Radio România Internațional

Tag: Chamber of Deputies

December 15, 2024

INCIDENT – The Romanian Foreign Ministry conducted its own inquiry after a Romanian citizen was detained on the territory of the self-proclaimed Republic of Abkhazia, a Georgian territory current under Russian occupation, whose independence is not currently recognized by the international community. The Romanian national was arrested by security services in the pro-Russian separatist region, and was accused of having tried to film military objectives on this territory. Local authorities claim the Romanian citizen had been forced to make the recordings by Ukrainian military spies, who told him this was the only way he could leave Abkhazia. Romanian authorities are in permanent contact with the citizen’s family and are making efforts to provide consular assistance.

GOVERNMENT – President Klaus Iohannis is expected to convene the new Parliament on December 20. The New Parliament will comprise 7 political parties. The Social-Democratic Party (PSD) will have 122 seats, the Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR) 91, the National Liberal Party (PNL) 71, the Save Romania Union (USR) 59, the SOS Romania Party 40, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians (UDMR) 32 and the Young People’s Party (POT) 31. The group of national minorities will be represented by 19 MPs. The youngest members of Parliament are aged 34 and are members of USR and AUR, while PSD is at the opposite pole, with the largest number of MPs aged 65 and over. The Social-Democrats and the Liberals have the largest number of women MPs. On Friday, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies will each set up special committees to validate the new mandates.

LEGISLATION – Current deputies and senators are expected to end their mandate by the end of next week. The Chamber of Deputies is set to adopt a new Forestry Code, a milestone in the Recovery and Resilience plan and a government priority that needs to be adopted by the end of 2024. Among other things, the law stipulates seizing all vehicles involved in illegal logging, the construction of green belts around large cities, the right to pre-emption and quality raw materials at affordable prices for furniture manufacturers, introducing video surveillance on forestry roads and a ban on root cutting in protected areas. On the other hand, the Senate is expected to vote on projects that introduce penalties for public office aggregation or a reduction in the number of maximum terms held by heads of secrete services. The current legislature ends its mandate on December 20, when the new Parliament is set to convene in its first sitting.

UKRAINE – Romania is a valuable partner of Ukraine, both in terms of the prospective reconstruction of the country, as well as the war effort, Kyiv informs. The opening of new border crossing points is a point in case, the head of the Ukrainian State Agency for Infrastructure Reconstruction and Development, Serhii Sukhomlyn has said. Five new border checkpoints have been opened, while another six are currently being discussed. The Ukrainian official said the new border crossings are of great help to Ukrainian exporters, and that Romania is a valuable partner not just for its assistance in rebuilding infrastructure, but also owing to the military assistance it provides to Ukraine in the conflict against the invading Russian forces.

TIMIȘOARA – The city of Timișoara (west) on Sunday celebrates 35 years since the anti-communist revolution of 1989. Under the motto “35 years of freedom”, the municipality is organizing a large number of commemorative events celebrating the martyrs of the revolution, as well as the moment when Timișoara became the first city in Romania to be declared free of communism. Religious services, wreath-laying ceremonies, exhibitions, film screenings and concerts are all on the agenda. On Monday, the authorities will officially inaugurate the Freedom Portal, a light installation reproducing sounds from the revolution, followed by the traditional march titled “Heroes never die”. Tuesday is an official mourning day, while festivities are expected to end on December 20 with the concert “Rock for revolution”. (VP)

15 December 2024
Chamber of Deputies adopts “2 Mai” law

Traffickers of high-risk drugs will no longer receive suspended prison sentences, while selling the psychoactive substances is now subject to prison sentences ranging from 3 to 10 years. The new law, dubbed “May 2”, rules out the possibility of serving the sentence on probation in the case of trafficking class-A drugs. The law was launched in the context of last summer’s road accident in the 2 Mai resort on the Romanian Black Seacoast, when a 19-year-old man driving under the influence of drugs ran over a group of young people, killing two. Police officers later found drugs in his car. Members of the Liberal Party, the initiators of this law say the new legal initiative comes in response to rising criminality in the area of drug trafficking. In turn, Social-Democrat deputy Daniel Suciu says drug abuse has long been ignored in Romania, and combating this phenomenon requires the concerted effort of all parliamentary groups.

“Drug abuse is a reality in nightclubs and schools. We’re talking about young people who ruin the lives of their peers. We will vote a draft law to prevent these bastards from receiving suspended sentences”.

Opposition party AUR deputy Gianina Șerban says additional measures are needed to combat drug abuse and trafficking.

