EU:n komissio arvioi Suomen oikeusvaltiotilannetta
30.9.2020 | OikeusuutisetOsana eurooppalista oikeusvaltioselvitystä komission raportissa on esitelty ja arvioitu myös suomalainen oikeusvaltio:
The Finnish justice system is characterised by a consistently high level of perceived judicial independence among both businesses and the general public. The recent creation of an independent National Courts Administration, which has taken over tasks concerning the management of the courts from the Ministry of Justice since January 2020, aims at further strengthening the independence of the judiciary. In addition, a recent restructuring of the National Prosecution Service aims at improving its effectiveness and consistency in prosecution practices. Certain challenges regarding digitalisation of the justice system remain.
According to surveys,Finland is perceived as one of the least corrupt countries in the EU and the world. The country relies on an administrative culture of transparency and openness in order to combat corruption. Finnish public institutions have built a reputation for transparent administration and a reliable and functional corruption prevention framework. Setting up a dedicated Government strategy to fight corruption has been under discussion for several years but its adoption is still pending. There are currently no specificrules to regulate contacts of top executive functions with third parties and lobbyists and there are no reporting or disclosure requirements applicable to those who seek to influence Government actions and policies. However, work on measures for increasing ethics and transparency is ongoing. Finland is currently taking steps with regard to regulating lobbying and limiting ‘revolving doors’. In March 2020, a parliamentary Working Group was set up to establish a transparency register related to lobbying withthe aim to supplement the legislation on openness of Government and strengthen administrative transparency.
A high level of press freedom in Finland is internationally recognised. The tasks and powers of the media regulatory authority are ensured by law, although it reports some challenges regarding resources. While no media-specific rules governing transparency of media ownership currently exist, a reasonable level of transparency exists in practice through voluntary disclosures and general publicity rules for limited liability companies. The Government is considering a reform for further extending the constitutionally guaranteed access to documents. In addition, the Government has started to reflect on measures to protect journalists more effectively fromunlawful threats and targeting online, a phenomenon detected in recent years. No physical threats towards journalists have been reported.
The process for enacting legislation involves a multi-step procedure with impact assessment and consultation procedures. For recent reforms relating to the justice system, an inclusive process involving the judiciary has been followed. Furthermore, a reform process is currently ongoing to clarify the partially overlapping mandates of the Chancellor of Justice and the Ombudsman, two key independent authorities involved in safeguarding fundamental rights. In this regard, a legislative proposal is planned to be presented to Parliament in autumn 2020. A National Democracy Programme has been launched to further improve the framework for civil society and participatory democracy.