SLOVAKIA’s ombudswoman Jana Dubovcová filed a disciplinary complaint with the Supreme Court against a judge of one of Bratislava’s district courts. It is the first time in 12 years of the existence of the office that the ombudsman has used this authority, the TASR newswire reported.
Dubovcová’s complaint concerns a judge who did not allow a voice recording to be made during a court session.
“The judge at a public court session conditioned the use of an audio recording with the agreement of the court and later delivered a written announcement about not granting the agreement to use [the recording],” said the ombudswoman’s spokesperson, Alena Kuišová, as quoted by TASR.
Dubovcová maintained that by doing so the judge violated the basic right of a person’s access to information, guaranteed by the Constitution, and she claimed that the judge acted “in contrast with the principles of a democratic state and the rule of law”, TASR quoted.
The ombudswoman is proposing a disciplinary measure resulting in a 50-percent cut in the judge’s salary for three months.
Source: TASR
Compiled by Michaela Terenzani from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