“In addition to tougher sentences, which we completely agree with, we also need drug scanners in border checkpoints, detox and prevention centers, if we truly want to help these young addicts”.
“You can’t go around selling heroin or cocaine, destroying lives and then walk free. Drug traffickers belong in prison. We don’t need another tragedy like the one in 2 Mai”, Justice Minister Alina Gorghiu says. In 2022, over 800 people received final prison sentences for drug trafficking (whether at home or abroad). Of them, half are serving sentences in penitentiaries, but in 47% of these cases the courts of law suspended their sentence. In the first 10 months of 2023 some 10,780 drug-related criminal investigations were launched. At present, the youngest age associated with drug abuse is 12 years old in Romania. The EU Anti-Drug Agency is monitoring 930 new psychoactive substances, manufactured in illegal labs, with serious negative consequences for human health compared to traditional drugs. Their price is lower compared to class-A drugs, making them more attractive to young people, including in Romania. Without being subject to legal provisions, these substances affect how the brain works and produce behavioral changes and dependence. (VP)

6 March 2024
Deputies endorse the education laws

The Romanian Chamber of Deputies endorsed the package of laws that the initiator, the Ministry of Education, says will fundamentally reform the education system. The laws will now be debated by the Senate, which is the decision-making body in this matter. The two bills come with significant changes in pre-university and academic education. These changes are important, because they target the chronic problems of the system, listed by the Minister of Education, Ligia Deca:

Preventing and combating school dropout, combating functional illiteracy, implementing an education centered on the child, the student, the young person, ensuring safety in educational institutions, better training of teaching staff and their support and compliance with deontological ethics and professional code of conduct.

According to the minister, investments, prioritizing the disadvantaged areas with regard to budget allocations and the measures targeting success along the entire educational path are the pillars of this legislative package. The representatives of the parties that make up the governing coalition PSD – PNL – UDMR have stated that they voted for a stable legislative framework in the field of education, anticipating that the results of the new measures will be seen in the years to come. The opposition does not agree, considering that the laws do not address the real issues facing the education system and are a failure of the presidential project Educated Romania.

The law that will govern pre-university education comes with a number of firsts: high schools can opt to organize an additional exam, besides the national evaluation, in order to fill half of the seats, religion becomes an optional subject at the baccalaureate, and the supplies program for students from disadvantaged backgrounds is extended.

Also, the law proposes a national plan to combat violence in schools, which includes video monitoring of classrooms, with the consent of parents, and gradual sanctions for teachers and students who commit disciplinary violations.

There are also changes regarding university education. Thus, the rectors in office will be able to remain in office for another 10 years. At the same time, big fines are provided for people who buy or sell scientific papers, reports, papers for evaluation exams, as well as for the completion of bachelor’s, master’s and PhD studies.

The law also says that the person elected to hold a public office can benefit from a reduction of their didactic workload, but by no more than 50%. The teaching profession must be respected, and the work of teachers appreciated, stressed Minister Ligia Deca. This is what the teachers who marched between the Government and Parliament buildings, on the very day of the adoption of the Education laws, felt entitled to demand, along with a fair and decent salary. (MI)

11 May 2023
The Education Laws in the focus of the deputies

The reform of the education system has been discussed, in an applied or propagandistic manner, for over three decades. Several changes have been made indeed, but most of the projects started were short-lived, due to repeated changes at the top of the education ministry. The reform lacked a unitary vision, to be accepted by the main political forces. Now there is a chance that, a large coalition, such as the one in power, which includes the main leftwing and rightwing forces, the Social Democratic Party – PSD and the National Liberal Party – PNL, may agree on a long-term, valid reform program. Recently approved by the government, the new draft education laws reached the Chamber of Deputies. They are based on the “Educated Romania” project, initiated by President Klaus Iohannis, and for the implementation of the reforms included in these laws, more than 3 billion Euros will be allocated from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.

The coordinator of the presidential project, Ligia Deca, is the current education minister and she claims that the education system will be centered on the students and on stimulating their potential. The higher education law is meant to combat university education dropout and to support European cooperation of universities in Romania.

The pre-university education law mainly aims to reduce school dropout and functional illiteracy, which are chronic problems of the Romanian education system. The bill regarding pre-university education proposes the introduction of new mandatory assessments at the end of the 2nd, 4th and 6th grades in such subjects as Language and Communication and Mathematics and Sciences. High schools will be able to organize their own admission contest, with specific tests, for 60% of the places, besides the National Assessment, and the baccalaureate exam will have more tests. The higher education bill also provides for increasing the length of university doctoral studies to 4 years, as compared to 3 years at present. The coalition leaders promise to adopt the new laws by the end of the current parliamentary session.

On the other hand, Romanian schools are facing a serious problem: a rising number of incidents. That is why the education ministry has announced that it has started consultations to find the best solutions to counter violence of any nature in schools. Minister Deca emphasized that the safety of every person in the education units is a priority for the education ministry. Her reaction came after two events that horrified the public opinion: a few days ago, a student from a college in Bucharest injured a teacher with a knife during class, and at a school in Prahova county (south), 13 year old students sexually harassed a teacher, also during class, and filmed the incident. In the first case, the aggressor student was arrested, on the grounds that he represented a public danger, and was placed in a special center for minors. In the second case, the Prahova School Inspectorate took disciplinary measures, and the police opened an investigation. (LS)

10 April 2023
April 4, 2023 UPDATE

FINLAND – On
Tuesday Finland became the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization in a ceremony held at the NATO headquarters, where it submitted
the accession instrument to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The final
step before Tuesday’s ceremony was held on Tuesday at the NATO headquarters,
where Turkey was the last country to ratify Finland’s accession. US Secretary
of State Blinken hailed what he has described as a historic day for NATO,
saying Finland’s accession was precipitated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In 2022, Finland and Sweden asked to become members of NATO shortly after the
Russian Federation launched its war of aggression in Ukraine. While Finland
received the approval of all NATO members, Turkey decided to postpone Sweden’s
accession. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed confidence Sweden will
shortly become a member of NATO. Finland’s accession coincides with the
anniversary of 74 years since the signing of the Washington Treaty, the
founding document of NATO, on April 4, 1949, a landmark celebrated in Brussels
through a number of special events.

