Judges issue urgent call for state help
Warning that the justice system is nearing collapse due to a huge case backlog and acute personnel shortages, Greece’s judiciary yesterday urged the government to take corrective action over the next month. In a resolution passed following the Athens annual conference of Union of Judges and Public Prosecutors (EDE) on Saturday, EDE urged the government to «take measures that will lead to the solution of problems in the sector of justice» by January 10. Otherwise, EDE said, it will hold a press conference «to inform the Greek people» on the problem, «and explain why judges are not responsible for the system’s poor functioning.» «The administration of justice in matters of civil and criminal law is subject to excessive delays to the extent that, in many cases, we approach the point where justice is denied,» EDE said. «The inordinately high work burden has exceeded the limit of our human abilities. The pressure exerted on us to issue decisions even faster may have an adverse effect not only on ourselves but especially on those standing trial.»
