Judicial reforms recently passed by the Lebanese parliament are a step in the right direction but ultimately “fall short,” said Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a statement issued on Friday. The Lebanese Parliament passed a law regarding the organization of the judiciary on August 7. The new law evolved from the introduction of draft legislation in 2018, produced by a coalition of legal NGOs. It will come into effect in January 2026.
The law contains multiple provisions to increase judicial independence. These include “expand[ing] the participation of judges in judicial electoral processes, allowing judges to nominate themselves to various judicial positions, and strengthen[ing] judicial self-governance.” The law further enshrines judges’ rights to freedom of expression, provides strict criteria for when a judge can be removed from their position, and makes organizational changes to the Supreme Judicial Council to bolster oversight of the judiciary and their independence from the executive branch.
HRW, however, highlighted worrying provisions, such as Article 42 on the Office of Public Prosecution. This article stipulates that the head public prosecutor may “request that lower-level prosecutors stop ongoing legal proceedings,” potentially interfering with investigations. The group also expressed concern over the process by which the law was passed, with contention over the accuracy of the vote counting and the inclusion of amendments that parliamentarians were not given time to review. The law has been further criticized for ignoring recommendations from NGOs and the Venice Commission, and thereby failing to meet international standards on judicial independence. The Venice Commission is the advisory group for the Council of Europe on constitutional matters and made its most recent recommendations for the draft law in March 2024.
HRW urged the government and parliament to make further amendments to the law in line with recommendations, as well as to remove military court jurisdiction over civilians to protect freedom of political expression.
Lebanon has recently received criticism over its response to victims of the 2020 Beirut explosion, with state officials accused of obstructing the investigation. In the last Rule of Law Index by the World Justice Project, Lebanon ranked 108 out of 142 countries. Lebanon’s economic crisis in 2019 has been cited as inhibiting the judiciary’s ability to function.
