The independence of the judiciary is guaranteed by the Constitution, and reforms will ensure the fulfillment of this principle in practice, Markovic told the assembly. Everyone must be responsible for their actions, he added.
Koca Pavlovic, the representative from the Movement for Changes (PzP) party, criticized a recent decision by an appellate court in which two men were sentenced to three years in prison for smuggling three kilograms of cocaine.
“When someone gets three years in prison for smuggling cocaine, it is reasonable to think the judge is corrupt. There can be no fight against organized crime when the judiciary is [riddled with corruption]” said Pavlovic.
Markovic replied that he doesn’t have the authority to initiate an investigation into these court rulings, but that he will request information about them, as a member of the Judicial Council.
Pavlovic asked Markovic if he will support a PzP motion to change the law on drugs, making the penalty for drug smuggling between ten and twenty years in prison.
Markovic replied that changes in the law are pending, and that he is sympathetic toward PzP’s motion.
Currently, sentences for narcotics smuggling in Montenegro range from two to ten years in prison.
