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The Implementation and Protection of the Principles of the Rule of Law in Georgia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine

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The Implementation and Protection of the Principles of the Rule of Law in Georgia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine THE IMPLEMENTATION AND PROTECTION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF THE RULE OF LAW IN GEORGIA, THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA, THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA, AND UKRAINE 2016 Published within the framework of the project “Assistance to the Constitutional Courts of Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine in Ensuring the Implementation and Protection of the Principles of the Rule of Law”. The project is financed under the Development Cooperation and Democracy Promotion Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania. Edited by: Prof. Dr. Dainius Žalimas President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania Dr. Ingrida Danėlienė Secretary General of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania (Project leader) Dr. Ieva Saudargaitė Judicial assistant of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania (Coordinator of project activities) This publication is a compendium of reports from the International Conference of the Justices of the Constitutional Courts of Georgia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine (Vilnius Forum), held in Vilnius on 24–25 October 2016, and the relevant material – the doctrine of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania, the jurisprudence of the Constitutional Courts of Georgia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine, and certain reflections on the application of the principles of the rule of law following the analysis of questionnaire responses carried out by the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania. ISBN 978-9955-688-28-0 © The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania, 2016 CONTENTS Foreword by President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania Dainius Žalimas ........................................................................... 4 Photos from the Vilnius Forum .............................................................. 6 I. Reports delivered at the Vilnius Forum “The Constitutional Principle of Respect for International Law” Report by President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania Dainius Žalimas ..........................................................................10 Report by Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Yuriy Baulin (in English) ..................................................................21 Report by Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Yuriy Baulin (in Russian) ..................................................................27 “The Right to a Fair Trial” Report by Justice of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania Elvyra Baltutytė ..........................................................................33 Report by Justice of the Constitutional Court of Georgia Lali Papiashvili ...........................................................................41 Report by President of the Constitutional Court of Georgia (2006–2016) George Papuashvili .......................................................................48 “The Constitutional Principle of the Separation of Powers” Report by Justice of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania Gediminas Mesonis .......................................................................51 Report by President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova Alexandru Tănase and Justice of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova Tudor Panțîru ............................................................................58 Photos from the Vilnius Forum .............................................................65 II. Relevant doctrine of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania On the principle of a state under the rule of law ...............................................70 On the principle of respect for international law ..............................................89 On the right to judicial protection and the right to a fair trial ....................................98 On the principle of the separation of powers .................................................120 III. Relevant jurisprudence of the constitutional courts Jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court of Georgia .........................................136 Jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania .........................148 Jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova ..........................176 Jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine .........................................192 IV. Certain reflections on the application of the principles of the rule of law (presented at the Vilnius Forum by President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania Dainius Žalimas) ........................................................................201 4 FOREWORD Exactly one year ago, Vilnius witnessed the opening of a novel phase in the cooperation between the Constitutional Courts of the Republic of Lithuania and three European Union’s Eastern Partnership countries – Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine. On 26 October 2015, the Association of Constitutional Justice of the Countries of the Baltic and Black Sea Regions was established. The Association was founded in order to institutionalise the long-standing cooperation between the constitutional courts, as well as to promote and strengthen the motivation of the partner countries to participate in joint activities, with hope that the new regional cooperation of constitutional courts would open opportunities for Lithuania and other Member States of the European Union to even more actively contribute to the strengthening of democracy, the rule of law, and respect for human rights in the Eastern Partnership countries. It is expected that such cooperation will help generate new initiatives, which will ensure firm and consistent support for Eastern partners that have chosen the European integration. In 2016, through the means of the Development Cooperation and Democracy Promotion Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania, this institutional partnership gained new – even greater – quality. In the course of the implementation of the project financed under this programme, an international conference of the judges of the Constitutional Courts of Georgia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine – the Vilnius Forum – was held in Lithuania in late October 2016. One of its aims was to discuss common problems of the constitutional courts of the partner countries in ensuring compliance with the principles of the rule of law. Accordingly, it is with great pleasure that I present to you the results of the final activity carried out within the framework of the project “Assistance to the Constitutional Courts of Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine in Ensuring the Implementation and Protection of the Principles of the Rule of Law” in the form of this compendium. It includes reports and other useful material from the Vilnius Forum. The conference discussed the constitutional principle of respect for international law, the right to a fair trial, and the constitutional principle of the separation of powers, analysed the problems faced by the constitutional justice institutions of the European Union’s Eastern Partnership countries in ensuring respect for the principles of the rule of law, and sought solutions to these problems. I am convinced that all the activities carried out within the framework of this project fulfil the need of genuine, timely and, therefore, effective cooperation between the Constitutional Courts of the Republic of Lithuania and the Eastern Partnership countries of the European Union. It is more than necessary to endorse such states as Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine, which are close to us in their destinies. We are united not only by the obligation to respect and protect the same European democratic values, but also by similar history and comparable present-day issues. 5 The implemented project was a successful and much needed continuation of our cooperation, which is closer than is usually the case, as the Constitutional Courts of Georgia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine are bound together not only by a working partnership, but also by friendship based on common values. This is also determined by the fact that all constitutional courts participating at the Vilnius Forum are also partners in common initiatives, firstly, the so-called Batumi process, and are, thus, not indifferent to their obligation to foster such mutual values as respect for the independence and territorial integrity of states, democracy, the rule of law, and human rights. I strongly believe that today these joint activities – with the added value of the recently implemented project – lay a solid foundation not only for further meaningful partnership, but also for the more effective implementation and protection of the principles of the rule of law in the Baltic and Black Sea Regions. Dainius Žalimas President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania Dainius Žalimas and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania Linas Antanas Linkevičius welcome the participants of the Vilnius Forum (Vilnius, 24 October 2016) 6 Photos from the Vilnius Forum Participants of the Vilnius Forum (starting from left): Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Yuriy Baulin, President of the Constitutional Court of Georgia Zaza Tavadze, President of
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