Skopje, 30 January 2025 (MIA) - At a working meeting Thursday, President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova and current and former members of the Pardoning Commission emphasized the need for a depoliticized and non-partisan pardoning procedure, as well as the adoption of a new law on pardoning.

President Siljanovska-Davkova clarified that the main reason for the meeting was the “undivided position of legalists” that the current law causes serious issues in the pardoning process and a new law is needed. 

According to the President, consulting with previous members of the Commission is necessary to identify the shortcomings and issues, and to note the resulting legal and institutional solution. During the four-hour debate, they concluded that pardoning is a human right of the convicted that must be respected and implemented and must be free from political or partisan influence. 

“Many of the former members of the Commission criticized the restrictive approach of pardoning. In that context, they proposed an increase to the scope of pardoning, both in terms of the number of pardoned convicts and in terms of the duration. All participants in the meeting believe the Commission should resist public pressure and be led by the justification of its pardoning decisions,” said the President’s Office in a press release.

According to the press release, the former members of the Commission highlighted the need to establish new mechanisms that would allow the Commission to independently gather information about the state of the convict and the degree of their resocialization, regardless of the nature and length of the sentence.

They stressed the need for a new law on pardoning that will consider the implementation of the current law, as well as comparative experiences and examples. The adoption of such a law should be preceded by an expert and broad public debate, they said. 

Photo: President's Office