NATO -
Romania’s president, Klaus Iohannis, on Tuesday hailed Finland’s official
accession to NATO, saying the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is stronger
now. Our unity and solidarity will always prevail over the unprecedented
challenges in our region, the president tweeted. In turn, Prime Minister
Nicolae Ciucă welcomed Finland’s NATO accession and wished Romania’s new
partner good luck. Nicolae Ciucă pointed out that Bucharest also expects Sweden
to become a full member of NATO as soon as possible.

LEGAL – The legal
committee of the Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday issued a favorable opinion for
the amendments to the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes tabled by the
Justice Ministry. The bill eliminated all the amendments previously adopted by
the Senate, including the introduction of a threshold for offenses that
constitute abuse of office. Ruling coalition MPs originally proposed the
elimination of wiretaps as evidence for corruption and tax evasion offenses,
but the amendment was eliminated. The Chamber of Deputies is expected to vote
the bill on Wednesday. From the opposition, USR deputy Stelian Ion criticized
the fact that coalition MPs have eliminated all amendments modifying the
Criminal Code and voted the form proposed by the government without introducing
a threshold for offenses constituting abuse of office. Stelian Ion Claims the
article in the bill will be declared unconstitutional and all such offenses
will be written off.

DISTINCTION – The Turkish
writer Orhan Pamuk on Tuesday was awarded the Doctor Honoris Causa title from the West University of Timișoara.
In his acceptance speech, Orhan Pamuk spoke about the role of literature today,
but also referred to a number of problems in his country, including the
February 6 quakes. The writer said Istanbul has evolved from a city with a
million inhabitants to a metropolis totaling over 16 million people, boasting a
huge library. The Turkish writer said the February quakes made him identify
with the suffering of Turkey. Orhan Pamuk is the recipient of the 2006 Nobel
Prize for Literature. His books have been translated in over 60 languages. Pamuk is one of the five laureates of the
Nobel Prize who are expected to visit Timișoara, the European Capital of
Culture in 2023.

ACADEMY – Romania’s highest
cultural and scientific forum, the Romanian Academy on Tuesday opened its doors
to visitors to mark its 157th anniversary. On this occasion, its
most representative venues such as the Academy Hall, the Academy Club or the
Memorial Museum, were opened to visitors who were also offered a guided tour of
the Library. The Romanian Academy boasts 14 sections, covering several domains
such as literature, linguistics, history, philosophy, mathematics, physics,
chemistry, biology, geonomics, technical sciences, science and IT, agronomy,
medicine, economic and legal sciences, art and architecture. The Romanian
Academy presently boasts 181 members and corresponding members as well as 135
honorary members. (DB & VP)

4 April 2023
Parliament passes the offshore law

With 248 votes in favor and 34 votes against, the Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday adopted the modifications brought to the offshore law, regulating the exploitation of natural gas in offshore deposits in the Black Sea and in low-depth pockets on land. This is perhaps the most important step towards achieving energy independence. Energy Minister Virgil Popescu said the new version of the law provides stability and predictability and ensures an investor-friendly tax system, at the same time protecting Romanian consumers and the countrys interests.

“Romanias royalty share will stand at some 13% of the additional income taxes and of corporate taxes. Romania will also benefit from additional jobs. And most importantly, it will become energy independent.”

The offshore law also allows the Romanian state to purchase the extracted natural gas before anyone else. The profit will be split 60% – 40% between the state and investors. The government will also be able to intervene in case of an energy crisis and redirect gas production towards domestic consumption. The project was also hailed by PSD and UDMR. Social-Democrat MP Alfred Simonis:

“Romania might become an important player that could start delivering gas when Putin turns it off. It will be able to ensure the necessary demand of Moldova, naturally not for free, as well as in case of Ukraine and other countries in the region and beyond.”

USR MPs in opposition voted the version tabled by the ruling coalition. AUR, on the other hand, criticized the lack of sanctions for economic operators, and hence voted against. Romania is currently the EU country with the lowest degree of reliance on Russian gas, and the second-largest producer of oil and gas at community level. Romania has large quantities of untapped natural gas deposits in the Black Sea. For years, economic analysts criticized the lack of strategic vision and legal uncertainty that prevented the exploitation of these resources. Once the offshore law is ratified, the situation will hopefully turn around. The total value of maritime natural gas stands at some 200 billion cubic meters, the largest quantity being located in the Neptune Deep offshore area, owned by the Romanian state-owned enterprise Romgaz and OMV Petrom. From there, the first quantities of gas are expected to be extracted in late 2026 or early 2027. In the Midia area, exploitation works are ongoing, meaning that the Black Sea Oil & Gas company will start extracting natural gas this year. The investment is expected to yield one billion cubic meters of natural gas per year. (VP)

19 May 2022
December 29, 2020

Covid-19 Ro. Today, the second tranche of vaccines against Covid 19 has arrived in Romania, which is over 140 thousand doses necessary for the immunization, in the first phase, of the medical staff. The first tranche of 10,000 doses was delivered on Saturday, and vaccination began the next day. Over 4,600 new cases of coronavirus infection have been reported in Romania today. Bucharest reports the largest number of infections in the country. In terms of incidence, Ilfov, near the capital, is the only county with over 5 cases per thousand inhabitants accumulated in the last 14 days, and Bucharest has reached just over 4. The number of patients with COVID-19 in Intensive Care has decreased to about 1,162. 135 people died from infection with the new coronavirus in 24 hours. More than 85% of those with COVID-19, since the beginning of the pandemic, have been declared cured.

