Under the organization of the Constitutional Court of Georgia a working Meeting of the Presidents of the Member Constitutional Courts of the Association of Constitutional Justice of the Countries of the Baltic and Black Sea Regions was held on April 3rd – 4th , 2018 at the Hotel “Vinotel” in Tbilisi.
The event was attended by the Acting President of the Association of Constitutional Justice of the Countries of the Baltic and Black Sea Regions and President of the Constitutional Court of Georgia Mr. Zaza Tavadze, President of the Constitutional Court of Lithuania Mr. Dainius Žalimas, Secretary General of the Constitutional Court of Lithuania Ms. Ingrida Danėlienė; Judges of the Constitutional Court of Moldova Mr. Aurel Băieșu and Mr. Veaceslav Zaporojan, President of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Mr. Stanislav Shevchuk and Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Mr. Ihor Slidenko.
Besides the organizational issues of the 3rd Congress of the BBCJ to be held of May 16-17 2018 in Tbilisi the following discussions took place at the meeting:
On 22 February 2018 the President of the Constitutional Court of Georgia Zaza Tavadze, as Acting President of the Association of Constitutional Justice of the Countries of the Baltic and Black Sea Regions (BBCJ) received the letter from the President of Constitutional Tribunal of Poland Julia Przylebska expressing willingness to become the member of the BBCJ. In the application it is highlighted that the Constitutional Tribunal shares the aims outlined in the Declaration on the Establishment of the Association and its Statute, and would like to have the opportunity to contribute to the activity of the Association and to gain new experience, inter alia, in matters of constitutional justice.
On the 3rd of April, at the working meeting of the BBCJ it was unanimously decided, as of 16 May 2018, to admit the Constitutional Tribunal of the Republic of Poland to the Association of Constitutional Justice of the Countries of the Baltic and Black Sea Regions.
Moreover, at the meeting of April 4th the Association of Constitutional Justice of the Countries of the Baltic and Black Sea Regions adopted the Statement on Condemning and Persecuting Aggression and Violation of Human Rights in the Occupied Territories of the BBCJ Countries.
In the given statement the special attention is given to the Resolution of the Parliament of Georgia, of March 21 2018, on the Gross Violation of Human Rights on the Occupied Territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia/Tskhinvali Regions of Georgia by the Russian Federation and on the “Otkhozoria-Tatunashvili List”, in which it is condemned the occupation of the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) by the Russian Federation as well as gross violations of human rights of Georgian citizens in the occupied regions; the fact that on March 6 2018 the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine has instituted criminal proceedings against the judges of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation for their involvement in committing aggression against Ukraine and the Declaration of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, of July 21 2017, on the withdrawal of Russian military forces from the territory of the country, in which it, inter alia, declared that the continuous stationing of the troops of the Russian Federation violates the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, in particular the constitutional provisions on the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and permanent neutrality of the Republic of Moldova, as well as international law. The latter Declaration followed and was in line with judgment No. 14 of 2 May 2017 of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova.
The BBCJ welcomes and strongly supports the efforts of Georgian, Moldovan and Ukrainian authorities in condemning the Russian Federation for the aggression and assault on sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia, Republic of Moldova and Ukraine as well as violation of human rights in the occupied territories thereof, and in persecuting those responsible for these crimes and calls on other constitutional justice institutions not to remain indifferent to aggression and other international crimes.
