For umpteenth time in recent years a judicial ruling is coming to turn government policy around. The separation of powers provided by the Constitution, as a safeguard against the executive’s arbitrary actions, allows the judiciary to determine whether the laws and Constitution are being upheld. The condition is that the decisions are interpreted and supported by substantial legal arguments, with a sense of responsibility rather than political or ideological biases.
The State Council’s justification for suspending the operation of shops on Sundays is a typical example of dubious legal substantiation and invocation of ostensible arguments. With what evidence, with what criteria did the judges decide that retailers and employers will “suffer an obvious and necessarily irreparable moral harm”? The second moral argument cited by the judges is even worse, that the measure affects the right to leisure, spend time with one’s family and the right to worship…
Clearly, the judges separate the people into two categories: those who can work on Sundays – drivers, doctors, taxi drivers, waiters, journalists and so forth – and those who must enjoy their Sundays… They also claim religious worship, ignoring the fact that while most people may be Christian Orthodox, not all of them practice their religious duties and there are many other religious beliefs and even atheists in the country…
The ambiguous or legally dubious judicial decisions may be welcomed by the relevant interest groups they affect, but in essence they harm the judiciary’s authority and subvert its independence. In the condition that our country is, it needs institutions that respect their role and rise above the corporatist, local or other interests and or obsessions. Justice has been harmed enough as it is by its servants abuse, it does not need to suffer any longer from decision that conflicts with the common sense of justice…
TO VIMA
