Even the Law of Salaries Towards Constitution, Deposess to the Ombudsman

The Kosovo Institute for Justice today has filed with the ombudsman for the start of investigations into human rights violations and initiative at the Constitutional Court of the NR Law. 08/ L-196 for Salaries in Public Sector.

Through this request, The IKD has asked the Ombudsman's Institute to proceed according to its constitutional and legal competencies to prosecute the NR Law. 08/ L-196 Salaries in the Public Sector for assessment of constitutionality in the Constitutional Court. With the aim of protecting citizens' basic constitutionality and rights and freedoms, the ombudsman's response to this situation is necessary. Through this letter, the IKD requires the ombudsman to address this issue and in line with constitutional and legal competencies to initiate the NR law. 08/ L-196 for Salaries in the Public Sector for assessment at the Constitutional Court” is said in IKD's request.

IKD on December 22nd 2022 has published the “Pages analysis in the Public Sector”. In this analysis, IKD findings point to serious constitutional problems of the already NR Law. 08/ L-196 for the Salaries in the Public Sector.

The IKD has found that the Law violates the legal security of public sector employees, failing to determine the monetary value of the cofficients. As for lowering wages, the Law has set adequate rules for protecting officials from lowering salaries. But IKD has found that the Law protects these rules only for the future, but that it does not apply to the past. This is because the Law in question does not have an adequate solution in relation to public sector officials who are negatively affected by this Law.

Although this Law has not determined the monetary value of the cofficient, its general spirit (such as its. Determining provisions on transital surpluss and some of the reports is seen as a tendency to reduce the salaries of judges and prosecutors. In this case, The IKD draws attention that lowering the salaries of judges and prosecutors in this situation is contrary to demands stemming from the Act. CO219/19 and contrary to the Venice Commission's opinions, which have already created practice and international standards, in relation to salaries in the judicial and prosecutorial system.

In some other cases, The IKD has found that the Law contains provisions that present inequitable treatment of public sector officials, indicating that it poses violations of Article 24 of the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo. And so, The IKD has found the Law contains provisions that violate the functional independence of the justice system, which violates the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo.