Selakovic, Frattini on Chapter 23

BELGRADE - Serbian Justice Minister Nikola Selakovic and special advisor to the government of Serbia Franco Frattini conferred Tuesday on the results achieved by the Justice Ministry so far and on preparations for the start of negotiations on Chapter 23, relating to judiciary and fundamental rights, the Ministry stated in a release.

Selakovic informed the former Italian foreign minister that the Serbian parliament adopted eight laws on judiciary last week, four of which were new while the remaining four included amendments and supplements.

The adoption of these laws completes the measures and tasks defined in the Action plan for the implementation of the National Judicial Reform Strategy 2013-2018, states the release.

Underlining the importance of implementation of action plans and strategies for the judiciary reform and the fight against corruption for a successful reform of the judiciary, Selakovic said that the bills on the High Judicial Council and the State Prosecutorial Council, prepared in cooperation with experts of the European Commission, will be placed before MPs in June.

The whistleblower protection bill, one of the key mechanisms in the fight against corruption, will soon be completed as well, added Selakovic.

Speaking about the next steps in the EU accession talks, Selakovic said that Serbia is waiting for the report on the bilateral screening on Chapter 23, which will be released in June, after which it will start preparing the Action plan for judiciary talks.

Frattini commended the Justice Ministry for the efforts it made so far, and stressed that Italy continues to support Serbia on its road to the European Union.

Pointing to the significance of opening the negotiations on...