Visit. The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, is today paying an official visit to the Republic of Moldova, at the invitation of his new counterpart from the neighboring state with a predominantly Romanian-speaking population, the pro-West president Maia Sandu. It is the first high-level visit received by Maia Sandu since she became president following the November 15 elections, in which she defeated the former head of state, the pro-Russia socialist Igor Dodon. According to the Presidential Administration in Bucharest, the visit of the Romanian head of state to Chisinau will provide the framework for sending a strong message of support for the new president and the Moldovan citizens, in their effort to democratize the country, to irreversibly implement the principles of the rule of law and consolidate both the countrys European path and the privileged relations with Romania. The two presidents will adopt a joint declaration, which aims to strengthen the bilateral strategic partnership, reaffirming the special relationship between Bucharest and Chisinau. Holder of Romanian citizenship, an economist with a masters degree in public administration at Harvard University, former adviser to the executive director of the World Bank, former minister and former prime minister in Chisinau, Maia Sandu became, at the age of 48, the first woman president of the Republic of Moldova, three decades after the proclamation of the countrys independence from Moscow.

Ro. Parliament. The Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest gathers today in plenary session, the first in which bills will be debated, in the new legislature that began on December 21. Last week, the plenary session was held, in which the deputies took the oath, the standing committees were set up and the president of the chamber and the members of the permanent bureau were elected. The president of the National Liberal Party, the former prime minister Ludovic Orban, was elected president of the Chamber of Deputies.

Budget deficit. In the first 11 months of this year, Romania registered a budget deficit of 8% of the GDP, accounting for 84 billion lei (about 17 billion euros), according to data made public by the Ministry of Finance. In the same period of the previous year, the deficit was 3.5% of the GDP. According to the Ministry, the increase was triggered by the unfavorable evolution of the budget revenues, as well as the postponement of the payment of some fiscal obligations by companies during the health crisis. The deficit difference was also determined by the exceptional payments generated by the pandemic.

Protests. One of the largest trade union confederations in Romania, Cartel Alfa, announces protests today, dissatisfied with the level proposed by the executive to increase the minimum wage. The confederation claims that 70 lei (15 euros) in addition to the minimum wage, as announced by the Government, does not even cover the additional expenses for masks and other elements of individual protection. The Cartel Alfa confederation also says that prices have increased and will continue to raise, and currently the minimum wage in Romania does not cover even half of the minimum expenses necessary for a decent living. The government is expected to make a decision on this matter during Wednesdays meeting.

Journalist. 50 journalists have been killed in connection with their activity in 2020, more than half in countries where there was peace, the Reporters Without Borders Organization has announced today. The organizations annual report shows that, although the number of journalists killed in conflict areas has dropped, such journalists are increasingly targeted because of their investigations into corruption, organized crime or environmental issues. Mexico, India and the Philippines are the states where most such crimes have taken place. Last year, 53 journalists were killed while doing their job. (M. Ignatescu)

29 December 2020
Parliament debates new tourism law

Romania boasts an excellent tourism potential, and this became obvious in
recent years. The Danube Delta, a unique ecosystem in Europe, included in the
UNESCO World Heritage, the mountain resorts in Prahova Valley and the seacoast
resorts on the Romanian Black Seacoast, the Saxon fortified churches in
Transylvania are but some of our country’s well-established tourist sites.
Still, Romania’s tourism-generated income is significantly lower than those
reported by neighboring Hungary or Bulgaria, for instance. The reasons
identified by both specialists and the general public include insufficient
promotion abroad, the lack of a comprehensive motorway network, underdeveloped
hotels, mediocre services and tax evasion.

On April 24 the Government passed a
new tourism law, tacitly adopted by the Senate, which is now under debate in
the Chamber of Deputies. Tourism Minister Bogdan Trif told Radio Romania that
the law encompasses all the previous laws passed recently in the field and is
aimed at regulating tourism-related activities. One of the major goals is
decentralization. Therefore local authorities will now be responsible for
classifying accommodation units, certifying ski tracks and mountain trails,
authorizing beach segments, granting building permits or certifying local
guides. The transfer of authority at local level will reduce costs
significantly, Minister Trif claims.

