February 28, 2023, 7:30 PM
February 28, 2023, 7:30 PM
More than fifty personalities of the artistic, cultural and political world issued a statement in which They ask for citizen support for the signing of the books that deployed the group of independent jurists who sponsor a referendum to change the rules for the election of high judicial authorities.
“We express our support for the Great Citizen Crusade by Justice, and the call for a referendum on partial reform of the Constitution, within which changes are made effective in the selection and appointment procedure of the members of the national high courts, based on professional and personal merits, qualified in a public tender and sufficiency tests by an autonomous and credible technical body”, indicates the central part of the pronouncement published by the 56 personalities who sign this letter.
On January 23 of this year the group of jurists began a campaign to collect signatures throughout the country, The goal is for the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) to call a referendum to amend the Constitution State Policy (CPE) regarding the election of magistrates to the Supreme Court of Justice, the Plurinational Constitutional Court, the Judicial Council and the Agro-environmental Court.
“We call on citizens from all over the country, (…) who identify with the imperative to rescue and transform justice; to participate in an active and organized manner in the collection of signaturesin the work centers, in the neighborhoods, districts and rural communities, in order to gather the number of signatures required for the call for the National Referendum for Justice”, indicates another part of the letter.
The Government and the MAS rushed to evict this initiative citizen and described it as the rearticulation of opponents of the Government. The MAS hurried in the Assembly to meet with the members of the TSE to see times and deadlines that allow the pre-selection of candidates for magistrates.
The Magna Carta provides that the current authorities of the Judicial Branch remain in office for six years and in November of this year that term is fulfilled, therefore, new candidates must be chosen. Lawyers try to stop this process and hold the referendum before and then go to judicial elections.
However, the masismo already elaborates three alternatives to choose the magistrates this year, they even raised the presentation of a “short law” that allows the Executive to appoint interim magistrates until the Assembly reaches the necessary consensus.
“The citizens who signed this declaration are convinced of the paramount importance of putting an end to the subjugation of justice to political power and to initiate a process of reform of the judicial system, under the principles of independence, impartiality, suitability, integrity and service to society”, states the letter of the signatories.
The former mayor of La Paz, Juan del Granado, reported that the 5,000 books made available to the population over 18 years of age in the first month, another 5,000 books were enabled, completing the 10,000 with a capacity of collect 1.5 million signatures in three months.
