commission, which would allow them to re-establish border controls for people travelling from Greece.

The inaugural meeting of the European Parliament's new "mafia" committee took place on 17 April, bringing to fruition a longtime push by Italian MEP Rosario Crocetta, who has been under police protection since 2002 due to his activities against Sicilian organised crime.

An Albanian politician who faces 40 years in prison on drug convictions in Italy was arrested on 9 April in his country, but in the meantime has been able to get house arrest without police supervision. Commission sources expressed regret for this lax treatment, but said the EU executive could not comment court decisions. 

Vlaams Belang, a Belgian far-right party, launched a website today (10 April) that invites people to report crimes committed by illegal immigrants, mirroring a similar site in the Netherlands set up by the far-right Freedom Party.

To avoid being expelled from the EU border-free Schengen area, Greece is accelerating construction of prison-style asylum centres, putting it at odds with court rulings in other countries that asylum seekers shouldn't be treated as prisoners. Greek authorities defend the plans, citing similar facilities in France and Spain.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who faces an uphill battle for re-election, realises he cannot win without "accepting the ideas" of the far right, a leading MEP told a Brussels audience yesterday (21 March).

The Venice Commission, a Council of Europe body specialised in constitutional matters, found yesterday (19 March) "numerous problematic elements" in the laws regulating Hungary's judicial system and even called for amending the country's new constitution. 

EU leaders need to have a high-level political debate on the surge of 'xenophobia' and anti-European attitudes that threaten integration, Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Răzvan Ungureanu said during his first political visit to Brussels yesterday (15 March).

The top French official responsible for immigration said the EU should build a wall along the 130-kilometre Greek-Turkish border, comparing it to the one between the USA and Mexico.

Germany and Austria called on Greece yesterday (8 March) to tighten immigration controls, saying that other countries in the European Union may be forced to reinstate border checks if Athens did not act.

EU citizens living in a different country than their own will be able to choose which legislation applies when their heirs settle legal inheritance matters,  effectively preventing legal disputes between courts.

National and EU-level cooperation on civil protection needs improvement if it is to deliver quicker crisis response such as during the cold wave that swept Europe, says Kristalina Georgieva, humanitarian aid and crisis response commissioner. She spoke in Rome to EurActiv.it.

Viviane Reding, European Commission vice president responsible for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, has vigorously condemned a website launched by a xenophobic Dutch party that collects complaints against Polish, Romanian and Bulgarian nationals who cause "nuisance" to society.

The Commission unveiled yesterday (8 February) its latest reports on the progress of Romania and Bulgaria in stepping up law enforcement and the fight against corruption. The EU executive also called on civil society to help accelerate reforms in the two countries.

A dire debate within the European Commission risks delaying once more the publication of a comprehensive package on the review of data protection rules. After significantly working out the original text, the only remaining opponent seems to be EU Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström.

Slovak politicians head into March elections embroiled in a massive corruption probe prompted by the publication of an alleged intelligence file code-named 'Gorilla'. It suggests that members of leading political parties colluded with financiers in privatisation and public procurement projects. EurActiv Slovakia reports.

European Commissioner for Trade Karel De Gucht is under investigation for the purchase of a house in Italy, Belgian authorities have confirmed.

Europe’s socialist and liberal party leaders have hit out at Hungary’s controversial new constitution, demanding that the country and its ruling Fidesz party be ostracised.

Public services provision in Europe is set to be radically liberalised from bureaucracy but will at the same time come under more scrutiny from the EU executive following two proposals tabled by the European Commission yesterday (20 December).