The Union of Judges in Bulgaria called on the Supreme Judicial Council /SJC/ to immediately dismiss Ivan Geshev, Yasen Todorov and Borislav Sarafov from their positions in the Prosecutor’s Office, in order to ensure an objective, comprehensive and complete investigation of the facts and circumstances of the already initiated proceedings for early release from position. They also want all members of the SJC to resign and leave the Council, as the responsibility for appointing the three to these positions was entirely and undoubtedly theirs. This is stated in a position of the union distributed to the media, which also states:
„We call on the Inspectorate of the Supreme Judicial Council to carry out an inspection, within the framework of its legally defined competence, both of the facts and circumstances presented by Ivan Geshev, Borislav Sarafov and Yasen Todorov, and of their overall activity as administrative heads of the prosecution and the investigation.“
The union shared its conviction that there is a need for a change in the current Constitution in the part of the judiciary concerning the structure of the Prosecutor’s Оffice; the existence, functions and powers of the figure of the Prosecutor General; the composition and constitution of the Supreme Judicial Council, the powers of the colleges and the Plenum of the Council; the introduction of workable procedures both for the control of the activities and for the investigation of the Prosecutor General and his deputies in case of a crime. The Association is ready to provide expert assistance and to participate actively in the drafting of the necessary legal framework related to the above, in line with good European and global practices.
„We sincerely hope that fellow prosecutors and investigators will find an appropriate form to express their intolerance towards another act of discrediting the authority of their profession,“, the position also states, in which it is also written:
„The Union of Judges in Bulgaria expressed its strong disapproval of the actions of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) and the current leadership of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Bulgaria in the latest and biggest crisis so far, caused by the behavior of the Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev, his deputy and head of the National Investigative Service Borislav Sarafov, as well as the latter’s deputy – Yassen Todorov. These actions not only do not contribute to strengthening the authority of the judiciary, but on the contrary – they themselves become demonstrative proof of the severely compromised independence of the judiciary, which discredits its ability to resist political, partisan and personal influences. We have repeatedly, unequivocally and reasonedly stated, including before the election of Ivan Geshev as Prosecutor General, that he is absolutely unfit for this post due to his complete lack of the professional and moral qualities required by law. Therefore, we are not surprised by his numerous actions which are unacceptable in terms of ethical norms and professional standards. We note with great regret that the discrediting of Ivan Geshev has gone far beyond his personality and the figure of the Prosecutor General and has deeply affected the credibility not only of the Prosecutor’s Office as an institution called upon to fight crime impartially and competently, but also of the entire judicial system, insofar as the Prosecutor’s Office is still part of it…“
In the meantime, the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office has circulated a position of its management „in connection with numerous comments circulated in the public space about impartial conduct of inspections under the Judicial Power Act and investigations under the Criminal Procedure Code regarding actions of persons holding senior public positions“, namely:
„The Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office is the only competent prosecutor’s office in the country to carry out checks and investigations against persons with immunity, magistrates, members of the Council of Ministers, as well as for crimes against the republic. The management of the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office declares that each prosecutor fulfills his official duties in a principled, responsible and objective manner, as required by morality and the law.
We firmly believe that no prosecutor has been and will not be influenced in deciding cases by statements of persons holding high public positions.
The leadership of the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office declares that within the framework of its legal powers the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office will not allow any overstepping of the aforementioned or their use for purposes outside the criminal proceedings, much less for creating public sentiment in one direction or another towards specific facts and persons.“