The new law also provides for the full
digitization of the system, which is bound to offer an exact and swift image of
the tourist industry, allowing operators to adapt their strategies. Therefore
new control methods will become available, allowing Ministry inspectors to
perform checks while posing as mere tourists, sharing tourist experience. The
President of the Hotel Industry Federation in Romania, Calin Ile, says the new
law represents a historic landmark, hailing the previous introduction of
holiday vouchers for public sector employees, to be used in Romania
exclusively, or the VAT slash for tourist services to 5%. Romania has become investor-friendly,
investors’ appetite for doing tourism in Romania has gone up, Calin Ile went
on to say. Romania has the potential, and the results will come soon, Calin Ile
concludes, although not all of his peers seem to share his optimism.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

24 September 2019
August 25, 2019

MEETING – The Chamber of Deputies will
convene over the coming days to debate the possibility of eliminating amnesty
and pardon as well as Emergency Decree 114, providing for a series of economic
and fiscal measures. The opposition considers the decree to be the most toxic
instrument in Romanian economy. The Social-Democrats say the decree also
provides for an increase in pensions starting September 1, as well as capping
natural gas and electricity prices for home consumers.

CANDIDACY – About
one thousand Social Democrats from the PSD, number one in the government
coalition in Bucharest, on Saturday convened in a congress to launch the
candidacy of Romania’s incumbent Prime Minister Viorica Dancila for the
presidential election in November. The country’s incumbent president Klaus
Iohannis has also announced his intention to run for a second term in office
with support from the main opposition party, the National Liberal Party. Dan
Barna, leader of the opposition USR-PLUS, will also run for the presidential
seat and so will Calin Popescu Tariceanu, leader of ALDE, part of the present
ruling coalition. Also during the congress, the PSD’s National Executive
Committee has also adopted proposals for the ministers the Prime Minister is
going to submit to president Iohannis on Monday. So, the party’s secretary
general, Mihai Fifor will be heading the Interior Ministry, Ana Birchall will
become Deputy Prime Minister for Strategic Partnerships while MP Iulian Iancu
will be Deputy Prime Minister in charge of economic affairs. Dana Girbovan had been proposed for the
Justice Ministry, but the move attracted a lot of heat from the opposition who
recalled that Girbovan was a staunch supporter of the justice reforms that had
been proposed by PSD and ALDE with the alleged intention to gain control over
the magistrates and hinder the anti-graft fight.

GOLDEN STAG – The
2019 Golden Stag trophy went to Eliza G of Italy. 12 artists from ten countries
competed for the trophy. The jury decided on Saturday to award 1st
prize to Sara De Blue of Austria, 2nd prize to Ralfs Eilands of
Latvia, and 3rd prize to Monika Marija of Lithuania. Alfie Arcuri
got the award for best interpretation of a Romanian song, awarded by the
Romanian television and radio corporations. The Golden Stag Festival started in
1968 and continued for 18 editions, the last staged in 2018. Radio Romania is
co-producer of the festival.

PROETNICA – The
Pro-Etnica Intercultural Festival came to a close on Sunday in Sighisoara. For
five days traditional ensembles of Italian, Greek, German, Roma, Macedonian,
Serbian, Bulgarian, Hungarian and Jewish communities performed live on stage.
Craftsmen’s workshops and national minority pavilions were open all throughout
the festival. The 17th edition of the Festival also introduced the
Literary Salon, a place devoted to national minority writers presenting their
works, organizing debates, readings as well as book launches.

TENNIS – Romanian
tennis player Simona Halep, world no. 4, on Tuesday will be playing Nicole
Gibbs of the US in the first round of US Open, the last Grand Slam tournament
of the year. Another four Romanians have made it to the main draw. Sorana
Cirstea (106 WTA) will play Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic, Monica
Niculescu (105 WTA) will play Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine, Mihaela Buzarnescu
(136 WTA) will play Andrea Petkovic of Germany, while Ana Bogdan (147) will play
Harriet Dart of Great Britain. In the men’s competition, Marius Copil (96 ATP)
will take on Ugo Humbert of France.

VOLLEYBALL – The
Romanian national women’s team on Saturday grabbed its first win in the 2019
European Championship, defeating Hungary 3-1 in Group C. On Friday, Romania had
lost nil-3. Romania will next play Croatia, Estonia and Azerbaijan.

(Translated by V.
Palcu)

25 August 2019
Measures for fighting money laundering

The draft law on
preventing and fighting money laundering and the funding of terrorism on Monday
passed by Romanian deputies transposes European directives in the field into
the Romanian legislation. Basically, the draft law provides for a ban on the
issuing of bearer bonds and compels associations and foundations to report all
the beneficiaries of the sums of money to the state institutions. According to
an amendment, the organizations of national minorities, members of the Council
of National Minorities, are exempt from those provisions and shall not make any
reports.

The amendment is regarded as a concession made by the leftist majority
made up of the Social Democratic Party and ALDE to the Democratic Union of
Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, with which it collaborates in Parliament, the
political representative of the largest ethnic minority, the Hungarian
minority. The law bans the issuing of new bearer bonds and the carrying out of
transactions with the existing bonds, which become fully invalid under an annulment
clause. The bonds which are not forwarded to the head office of the issuing
company are cancelled de jure when
the stipulated deadline expires and the share capital is slashed. Should joint-stock
companies fail to fulfill their obligation of conversion before the deadline,
all bonds will be wound up. Upon request from any stakeholder or the National
Trade Register Office, the court or a specialized court can rule the winding up
of the company, according to the new law.

