The head of Lebanon’s Higher Judicial Council, Judge Jean Fahed, said that the Lebanese judiciary “is fine and there is no fear over justice because of some judges’ decision to suspend their work for reasons related to preserving their financial independence.”
In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Fahed underlined that the Council was committed to the Judiciary’s moral and financial independence, adding that there would be no disturbing reasons that could lead the judges to submit individual or collective resignations.
Only one-quarter of judges are functional in the country after the majority of them decided to suspend their work in light of the government’s proposals to cut their benefits, within a series of austerity measures to be included in this year’s state budget. Their decision means that thousands of judicial cases will remain frozen unless the government omits the cuts of benefits for the judiciary.
Fahed told Asharq Al-Awsat that the budget crisis was settled and was awaiting Cabinet’s approval in its upcoming session.
“Things are moving positively and there is no crisis between the political authority and the judiciary,” he stated.
“The judges on strike are waiting for the government’s final approval of the draft budget. They will suspend their strike soon, probably in the next few hours. We were briefed on the draft-budget by the minister of Justice and the things are positive,” he underlined.
The president of the Higher Judicial Council admitted that the Judiciary contributed to the treasury’s revenues.
“We heard from His Excellency the President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, convincing words that the financial and economic situation is difficult and this forces all state departments to make sacrifices and contribute to saving the country,” he remarked.
“The judiciary is part of this state and will contribute as much as it can, but, on the other hand, we are committed to preserving the social security of the judges,” he stressed.
Commenting on concerns over the lack of guarantees that effectively protect the independence of the judiciary, Fahed said that the Judicial Council “established a committee of senior judges to draft a new law guaranteeing the independence of the judiciary and provides the necessary assurances to enable the Higher Judicial Council to conduct judicial appointments, without the political power’s ability to interfere in them.”
On whether the austerity measures included in the draft-budget would actually threaten the social contributions of judges, such as educational grants and health coverage, Fahed explained that these contributions were provided by the cooperative fund dedicated to supporting the judges and which was fully independent.
