Macedonia Judge Accuses Minister of Political Pressure

Judge Jordan Mitrinovski claims that the minister has pressured him over the past three years.

“I refused to comply with several unlawful requests coming from Manevski… and this is how he revenges,” Mitrinovski told reporters on Monday.

Manevski has not responded to the allegations.

Mitrinovski's allegations come as the Supreme Court on Monday asked the Judicial Council to dismiss the top judge and his colleague Ismajil Limani over a controversial case involving a major tobacco smuggler.

Last week Mitrinovski and the Appeals Court granted an appeal that allowed Macedonian tobacco smuggling boss Bajrush Sejdiu, sentenced in March to five years in prison on tobacco smuggling charges, to be transferred to house arrest.

In its ruling, the Appeals Court said it decided to allow the request to transfer Sejdiu to house arrest with a bail of almost one and a half million euros because the verdict against him is not a final verdict.

On Friday the Public Prosecution requested and the Supreme Court annulled the house arrest ruling from the Appeals court. The Judicial Council then announced it would review the work of the Appeals Court.

Gordan Kalajdziev, a law professor at the Skopje-based St. Cyril and Methodius University, told Balkan Insight that the Appeals Court in this case did nothing wrong.

“The Supreme Court made a mistake and suspended the right to appeal. In this case the Public Prosecutor, the Supreme Court and the Judicial Council became mere tools in the hands of the executive power,” Kalajdziev said.

He argues that with the quick annulment of the Appeals Court ruling, the Supreme Court “suspended the rule of law and human rights”.

The head of the Supreme Court, Jovo Vangelovski, admits for Balkan Insight that they made a “technical mistake” when they reached a “ruling” and not a “decision” for the annulment of the house arrest appeal.

But he said that their decision still stands.