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Tag: constitutional

New fiscal measures approved as constitutional

The oppositions notification against theset of fiscal and budget-related measures for which the Cabinet has taken responsibility before Parliament has been dismissed by the Constitutional Court. The judges decided that the bill is constitutional, so the president may sign it into law. The president of the Constitutional Court of Romania, Marian Enache, explained:

Marian Enache: “The Court is satisfied that the Governments responsibility with respect to the bill concerned a unique and unified purpose, namely to increase revenues to the public budget and to cut down on expenditure. After the constitutionality review, we concluded that, in procedural terms, the responsibility procedure was in line with the requirements of the Constitutional Court and its case law. In terms of the substance, the Court found that provisions challenged by the signatories of the unconstitutionality notification are within the scope of the lawmakers right of suitability assessment in the financial and fiscal area.”

The core principles of the new legislative package include reducing public fund misuse by restricting procurement, reducing the number of executive positions and merging certain public institutions, scrapping a number of tax exemptions, fighting fraud and tax evasion.And according to PM Marcel Ciolacu, the implementation of these measures will help narrow this years budget deficit to 5.7% of the GDP.

The Constitutional Courts decision proves that the allegations of the Opposition were ungrounded, says Gabriel Andronache, head of the Liberal floor group in the Chamber of Deputies:

Gabriel Andronache: “This is obviously not the same situation as the precedent mentioned by the Opposition parties in their notification. These are provisions that are organically connected, so the grounds for unconstitutionality cannot be upheld.”

Save Romania Union, in opposition, which challenged the bill, sees the Courts decision as unfair and argues that the new legislation is an attack against the incomes of Romanias honest citizens. Ionuţ Moşteanu, spokesman for USR:

Ionuţ Moşteanu: “What we see today is Ciolacu raising the taxes for honest Romanians using the hand of the Constitutional Court. But this Court has renounced its constitutional role, and is trampling on its own past decisions. Essentially, the Court helps Ciolacu to get his hands into the pockets of hardworking people, to raise taxes so that he may continue to pay his party cronies.”

The USR president, Cătălin Drulă, announced the party would table a simple motion against the finance minister. (AMP)

19 October 2023
April 27, 2022 UPDATE

UKRAINE Romania condemns in the strongest terms Russia’s blatant violation
of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and of its obligations
under international law, the PM of Romania Nicolae Ciucă said after Tuesday’s
meeting in Kyiv with his Ukrainian counterpart Denys Shmyhal. Mr. Ciucă announced
on Wednesday that Romania is considering opening new checkpoints on the Ukrainian
border. He emphasised the importance of the opening of the Isaccea-Orlivka
checkpoint in the south-east in 2020, and of deregulating freight transport for
Ukrainian operators on April 5. The number of Ukrainian nationals to enter
Romania was 50% higher on Tuesday than on the previous day, the Border Police
announced on Wednesday.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT The
legal committees in the Senate and Chamber of Deputies Wednesday passed a
favourable opinion on all candidacies for judge posts with the Constitutional
Court of Romania. Parliament is due to vote on the candidacies next week. This
June, the terms in office of 3 judges come to an end: Valer Dorneanu, nominated
by the Chamber of Deputies, Mona Pivniceru, nominated by the Senate, and Daniel
Morar, nominated by the Presidency. The Constitutional Court comprises 9 judges
appointed for non-renewable 9-year terms in office, with one-third of the
members replaced every 3 years.

GOVERNMENT The
finance minister Adrian Câciu stated at the Government Hour debates that the
measures included in the Support for Romania package pave the way for
preserving the country’s economic growth trend. Invited to the talks by USR
party in opposition, Mr. Câciu emphasized that in order to have a high economic
growth rate this year, Romania must primarily encourage the agriculture and
constructions sectors. Adrian Câciu also mentioned that Romania, which relies on imports in many sectors, needs to
increase its domestic output and invest in processing.