The main opposition party, the
National Liberal Party announced it does not back the draft law. Liberal deputy
Ion Cupsa said that the law affects civil society and organizations and
foundations cannot be fully efficient due to excessive bureaucracy. The Save
Romania Union, USR, also criticized the draft law. USR deputy Stelian Ion said
it is a hazardous law because it introduces an instrument of constraint on
associations and foundations. If they do not humor the rulers, the latter can
apply fines conducive to their dismantling, Stelian Ion warned. Not even UDMR
is content with the draft law though the amendment favoring the minorities was
passed. UDMR deputy Marton Arpad said that an amendment solving the problem of
19 NGOs had been passed, but the problem of tens of thousands of other NGOs is
still pending.

Defending the draft law, Social-Democrat deputy Nicusor Halici,
president of the Judicial Commission, made it clear that there are two European
directives which had to be transferred into the Romanian legislation and the
deadline has already expired. The final vote on the law will be cast on
Wednesday.

(Translated by A.M. Palcu)

23 October 2018
The Justice Laws, under Scrutiny

In the one and a half years since the latest legislative elections, the judiciary has been a recurrent theme for the leftist government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats. One by one, the justice laws, the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure were all refashioned. Power says it was absolutely necessary to bring these laws in line with the rulings of the Constitutional Court and to improve them so as to close the doors for abuse in the judicial system.

The Opposition, on the other hand, criticises the quasi-authoritarian manner in which the political majority changes the relevant legislation. Furthermore, together with magistrate associations and international bodies, Opposition MPs perceive this large-scale legislative process as a poorly disguised attack against the independence of the judiciary and an attempt to undermine the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, the spearhead of the fight against corruption.

A constant critic of the ruling coalition, President Klaus Iohannis has already announced he would resend the justice laws to the Constitutional Court. The Chamber of Deputies has already received for review the bill on the status of magistrates, which was already subject to an unconstitutionality ruling. The Constitutional Court found the text at odds with the Constitution, and a special parliamentary committee headed by the Social Democrat Florin Iordache operated a number of changes, including a redefinition of the concept of judicial error. The parliamentary majority decided that a judicial error takes place where judicial proceedings have been ordered in obvious breach of the relevant legislation, or when a final and binding ruling has been passed in violation of the law. The Opposition claims this definition is far from clear, and announced a new notification of the Constitutional Court is being considered. Here is Senator Alina Gorghiu of the National Liberal Party:

“I seriously doubt that the concept of judicial error has been regulated to the standards required by the Venice Commission, which is obviously why we will not hesitate to send it to the Constitutional Court. And this is not only to annoy Mr Dragnea, although I do not mind this, but because we believe the judicial system deserves better laws.”

Florin Iordache replies that the new definition is in line with the comments made by the Constitutional Court and better regulates the responsibility of magistrates:

“As we said from the very beginning, we want magistrates to be liable for bad faith or gross negligence, but we also want a good definition of what judicial error is, so as to make sure that moving against a magistrate is only possible in case of judicial errors. Unlike our colleagues in the Opposition, we actually came up with a text, we were constructive and offered a starting point for debate.”

Parliament’s agenda also includes talks on the suggested changes of the Criminal Code. The Higher Council of Magistracy has already notified all courts and prosecutor offices that it would not support the introduction in the Criminal Code of such offences as “bad faith,” “gross negligence” or other offences liable to infringe upon the independence of the judiciary.

(Translated by A.M. Popescu)

14 May 2018
Budget bills, closer to endorsement

The draft state budget and social security budget laws for next year have entered the parliamentary debate stage, after the specialised budget and finances committees in the Senate and Chamber of Deputies passed them last week. The state budget bill submitted by the Government was slightly changed in the committee, with the most important amendment concerning the transfer of nearly 1 billion euros to local budgets. The amendment, tabled by the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, stipulates an increase from 75% to 100% of the income tax quota channelled into the local budgets of administrative units. The Finance Minister Ionut Misa explains:

“What I can tell you at this point is that most administrative units will be affected, particularly smaller ones. But we must make an analysis, see the exact figure and the impact of this amendment that has been approved.”

The Finance Minister added that the amendment was designed to offset the income tax reduction from 16 to 10%. The impact of this amendment is yet to be established, but should the figure be substantial, it could push the budget deficit above the estimated limit, Ionut Misa also says.

The Liberal Senator Florin Citu, in Opposition, says the debates in the parliamentary committees were smoother than in previous years. But the Liberals accuse the Government of increasing personnel and social assistance spending, and of cutting investments in order to make up for it. Florin Citu:

“Of course we cannot back this budget structure, because it cuts down resources that should have been channelled into investments and takes them to salaries and social assistance instead. We will be reaching a 17-year peak of social assistance and salary expenditure, and record-low investment.”

The Opposition also says that the revenues on which the public budgets rely are overestimated by at least 2 billion euros, and that the breakdown by expenditure category undermines the national economy.

The 2018 state budget calculations take into account an economic growth rate of 5.5%, an average exchange rate of 4.55 leu for the euro and average monthly wages of around 565 euros. The Government expects next year’s budget deficit to account for 2.97% of the GDP and says funds have been allotted for the promised pay raises and the 10% increase in pension point value as of July 1, 2018.

Parliament is to cast the final vote on the 2 draft laws on December 21.

(Translated by A.M. Popescu)

18 December 2017
Chamber of Deputies endorses the new justice laws

The Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest has passed, after marathon debates and arguments between the Power and the Opposition, the projects proposed by the ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) of revising the laws regarding judicial organization and the Higher Council of Magistracy (CSM). The bill on the judicial organisation stipulates, among other things, the setting up of a department that investigates prosecutors and judges and offers the possibility for the solutions adopted by prosecutors to be infirmed by their superior, in case they are considered illegal or groundless. The Opposition says that the bill ignores the recommendations of the professional organisations in the field and that the investigation department is only an instrument designed to intimidate prosecutors and magistrates. Raluca Turcan, the leader of the National Liberal Party (PNL), the main opposition party, has said:

“Today, in Romania’s Parliament, a toxic majority against Romania’s interest, against all Romanians and against democracy took shape, formed by the Social Democratic Party, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania.”

In answer to that, the head of the special parliamentary committee on amending the laws of the judiciary, the Social-Democrat Florin Iordache, has said that the new bill eliminates political intervention. Florin Iordache:

“We want a normal justice system, a system that does not allow superiors use of us as they please. From now on, without any political intervention, judges will be able to rule as their conscience tells them, in keeping with the laws in force.”

The second bill passed by the Chamber of Deputies, stipulates that the Judicial Inspection will not be turned into an autonomous institution, an idea initially supported by the ruling coalition and the UDMR. The document also says that it is only the Judicial Inspection that can exert disciplinary actions on a magistrate, exempt from the procedure being the Justice Minister and the head of the High Court of Cassation and Justice. The two bills will be submitted to the Senate as the decision making body in this case, where the bill on the status of magistrates is debated under emergency procedure. In the form adopted by the Chamber of Deputies, the new bill makes prosecutors part of a hierarchy topped by the justice minister, and prohibits magistrates from working as covert intelligent service agents, by having them submit annual statements in this respect. (Translated by A.M. Popescu)

14 December 2017
November 21, 2017 UPDATE

ANTI-CORRUPTION – The Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies and the leader of the ruling Social Democratic Party, Liviu Dragnea on Tuesday went to the headquarters of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, where anti-corruption prosecutors informed him that his assets have been sequestered in the so-called Teldrum file. The investigators want to make sure that the prejudice estimated at over 20 million Euros and 30 million lei (approximately 6.5 million Euros) in the aforementioned file, which involves a total number of nine persons, will be recovered. Dragnea is prosecuted for setting up a crime group, abuse of office and financial crime, when he was the president of the Teleroman County Council, in southern Romania. According to the anti-corruption prosecutors, the file was based on a notification from the European Anti-Fraud Office raising suspicions of several offences, such as illegally obtaining European funds, based on fake documents, to rehabilitate county roads. Dragnea is also investigated in another file, at the High Court of Cassation and Justice, where he is accused of instigation to abuse of office, whereas in another file he got a two year suspended sentence, for having urged PSD local representatives across the country, in his capacity as Secretary General of the Social Democratic Party, to illegally determine people to go to the polls and vote in after in a 2012 referendum.

PATRIOT MISSILES – The bill on the purchase of Patriot missile defence systems from the US was fully endorsed on Tuesday by the Romanian Chamber of Deputies, which is the decision making forum in this matter. Previously, the bill was endorsed by the Senate. Romania wants to purchase seven Patriot systems, whose total value stands at some 3.9 billion dollars. The first system, costing 765 million dollars is to be purchased by the end of the year.

CHILDREN – The Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday decided to set up the Children’s Ombudsman, in an effort to protect and promote children’ rights. The Children’s Ombudsman, which will function as part of the bigger Ombudsman institution, will have as prerogatives, among others, solving individual notifications sent by children or their representatives, actions taken by the line public institutions and notifications of cases of violation of child rights. Romania becomes the 36th European country to have an independent institution or a specialised department devoted to children.

STATE BUDGET — The coalition government in Bucharest might adopt the draft state budget for 2018 on November 29, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Liviu Dragnea, said on Tuesday. According to him, after the National Day of Romania, celebrated on December 1, debates on the draft budget might start in the line parliamentary committees. Dragnea also said that by November 29, the government will have also set the national minimum wage.

CENSURE MOTION – The Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania has decided to abstain from voting on the no-confidence motion filed by the right-wing opposition against the Government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania. The leader of the union Kelemen Hunor has stated that he agrees with some of the statements included in the motion, but has blamed the initiators for not providing alternatives to the current prime-minister and his governing programme. Signed by senators and deputies members of the National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union and the People’s Movement Party, the motion accuses the Executive that, through its policies, has deeply disturbed Romanian economy. In response, the Prime Minister Mihai Tudose has stated that, thanks to the latest fiscal reform, more money will get to the state budget and to the pension fund and companies will benefit from simplified procedures.

