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Greco Eval IV Rep (2013) 7E H F O U R ‘[/ T Adoption: 20 June 2014 Public Publication: 25 June 2014 Greco Eval IV Rep (2013) 7E H E FOURTH EVALUATION ROUND V A L Corruption prevention in respect of members of U parliament, judges and prosecutors A T I EVALUATION REPORT O N CROATIA R O Adopted by GRECO at its 64th Plenary Meeting U (Strasbourg, 16-20 June 2014) N D 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................................... 4 I. INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................... 5 II. CONTEXT .................................................................................................................................................. 7 III. CORRUPTION PREVENTION IN RESPECT OF MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT .................................................. 9 OVERVIEW OF THE PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM ................................................................................................................. 9 TRANSPARENCY OF THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS ............................................................................................................... 9 REMUNERATION AND ECONOMIC BENEFITS ................................................................................................................. 10 ETHICAL PRINCIPLES AND RULES OF CONDUCT .............................................................................................................. 11 CONFLICTS OF INTEREST .......................................................................................................................................... 12 PROHIBITION OR RESTRICTION OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES ................................................................................................... 13 Gifts ............................................................................................................................................................. 13 Incompatibilities and accessory activities .................................................................................................... 13 Financial interests, contracts with State authorities ................................................................................... 14 Post-employment restrictions ...................................................................................................................... 14 Misuse of confidential information and third party contacts ...................................................................... 15 Misuse of public resources ........................................................................................................................... 15 DECLARATION OF ASSETS , INCOME , LIABILITIES AND INTERESTS ....................................................................................... 15 SUPERVISION AND ENFORCEMENT ............................................................................................................................. 16 ADVICE , TRAINING AND AWARENESS ......................................................................................................................... 19 IV. CORRUPTION PREVENTION IN RESPECT OF JUDGES ............................................................................... 21 OVERVIEW OF THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM .......................................................................................................................... 21 RECRUITMENT , CAREER AND CONDITIONS OF SERVICE ................................................................................................... 24 CASE MANAGEMENT AND PROCEDURE ....................................................................................................................... 26 ETHICAL PRINCIPLES , RULES OF CONDUCT AND CONFLICTS OF INTEREST ............................................................................. 27 PROHIBITION OR RESTRICTION OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES ................................................................................................... 29 Incompatibilities and accessory activities, post-employment restrictions ................................................... 29 Recusal and routine withdrawal .................................................................................................................. 29 Gifts ............................................................................................................................................................. 30 Misuse of confidential information and third party contacts ...................................................................... 30 DECLARATION OF ASSETS , INCOME , LIABILITIES AND INTERESTS ....................................................................................... 30 SUPERVISION AND ENFORCEMENT ............................................................................................................................. 31 ADVICE , TRAINING AND AWARENESS ......................................................................................................................... 33 V. CORRUPTION PREVENTION IN RESPECT OF PROSECUTORS .................................................................... 36 OVERVIEW OF THE PROSECUTION SERVICE .................................................................................................................. 36 RECRUITMENT , CAREER AND CONDITIONS OF SERVICE ................................................................................................... 38 CASE MANAGEMENT AND PROCEDURE ....................................................................................................................... 39 ETHICAL PRINCIPLES , RULES OF CONDUCT AND CONFLICTS OF INTEREST ............................................................................. 40 PROHIBITION OR RESTRICTION OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES ................................................................................................... 42 Incompatibilities and accessory activities, post-employment restrictions ................................................... 42 Recusal and routine withdrawal .................................................................................................................. 42 Gifts ............................................................................................................................................................. 42 Misuse of confidential information and third party contacts ...................................................................... 42 DECLARATION OF ASSETS , INCOME , LIABILITIES AND INTERESTS ....................................................................................... 43 SUPERVISION AND ENFORCEMENT ............................................................................................................................. 43 ADVICE , TRAINING AND AWARENESS ......................................................................................................................... 44 VI. RECOMMENDATIONS AND FOLLOW-UP ................................................................................................. 46 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. On 1 July 2013, Croatia joined the European Union. In the run-up to accession, Croatia made significant efforts to adapt and step up its legislative and institutional frameworks to meet those of its EU counterparts. It is now time to absorb the changes, as well as to effectively embed them in working practices and culture. On the anticorruption front, a dedicated Strategy and Action Plan has been in place since 2008 and continues to be updated and monitored – through joint oversight by Government, Parliament and civil society organisations – on a regular basis. The establishment of the Office for the Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime (USKOK), in 2001, constitutes a key milestone of the process, which has led to an increasing number of successful prosecutions and asset confiscations, including some of a high political profile. 2. Despite the many encouraging steps taken, and the attention paid to public involvement and scrutiny in the pace of reform, Croatian citizens perceive corruption to be a major problem. This negative perception is particularly troublesome with respect to the judiciary and politicians. The notion of conflict of interest is not always well understood as there is a tendency to associate it with incriminating behaviour. Moreover, there have been some conflict of interest instances which were not, in citizens’ eyes, satisfactorily resolved. The Commission for the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest has an important role to play in providing tailored guidance and advice on the applicable rules and the rationale behind them, as well as in promoting self-governance and compliance within distinct areas of public service. 3. Regarding members of the Croatian Parliament ( Sabor ), measures have been introduced to enhance the transparency of their work and public participation in the legislative process. A culture of prevention and avoidance of possible conflicts of interest needs to be fully rooted in the Sabor : a code of ethics must be adopted and internal mechanisms for self-control and responsibility must be articulated in-house. Since most of the scandals affecting the Sabor have been detected for MPs who were also mayors (and the corrupt deals had taken place in relation to the local mandate), special attention would need to be devoted to integrity matters that may emerge when developing this dual function. Safeguarding
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