“Best Chief Prosecutor in the Balkans”
That, above, is the real title of an award given to Katica Janeva in November, 2017, by the International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies. You can’t make this stuff up.
But it gets better. The award reads, in part:
Katica Janeva
Special Public Prosecutor
The Public Prosecutor’s Office for prosecuting criminal offences related to and arising from the content of the illegal interception of communications, Republic of Macedonia
And that’s true, in part: the telephone recordings that Zoran Zaev used to get into power, with a little help from his friends among the Western elites, were illegal. Then they were illegally released, bit by bit, drip by drip, by Zaev. And then they were used, again, illegally, to go after individuals in a court of law. And then they were used, apparently, against some of those individuals who had cases brought against them by the Special Prosecutor, and in exchange for cash, the Special Prosecutor and her friends and associates — such as Boki 13 — agreed to go easy on these individuals in exchange for cash.
What a hot mess. The entire Zaev project was doomed from the beginning. Zaev, and his international friends, stomped all over the rule of law to, in their words, uphold the rule of law. Those two things are incompatible — one cannot shred the rule of law to uphold the rule of law. That is why the whole project is now flailing and failing and will fall.
But let’s go back to that award. This is, in part, what their press release stated:
“The notable award ‘The Best Chief Prosecutor in the Balkans’ went to the Head of the Office of the Special Public Prosecutor of the Republic of Macedonia, Katica Janeva, while the high recognition ‘The Best Office of the Prosecutor in the Balkans’ was awarded to the Office of the Special Prosecutor (SJO) of the Republic of Macedonia.”
“Director of the Institute Dr. Zijad Bećirović also said that the Office of the Special Public Prosecutor (SJO) of the Republic of Macedonia handles a different kind of crimes….The work of some individuals in the face of hardship has become an inspiration and a model for many. They step forward, they stand out for their expertise, dedication, courage and persistence, and because of that we are honored to be able to recognize them and to express our appreciation for everything they have done for their citizens, countries, the region, the world and a better future for all of us. Most certainly, Serge Brammertz and Katica Janeva are those individuals.”
It gets better:
“Prosecutor Janeva thanked for the recognition in her own name and on behalf of the SJO staff… There is still a lot to be done and all of us employed there have made a conscious decision to embark on this demanding work. This recognition belongs to all our staff, but also to citizens of Macedonia, who have initiated democratic changes and the key to those changes is strengthening and developing the institutions of the rule of law. The citizens want legal security and protection. The aim of our work was not only to prosecute those responsible for various crimes arising from illicit wiretapping of citizens, but also to restore the trust of the citizens in the rule of law….We have pledged to maintain high legal standards and, through the processes we lead, prosecute those who are responsible for acts of crime and thus restore public trust in the institutions of the rule of law.”
The words of Katica Janeva. Notice how she kept repeating the mantra, “the rule of law.”
Who thought this whole scandal up? Katica Janeva, Zoran Zaev, Boki 13, someone else? Why would so many supposedly “smart” politicians and others hang out with, be photographed with, invite into their offices and in other ways serve to legitimize such a person as Boki 13, a flamboyant, tragic, and ultimately desperately flawed individual with deep-seated personal issues? And where is this thing going? Next week, with the start of school, we know that all Macedonians will be back from vacation. And with that, the Government and their supporters will need to get to the bottom of this scandal. Unless, of course, they are afraid to get to the bottom of this scandal.
On the issue of the government’s supporters one of the leaders of the so-called “colorful revolutionaries” finally put out a statement, after resisting saying anything about the whole affair, in an attempt to frame it in a different manner. He claims, in part that supporting the special prosecutor does not mean “adherence to idols, but ideals.” That all sounds nice on proverbial paper but a huge part of his problem and that of his fellow revolutionaries is that they did precisely that — they made idols out of ideals. They made idols out of the Special Prosecutor and her associates. This is demonstrated, in part, by the famous tee-shirts that were created with the letters “CJO” and the three prosecutors silhouetted in the background, the fawning press coverage, the moniker of “Charlie’s Angels” given to them, the rock-star treatment, and more. Essentially, the revolutionaries made idols and then worshipped them.
One of the problems with idols, however, is that they are always false.
