Podgorica, (MINA) – Judicial independence is not a privilege of judges, but a guarantee for citizens that their rights, freedoms and legal security will be protected exclusively on the basis of law and facts, said Supreme Court President Valentina Pavlicic.

Pavlicic made this remark at the Conference of Presidents of Supreme Courts of Central and Eastern Europe in Skopje, where she participated as both moderator and speaker in a session dedicated to judicial independence.

The Supreme Court announced that the the session addressed the most important challenges faced by modern judicial systems, mechanisms for protecting the institutional autonomy of courts, the relationship between independence and responsibility, as well as the experiences of countries in the process of vetting the integrity of judicial officials.

Pavlicic, addressing the representatives of the European judicial community, said that

justice must not depend on current political circumstances, but exclusively on law and human dignity, and that it is the duty of judges to, guided by law and conscience, remain steadfast in the face of all forms of political, institutional and social pressure.

“She especially emphasized that judicial integrity is not only a professional duty, but a value on which the public trust in the judicial system rests, while impartiality is one of the fundamental conditions for preserving the authority of the law and ensuring justice”, the press release said.