In an interview for mediapool.bg BILI’s Program Director, Mr. Hristo Ivanov, is criticizing the Supreme Judicial Council for its complete lack of interest towards the communication and relations to the Civic Council thereto. “It [the new civic council] was not a result of a deliberate effort to maintain dialogue. All members of the Judicial Council do not take into account the need to consider the issues, raised by the civic council. Besides the wish, they lack the administrative capacity to maintain the dialogue”, says Hristo Ivanov.
“There were propositions to raise the transparency within the SJC, but it didn’t happen. From the very beginning this SJC has been more a source of potential risks than one of hope that anything could happen. Too grand ambitions shouldn’t be placed upon it. Those who wish to exercise pressure on the SJC will do it anyway. They don’t need any pro forma body such as the civic council”, adds Mr. Ivanov.
“The civic council is as effective as the SJC has the authentic will to open up and start partnering with the civil society. Otherwise, it’s just a sham body which has an overall strategy to pretend to do something.” He also sees problems in the actions of the NGOs. “We manage to raise certain issues, but we are not good enough in keeping them alive. We are lacking the reflex. It is very important that we can work in a coalition, but such is hard to build,” says BILI’s representative. He thinks most people have no idea how hard it is for such civic councils to work. “People have no idea. It consumes incredible time resources to work effectively. Sooner or later members need not only say what should be done, but also come up with solutions and hand them cut and dried. There is no other way that things could work.”
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