Slovak MPs will lose their criminal immunity

Slovak MPs will no longer enjoy immunity from criminal prosecution from September 1, after parliament passed the necessary amendments to the constitution and the Criminal Code. The scrapping of deputies’ criminal immunity was supported by all 144 MPs present in parliament. However, parliament will still have to give its approval before any MP suspected of a crime can be taken into custody, the TASR newswire reported.

Slovak MPs will no longer enjoy immunity from criminal prosecution from September 1, after parliament passed the necessary amendments to the constitution and the Criminal Code. The scrapping of deputies’ criminal immunity was supported by all 144 MPs present in parliament. However, parliament will still have to give its approval before any MP suspected of a crime can be taken into custody, the TASR newswire reported.

The draft amendments were prepared in cooperation with all parliamentary parties. MPs will now remain immune only as regards statements they make in parliament (including parliamentary committees) and their voting decisions.

The only citizens who still remain shielded from criminal prosecution are judges, but some have already called for this to change.

“I do not see any reason why one category of citizens should stand above the law,” said MP and former interior minister Daniel Lipšic, as quoted by the SITA newswire, adding that he does not know of any other country where “judges have such broad immunity”.

He added that judges should be immune only for their decisions and activities connected to their work.

Speaker of Parliament Pavol Paška said that discussion on this issue will be necessary, but hopes that cooperation between courts and the Justice Ministry will finally result in judges’ criminal immunity also being scrapped, TASR wrote.

Sources: TASR, SITA

Compiled by Radka Minarechová from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.

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