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A protester tapes a sticker with the words `I`m protesting`, on the police shield, during the protest against Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov`s decision on wiretapping amnesty, in Skopje, Macedonia, 13 April 2016. Photo EPA/BGNES
The European Commission has expressed its concerns over the decision of Macedonia’s Presigent Gjorge Ivanov to pardon politicians suspected of involvement in last year's wiretapping scandal and condemned Wednesday’s violent opposition protests.
The EU executive has also called on all Macedonian political leaders to resume negotiations in order to implement the EU-brokered political agreement, MIA news agency reported on Thursday.
“We are […] seriously concerned by the decision of President Ivanov to pardon a high number of officials and politicians who are subject to criminal investigations,” the Macedonian news agency quoted Commission spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic as saying at a press briefing in Brussels.
“This decision risks producing a climate of impunity, it undermines the rule of law […] and it can also exacerbate the existing protracted political crisis.”
Kocijancic also said that the decision undermined the work of the special prosecutor charged with investigating the serious systemic issues in Macedonian politics.
“The work of the Special prosecutor must continue”, Kociajancic said, according to MIA.
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