法官和地方法官都必需是公正的

英文有句俗话说的好，”公义不但应被维护，更需彰显于众人眼前＂。

在制度上，拥有法官和地方法官的独立性是至关重要，也唯此，维州人民才可相信他们可在法庭上得到公正的审判。

正因如此，Andrews 政府上周任命一位曾代表工党在 2014 年参加维州大选和2013年参加联邦选举的候选人当地方法官有多麽让人担忧。

民众观感对法院独立与公正性特别重要，由于近期担任过党派政治人物候选人，因此该法官在大众眼中，他的公正性不可能没有问题。 维州人也会想知道，这样的任命是否是另类的政治酬庸，一种作为代表党派参选的酬庸。

Andrews 政府必需停止这类近期有代表党派参选纪录的任命，也只有这样，维州人民才可能很自信的说，所有维州的法官和地方法官都是公平公正的。

英文版/English

Judges and magistrates must be impartial

There is a well-known saying that “Justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done.”

Having judges and magistrates who are independent of government is vital so Victorians can be confident that they can get a fair trial in our courts.

It is therefore very concerning that last week the Andrews government appointed a magistrate who was a Labor Party candidate in the 2014 State election and in the 2013 Commonwealth election.

Having been a political candidate so recently, it is impossible for this magistrate to be seen to be impartial.   Victorians will also wonder whether or not his appointment was a reward for being a candidate.

The Andrews government must end appointments of recent candidates, so Victorians can be confident that all Victorian judges and magistrates are fair and impartial.