The Minister of Justice, Igor Filkov, announced in an interview for the Plusinfo that the Ministry of Justice will soon come up with a short legal solution for amendments to the existing Criminal Code, which should remove the harmful consequences of the legal amendments to the Criminal Code from 2023.
"The definition of the criminal offense "Abuse of the official position and authorities" is of essential importance for the functioning of the justice system, but also for the fight against corruption and misuse of public functions. I agree that the current description of this criminal offense may create questions regarding its application, especially when it comes to its broad applicability and the potential for abuse in the context of politically motivated actions.
What is crucial is to provide a clear and precise definition, which will not only determine the abuse of official position but also minimize the risks of its abuse for political or other unfounded purposes. That is why it is important to make a distinction between real crimes and the norms that are used to exert illegal pressure on individuals.
As a solution to this issue, the Ministry of Justice is working on a short legal solution for amendments to the Criminal Code, which should remove the harmful consequences of the legal amendments to the Criminal Code from 2023.
The tendency is to improve the provisions on legal entities and tighten the penal policy, by increasing the existing penalties for the criminal offenses of "abuse of official position and authority". It is also planned to expand the scope of criminal offenses for extended confiscation, as well as incorporate some new criminal offenses that are the result of modern society and technology. But for this, a fully formed legal solution will be presented to the Government of the Republic of Macedonia very soon", said Filkov.
Regarding the new Criminal Code, Filkov expects it to be adopted in 2025.
"Our goal is to have an efficient and modern Criminal Code, which will respond to the needs of society and the justice system. I expect the new Criminal Code to be adopted in 2025. It has been translated into English, and the process of preparing the corresponding tables is being completed, as an obligation of the bilateral screening for Chapter 23.
The new Criminal Code should be harmonized with European policies in the field of combating organized crime and corruption. All of our legislation will be harmonized with the applicable directives and international conventions, for which it is necessary to secure a positive opinion from the European Commission.
As for the novelties that could be expected in the Criminal Code, there will be changes that will modernize and improve existing procedures, as well as clarification and detailed regulation of certain criminal offenses. One of the key issues is the improvement of sanctions for serious crime, especially for economic crime and corruption, which is in line with the efforts to fight corruption and organized crime.
In addition, there are new criminal offenses related to financial crimes, including the practice of confiscation of property acquired through criminal acts, which will contribute to greater effectiveness in the fight against corruption and organized crime.
It should also be emphasized that the new Criminal Code will be designed in a way that will increase legal certainty and it will improve the protection of human rights, especially in the area of procedural rights of accused and convicted persons”, emphasized the Minister of Justice, Igor Filkov.
In this interview, Minister Filkov also talked about the US blacklist, reforms in the Judicial Council, prisons, the need for a new Pardon Law, and the fight against corruption.
Watch the full interview at the following link:
