At a press conference earlier today, Human Rights Monitoring Institute presented findings and conclusions of the trial observations conducted by HRMI in 2005-2006. Henrikas Mickevicius, HRMI Executive Director, and representatives of the civic movement Citizens Cluster, Jonas Kronkaitis and Romas Sakadolskis, addressed numerous questions related to the Lithuanian judiciary.
The Trial Observation project aimed at evaluating the implementation of the right to fair trial in Lithuania was carried out in 2005-2006 in four cities and regions of the country. Over 100 HRMI interns observed and evaluated 50 criminal trials in accordance with the original methodology and questionnaire designed by HRMI experts.
“Conclusions of the project are genuinely worrying,” said Henrikas Mickevicius. “Under the Lithuanian criminal procedure, it is the pre-trial investigation phase that is decisive for the outcome of the case. Not judges but procesutors and investigators collect and assess the evidence. Court trials merely serve as a means to, at best, verify the evidence in the case-file presented by the prosecution. Even more, judges often demonstrate a critical attitude toward attempts by the defense to introduce new evidence at the trial phase and show displeasure and aggravation when witness testimony differs from testimony recorded by the pre-trial investigation officers. Courts clearly favour evidence collected during the pre-trial investigation and often disregard evidence produced in the court room."
It is noted that judges behave as if they are acting on behalf of the prosecution rather than acting as an impartial arbiter.
General Jonas Kronkaitis, retired Commander of the Lithuanian Army, and journalist Romas Sakadoslkis have emphasized that the judges' bias towards prosecution explains the ingrained public mistrust of courts. Mr. Kronkaitis and Mr. Sakadolskis warned that judicial bias creates the impression of corruption.
Speakers have expressed their conviction that courtrooms are the place where all relevant evidence is examined. H. Mickevicius has called for immediate legislative and organizational measures to avert this intolerable practice.
For more information (in Lithuanian) see the internet portals Delfi, Omni, internet daily Bernardinai.
© 2012 Human Rights Monitoring Institute