Judges are banned from speaking to the media. Unless, that is, you are a member of the Supreme Judiciary Council that issued the ban, Mona El-Nahhas reports During a meeting with judges working for Minya, Sohag and Assiut courts, Moqbel Shaker, head of the Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) and chief justice of the Court of Cassation, denied that there were any real differences between the state and judges. "A few judges may have different views yet they are not in confrontation with the state," Shaker said during last week's meeting at Assiut Judges Club. Judges should not, he said, speak to the media or appear on TV satellite channels since doing so compromises respect for the law. Shaker referred to an earlier decree issued by the SJC banning judges from speaking to the media or commenting on state policies. "Any judge violating the decree will be immediately summoned and referred to the judicial inspection department," he said, warning that the law will be applied without exception. "We are, in the first place, judges. Our aim is to deliver justice and not to talk about politics." Rifaat El-Sayed, head of Assiut Judges Club, agrees with Shaker, calling for the decree to be put into immediate effect. Commenting on court rulings which are still not final, especially in cases that are of public concern, is not permissible, Shaker continued. Doing so, he said, was a crime. He also pointed out that the prosecutor-general has the legal authority to refer anyone who criticises court rulings to trial. Shaker's comments came in the wake of the court ruling acquitting businessman Mamdouh Ismail of responsibility for the deaths of 1,034 passengers who drowned when Al-Salam 98, a ferry which he owned, sank in the Red Sea two years ago. The ruling shocked the public, many of whom believe Ismail's connections with senior government officials allowed the wealthy businessman to avoid conviction. Legal experts and lawyers representing the victims' relatives criticised the court for ignoring much of the evidence presented by the prosecutor-general. Reformist judge Hesham Bastawisi believes the real aim behind Shaker's warnings is to prevent criticism of court rulings of which the public disapproves and which might otherwise raise questions over the independence of the judiciary. A more constructive approach, argues Bastawisi, would be to attempt to restore public trust in the exercise of the law by clearly separating the judiciary and the executive. Mahmoud El-Khodeiri, a former chairman of the Alexandria Judges Club, agrees. The solution, he says, lies in an independent judiciary, over which the executive authority has no control. El-Khodeiri refuted Shaker's arguments, insisting that commenting on court rulings even when they are not final, is permissible as long as the comments do not constitute an insult to the judge who passed the ruling or question the integrity of the court panel. According to El-Khodeiri, comment must be based on legal grounds. He told Al-Ahram Weekly that if asked to comment on a court ruling he would certainly do so. El-Khodeiri also pointed out that Shaker is hardly setting an example when it comes to observing the SJC decree about not speaking to the media. "This month Shaker has already appeared as a guest on two TV satellite programmes," he said, adding that the real aim behind Shaker's comments was to silence anyone who dared criticise the authorities.
