The role of prosecutors in state of emergency

Tamara Manea

doi:10.52277/1857-2405.2021.1(56).08

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a global health crisis unlike any experienced for more than a century. The need for keeping social distancing and applying lockdown measures have resulted, in many instances, in the disruption of courts’ and prosecution services’ work, delays in proceedings and have impacted on procedural time limits and the suspension or reduction of legal aid, as well as public and community services. The measures have significantly affected international cooperation. The prosecutors have faced the challenge of making sure that, in the course of their work; the measures taken under public health emergency are used so as to protect people and not as a pretext for human rights infringements and those new legal measures are applied with strict respect for human rights obligations. The objective of Opinion nr. 15 is therefore to determine how prosecution services can, without hampering their functional autonomy, fulfill their mission with the highest quality and efficiency, respecting the rule of law and human rights, in the context of emergency situations, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic and their aftermath. This Opinion mostly does address the concerns of prosecutors to work as efficiently as possible, even under the most challenging circumstances, avoiding any unlawful or undue interference in their work and maintaining the highest quality in all their activities and strict respect for the law and human rights.

Highlights

The prosecutors have faced the challenge of making sure that, in the course of their work; the measures taken under public health emergency are used so as to protect people and not as a pretext for human rights infringements and those new legal measures are applied with strict respect for human rights obligations
The objective of Opinion nr. 15 is to determine how prosecution services can, without hampering their functional autonomy, fulfill their mission with the highest quality and efficiency, respecting the rule of law and human rights, in the context of emergency situations, the COVID-19 pandemic and their aftermath. This Opinion mostly does address the concerns of prosecutors to work as efficiently as possible, even under the most challenging circumstances, avoiding any unlawful or undue interference in their work and maintaining the highest quality in all their activities and strict respect for the law and human rights
La nivelul sistemului judiciar şi, în special, la nivelul parchetelor/serviciilor de urmărire penală, în Aviz se reţine că este necesar să fie păstrate standardele de etică şi profesionalism, fără niciun fel de compromisuri, chiar dacă măsurile dispuse pentru limitarea consecinţelor pandemiei se răsfrâng asupra activităţii judiciare

Summary

Introduction

The prosecutors have faced the challenge of making sure that, in the course of their work; the measures taken under public health emergency are used so as to protect people and not as a pretext for human rights infringements and those new legal measures are applied with strict respect for human rights obligations. Luând în considerare impactul asupra activităţii procurorilor şi responsabilităţile ce revin acestora în contextul situaţiei excepţionale determinată de pandemia de COVID-19, Consiliul Consultativ al Procurorilor Europeni a elaborat un set de recomandări cu privire la modul în care procurorii trebuie să acţioneze, subliniind faptul că acestea îşi pot găsi aplicabilitatea şi în alte situaţii de urgenţă.

Results

Conclusion