Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Viktor Gorodovenko is in Strasbourg (France) where he is participating in the work of the 23rd plenary meeting of the Consultative Council of European Judges (CCJE) as a member of this body. During the CСJE meeting, it is planned to consider and adopt Opinion No. 25 (2022) on the freedom of expression of judges.
For reference: the Consultative Council of European Judges (CCJE) is a consultative body set up by the decision of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in 2000. The overall mission of this consultative body is to strengthen the role of judges in the Member States of the Council of Europe. In establishing the CCJE, the Council of Europe paid primary attention to the status of judges and the quality of the justice system, the rule of law and the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, to the issues of a strong independent judiciary, mutual respect between the legislative, executive and judicial authorities, strengthening confidence in the justice system. CCJE is the only body within an international organisation that is composed entirely of judges, and therefore is unique in Europe.
During the visit, on November 29, 2022 judge of the Constitutional Court Viktor Gorodovenko and Judge of the Supreme Court Yehor Krasnov held a working meeting with the judge of the ECtHR in respect of Ukraine Mykola Gnatovskyy. During the meeting, the interlocutors discussed the issues of changes in the legislative regulation of the activities of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, in particular, the improvement of the competitive selection of candidates for the positions of Constitutional Court judges, procedural and organisational activities of the Constitutional Court. The judges also placed their focus on the impact of the conventional practice of the ECtHR on the decisions of the Constitutional Court, by concentrating on the best examples of the application of this practice.
Judge Mykola Gnatovskyy informed about the latest ECtHR case law, including cases against Ukraine. The parties expressed their confidence that the application of the ECtHR case law in the decisions of the Constitutional Court and courts of general jurisdiction will have a positive impact on the protection of human and citizen’s rights in Ukraine, thus making it possible to get closer to European standards.
The same day, the judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Viktor Gorodovenko and the judge of the Supreme Court Yehor Krasnov had a meeting with the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the Council of Europe Borys Tarasiuk. The diplomat reported on the activities aimed at international isolation of the aggressor country russia. In particular, he informed about the decision taken by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to exclude russia from the Council of Europe due to aggression against Ukraine, as well as about the Resolution adopted by the European Parliament on 23 November 2022 recognising russia as a state sponsor of terrorism. The judges also informed the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the Council of Europe about the efforts made by the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and the Supreme Court to ensure the supremacy of the Constitution of Ukraine and the administration of continuous and proper justice in Ukraine, despite the martial law.
During the meeting, Deputy Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the Council of Europe Viktor Nikitiuk spoke about the cooperation of the Permanent Representation with the Venice Commission and the measures taken to increase the role of the rule of law in the Member States of the Council of Europe. The participants of the meeting emphasised the importance of continuing fruitful cooperation with the Venice Commission, which is the key to further European integration of Ukraine.
