Politically Motivated Justice : Authoritarian Legacies and Their Role in Shaping Constitutional Practices in the Former Soviet Union

The book addresses authoritarian legacies of politically motivated justice and its unwritten practices that have re-emerged in the recent trials related to both political and ordinary criminal charges against prominent opposition leaders in many former Soviet republics. Taking into account that in any country all trials are more or less related to politics, the author differentiates between trials on political issues (political trials that are not necessarily arbitrary) and politicized partisan trials (arbitrary trials against political opponents). The monograph, thus, adopts a broad definition of a political trial, which includes all trials that are related to politicians and political matters such as elections, regime change, activities of parties and other political organizations. The focus lies on a separate group of partisan trials that are politicized (i.e. politically motivated) and which are used by governments to restrain political opposition and dissent. Primarily aimed at legal practitioners such as human rights lawyers, prosecutors, and judges, as well as postgraduates, researchers, teaching assistants and university law professors, readers can gain from the book information that is useful in assessing the interdisciplinary phenomenon of politically motivated criminal justice in transitional and authoritarian post-Soviet republics. Additionally, the volume is indispensable to readers that are interested in Eastern European Studies, Transitional Justice, Law and Society, Slavic Studies, and Theory and History of State and Law. Artem Galushko is a post-doctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity in Germany. The book addresses authoritarian legacies of politically motivated justice and its unwritten practices that have re-emerged in the recent trials related to both political and ordinary criminal charges against prominent opposition leaders in many former Soviet republics. Taking into account that in any country all trials are more or less related to politics, the author differentiates between trials on political issues (political trials that are not necessarily arbitrary) and politicized partisan trials (arbitrary trials against political opponents). The monograph, thus, adopts a broad definition of a political trial, which includes all trials that are related to politicians and political matters such as elections, regime change, activities of parties and other political organizations. The focus lies on a separate group of partisan trials that are politicized (i.e. politically motivated) and which are used by governments to restrain political opposition and dissent.00Primarily aimed at legal practitioners such as human rights lawyers, prosecutors, and judges, as well as postgraduates, researchers, teaching assistants and university law professors, readers can gain from the book information that is useful in assessing the interdisciplinary phenomenon of politically motivated criminal justice in transitional and authoritarian post-Soviet republics. Additionally, the volume is indispensable to readers that are interested in Eastern European Studies, Transitional Justice, Law and Society, Slavic Studies, and Theory and History of State and Law Preface Introduction Contents About the Author Abbreviations 1 Phenomenon of Politically Motivated Justice and Its Relevance for the Rule of Law in the Former USSR 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Definitions and Classifications of Politically Motivated Trials 1.3 Relevant Theories of Constitutional Law 1.4 The Phenomenon of ‘Twofold Constitutionalism’ and Its Legal Orders 1.5 Interplay Between Written (Formal) and Unwritten (Informal) Constitutions 1.6 Steps to Be Taken to Dismantle the System of ‘Twofold Constitutionalism’ 1.7 Research Methodology 1.8 Jurisdictions Chosen for My Research 1.9 Overview of Selected Jurisdictions 1.9.1 Austria 1.9.2 Germany 1.9.3 Ukraine 1.9.4 Belarus 1.10 Conclusions References 3 Authoritarian Legacy of Twofold Constitutionalism and Its Informal Practices of Politicized Justice in the Former Soviet Republics 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Germany 3.2.1 The Trial of the Former German President Christian Wulff 3.2.2 Latest Proceedings to Ban the National Democratic Party (NPD) in 2017 3.3 Austria 3.3.1 The Case of Susanne Winter 3.3.2 The Case of Ernst Strasser 3.4 Ukraine 3.4.1 The Trial of the Former Ukrainian Prime-Minister Yulia Tymoshenko 3.4.2 The Trial of the Former Ukrainian Minister of Interior Yuri Lutsenko 3.5 Belarus 3.5.1 The Trial of Mikalai Statkevich 3.5.2 The Trial of Andrei Sannikov 3.6 Prima-Facie Criteria to Assess Politically Motivated Justice 3.7 The Role of the Council of Europe in Preventing a Relapse into Politicized Justice 3.8 Conclusion References Conclusions Index