The Minister of Justice, Martín Soria, accused this Wednesday the Supreme Court of Justice of “going through the window” in the operation of the Council of the Magistracy and of “intervene politically” in that organism, when presenting in a plenary session of commissions of the Chamber of Deputies.
Soria considered that the Supreme Court’s decision to “reinstate a law repealed by Congress set a very serious precedent that directly threatens the division of powers” and said that “More than a legal decision, it is a political decision, implemented with the appearance of a judicial decision.”
The minister spoke in this way in the framework of an extensive plenary session of Constitutional Affairs commissions, chaired by Hernán Pérez Araujo (Frente de Todos); and Justice, Rodolfo Tailhade (Frente de Todos), where he spoke about the project to reform the Judicial Council, which lasted until after 3:30 p.m.
“If they want to do politics, they should take off their toga as each one of us does in each of our cities”Martin Soria
“It is necessary that we advance once and for all in sanctioning and putting an end to this mess that the Supreme Court has generated” regarding the Judicial Council, the official emphasized.
In this sense, Soria affirmed: “If they want to do politics, they should take off their toga as each one of us does in each of our cities”, pointing out that “Congress cannot endorse this Court ruling, because it would be setting, without a doubt, a precedent contrary to the Constitution.”
Regarding the project to reform the Council of the Judiciary, the minister considered that the text approved by the Senate “is unobjectionable”, affirming that the initiative “does not exclude the representation of any judicial body and guarantees harmony, gender parity and the balance between each of the estates” of the organism.
“It is about knowing if we all want a Council of the Judiciary that works more equitably, that is less corporate or, on the contrary, if they want to concentrate power in the hands of a few people or in one person,” said the minister.
Meanwhile, Soria reiterated that the text of the Executive Power, approved with changes by the Senate, “is a project that is totally open for discussion, so that deputies can incorporate contributions and considerations.”
He also recalled that in 2017, during the government of Mauricio Macri, “a similar project” was presented to reform the Council of the Judiciary and maintained: “It is striking that some want to erase with their elbow what they wrote with their hand,” in reference to the legislators of Together for Change.
In this framework, the PRO deputy, a member of the Council of the Judiciary, Paul Tonellimaintained that “without a doubt the best solution is a new law” and considered that “the presidency of the Court in the Council is working efficiently”.
In her turn, the deputy of the Federal Interbloc, Graciela Camanoalso a member of the Council of the Magistracy, considered that the Supreme Court “has to be in the Council of the Magistrature and has to have a role because it is the one who has the best observation regarding the administration and the regulations”, to the once he stated that “the law as it is is unconstitutional and poorly drafted”.
“If they want to question me, they summon me, they invited me to speak about a bill, I came to talk about the Council of the Judiciary”Martin Soria
Meanwhile, from the Civic Coalition (CC)Juan Manuel Lopezaffirmed that “we are not going to agree on an institutional reform with the Frente de Todos: we are not accomplices of a force that qualifies the judiciary as a judicial force.”
At the end of the meeting, deputies from Together for Change asked Soria for explanations about the crew of the Venezuelan plane that landed in Argentina on June 6, to which the Minister of Justice stated: “If they want to question me, they summon me, invited to speak about a bill, I came to talk about the Council of the Judiciary”.
How is the discussion going?
After the minister’s presentation, the ruling party will continue to search for consensus to obtain the approval of the project, since according to the scenario that occurred in the Senate vote, it is not enough for him with his own deputies to advance with the opinion and the consequent vote in the chamber.
The project promoted by the government raises from 13 to 17 the number of members of the Judicial Council and creates four regions within the body, which will meet periodically inside the country, with the goal of providing it with greater federalism.
In this way, if the project of the Executive Power advances, the Council would be expanded again, after in December of last year the Supreme Court declared the unconstitutionality of the conformation of 13 members that had been ordered in 2006.
In that resolution, the highest court granted Congress a period of 120 days to pass a law that establishes a new structure for the body in charge of proposing magistrates to be appointed by the President, administering the Judiciary, controlling the activity of the judges and eventually sanction them and send them to impeachment.
The term expired on April 15 without the ruling party being able to put the issue up for debate, among other issues due to the lack of formation of commissions.
For this reason, the Council began to be structured weeks ago with the composition of 20 members and has already had meetings with the new composition, headed by the president of the Supreme Court of Justice, Horacio Rosatti.