GERMANY – Consultations have started in Germany on ways to exit the political crisis triggered by the Conservatives, the Liberals and the Greens failing to reach consensus on the formation of the new Government. The president of the country Frank Walter Steinmeier, who, according to the Constitution, must manage the crisis, has announced his intention to hold talks with all the political parties that could be part of the Government headed by Angela Merkel. We recall that her party won the legislative elections of September 24th. Steinmeier has excluded the participation of the far-right Alternative for Germany and the far-left Die Linke parties, as Angela Merkel refuses to engage in a dialogue with them. Also, the president has rejected the idea of early elections. According to the outcome of the September elections, Angela Merkel can only head a coalition government, as she excludes the alternative of a minority executive.

GAUDEAMUS BOOK FAIR – For the first time in its history, the GAUDEAMUS International Book Fair, organised this year by Radio Romania between the 22nd and the 26th of November, will have as the guest of honour not a country, but a Union, namely the European Union, through the Representation of the European Commission in Romania. This year’s edition is special, as it marks 60 years since the signing of the Roma Treaty, 30 years since the launch of the Erasmus programme and also 10 years since Romania joined the European Union. Under the motto “unity in diversity”, the European Union encourages people to discover and explore the rich cultural heritage of the old continent. This year’s edition will enjoy the participation of 300 exhibitors and will host more than 800 events.

21 November 2017
The Week in Review 23 – 29 October

Proposals for the amendment of the Fiscal Code

The Romanian government on Thursday analysed, in a first reading, a bill on the amendment of the Fiscal Code, with the finance minister Ionut Misa presenting the main measures planned by the government. He said the income tax is to drop from 16 to 10%, not just in the case of salary incomes, but also in the case of pensions, rents, interest rates and farming activities. Those practising independent activities, such as doctors, lawyers, journalists, notaries, writers and artists, will no longer pay their social security contributions based on the sums obtained from these activities, but based on the minimum wage. Beginning on 1st January 2018, employers are to pay a 2.25% tax following the transfer of the payment of social security contributions to employees. Misa also announced several changes to stimulate the business environment. In the case of 450,000 companies whose turnover is below 1 million euros, a 1% turnover tax will be levied to replace the 16% profit tax charged at the moment. Another measure adopted by the finance ministry refers to the implementation, as of 2018, of the European directive to deter profit shifting by multinational companies. Labour minister Lia Olguta Vasilescu also said the minimum pension would grow to 640 lei and the child-rearing allowance would grow to 1,250 lei. Another planned measure is the reduction of the contribution to the pension funds Pillar 2 from 5.1% to 3.7%.

The European commissioner for the budget and human resources Gunther Oettinger travels to Bucharest

The European commissioner for the budget and human resources Gunther Oettinger said on Thursday in Bucharest that there are premises for Romania to meet the 3% deficit target this year and the next. He made this statement after a meeting in Parliament with the members of the joint parliamentary committees for European affairs and the budget, finances and banks. Gunther Oettinger also said Romania played an important role in the talks on the future financial framework of the European Union, given that it will hold the rotating presidency of the Union in the first half of 2019.

Justice Minister presents proposes changes to the laws on the judiciary

The Romanian Justice Minister Tudorel Toader on Wednesday presented to the members of the special Parliament committee the bills designed to amend the justice laws. The ruling coalition decided that the new draft would be tabled by their parliamentary group rather than as a government bill.

Among other things, the controversial bills, on which the Higher Council of Magistrates has already given its negative opinion, narrow the powers of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, which will no longer be entitled to investigate magistrates. Other changes concern the procedure for appointing high-ranking prosecutors and the establishment of a special unit to investigate offences committed by magistrates. Toader announced he wanted the judicial inspection corps to be an autonomous institution, subordinated neither to the Higher Council of Magistrates nor to the Justice Ministry. He also added that a special law regulating the status of this institution must be endorsed within 6 months. As far as the responsibility of magistrates goes, Minister Tudorel Toader explained that judges would be subject to pecuniary liability for errors made in bad faith.

The supreme court ordered Parliament to return the bills to the Justice Ministry on grounds that legislative transparency requirements had been breached, and, more importantly, that the texts were against the rules on the drafting and endorsement of laws.

As of next week, the bills will be discussed in the special parliamentary committee. They will then be referred to the Chamber of Deputies, with the final vote on the matter to be given by the Senate.

In another development, the Appeal for compensation law has come into force in Romania these days. The act stipulates that for every 30 days served in penitentiaries in improper conditions, convicts have 6 days taken off of their sentence. According to the Justice Minister, thanks to the new law, nearly 530 people have been released, and over 3,300 are eligible for parole. The detainees who have already served their sentences but whose cases are pending with the European Court of Human Rights may receive between 5 and 8 euros in compensations for each day of imprisonment in improper conditions.

Bucharest host a new edition of the Indagra International Fair

Romania has huge potential in the agriculture sector, and it should capitalise on it in an intelligent and sustainable manner, so as to become a leader in this sector, said President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday, at the opening of Indagra, the largest agriculture trade fair held in Bucharest. Iohannis also said Romania should get itself out of a vicious circle in which it exports raw materials and implicitly subsidies, and imports high value-added products. The President also noted that in the first half of the year farming and foodstuff imports went up by 17% compared to last year, whereas exports only increased by 4.5%. He mentioned that until 2020, under the Common Agricultural Policy Romania benefits from European funds of up to 20 billion euros.

28 October 2017