Strasbourg Court Rules Authorities Wrong To Terminate Former Top Judge’s Mandate

(MTI) – The European Court of Human Rights on Tuesday ruled in favour of the former President of the Supreme Court, Andras Baka, declaring that the Hungarian authorities had wrongly terminated his mandate before it had expired, thereby violating his basic human rights.

Government spokesman Andras Giro-Szasz said that the government would assess the Strasbourg ruling and make a decision – if necessary.

Several opposition parties welcomed the Strasbourg ruling.

Baka’s mandate as President of the Supreme Court was terminated early after the new Constitution was introduced and the Supreme Court was replaced by the Kuria. Under the new legislation, Baka was unable to seek legal remedy.

In line with the concurring opinion of one of the judges attached to Tuesday’s statement, the court concluded that the “early termination of the applicant’s mandate as President of the Supreme Court was a reaction against his criticism and publicly expressed views on judicial reforms and thereby constituted an interference with the exercise of his right to freedom of expression”.

Justice Minister Tibor Navracsics told parliament at the time that Baka was not eligible to be president of the Kuria, a new body replacing the Supreme Court on Jan. 1, as he failed to meet the legal criterion of having served as a judge in Hungary for five years.

Baka was member of the Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights from 1991 to 2008. He was nominated for Chief Justice by then President Laszlo Solyom in April 2008. Parliament elected him in a third round of voting in June, 2009.

Under a cardinal law the head of the Kuria is to be nominated by the president of the republic from among judges with at least five years of experience in Hungary, and elected by two thirds of MPs for a nine-year term.