NATURAL GAS Russia’s decision to discontinue natural gas supplies to Poland and
Bulgaria is an aggressive and unacceptable move, seen by the EU as a form of
blackmail, said the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen. We
will make sure that Gazprom’s decision has the smallest possible impact on
European consumers, she told a press conference on Wednesday. The
European Commission chief advised European energy providers not to give in to
Russia’s request to have natural gas supplies paid for in rubles, and
emphasised that this would most likely be a violation of the EU sanctions
against Russia. After they refused to pay for natural gas in the Russian
currency, Poland and Bulgaria are the first EU member states targeted by a
suspension of Russian gas supplies. In this context, Greece announced it would
assist Bulgaria, while Poland announced current gas supplies cover the
country’s domestic demand.

RECOVERY
Romania has fulfilled all the goals set out in the National Recovery and
Resilience Plan approved by the European Commission, the economy minister
Florin Spătaru said in Bucharest. He emphasised that certain benchmarks related
to the reforms undertaken as part of the plan will have to be revised in the
forthcoming period, and along with the investment element they will contribute
to a major progress of the Romanian economy, which has the potential of growing
up to four-fold by 2030, provided that the principles in the Recovery Plan are
observed and funding is used wisely. According to the economy minister, the
opportunities offered by the Recovery Plan are not only the money, but also the
economic and administrative reform principles, which will lead to reshaping
Romania’s economy in line with the principles of digitisation and green economy.

TENNIS Three Romanian athletes play in the WTA Madrid tournament’s main
draw. Romania’s Irina Begu (62 WTA) Wednesday qualified into the tournament
after defeating Kamila Rakhimova (96 WTA) of Russia, 6-1, 6-0. In the first
round, Simona Halep will play against Shuai Zhang of China, and Sorana Cîrstea
against Nuria Parrizas Diaz of Spain. WTA Madrid Open takes place between April
28 and May 7. Simona Halep won the 2016 and 2017 tournaments. (AMP)

27 April 2022
Top court rules in favour of Moldova’s president

The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova decided that Parliaments failure to appoint a government is sufficient grounds for the countrys president to dissolve the legislative body, upholding the view of the pro-European president Maia Sandu.

The ruling comes after MPs failed twice in 3 months to endorse a new government following the resignation of Ion Chicus cabinet, and paves the way for early elections.

Sandu, elected president late last year, pleaded her case herself before the Court, and argued, according to Reuters, that most Moldovan citizens are in favour of early general elections.

The political situation remains unstable in Chișinău, with an interim cabinet and tensions between parliament and the president. Ex-president Igor Dodons Socialists and their allies in parliament have declared a state of emergency until the end of May, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, although they have introduced no clear measures to contain the spread of the disease.

Under Moldovas constitution, parliament cannot be dissolved during a state of emergency, and experts say Dodons true goal was to prevent early elections. The Socialists are trying to avoid a new vote, because according to polls they risk losing half of their current seats in parliament, and they will do everything in their power to prevent it, analysts say.

The decision to declare the state of emergency was itself challenged before the Constitutional Court, on grounds that it was not within the powers of a resigning cabinet.

Meanwhile, the members of the interim cabinet are invited on a weekly basis by the parliament speaker, the Socialist Zinaida Greceanîi, to discuss administrative matters. Teodor Cârnaţ, a constitutional law expert in Chișinău, defines this as an abuse and a violation of the separation of powers. According to him, the parliament is a collegial body and the cabinet should not hold separate meetings with its president.

Such meetings are obviously political in nature, with the Socialists seeking to keep their control over the government, while also sending electoral messages to citizens, believes another Moldovan analyst, Veceslav Berbeca.

Russian-backed ex-president Igor Dodon said the Constitutional Court ruling should not be observed, and labelled it an attempt at a “constitutional coup. But the ruling is final, it cannot be appealed, and takes effect immediately. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

16 April 2021
Constitutional Court slams bill taxing special pensions

As the name suggests, Romanias special pensions are set under special laws. They were originally granted to magistrates and force structures. Later on, lawmakers decided that there are more eligible recipients, including MPs themselves, diplomats and aviation staff.

Unlike regular pension benefits, special pensions are not—or not only—based on lifetime contributions to pension funds. They are funded both from the social security budget, and from the state budget.

This, as well as their often inflated amounts, in the thousands of euros, make special pensions, or rather their beneficiaries, the target of criticism from regular citizens, whose pensions are based on active lifetime contributions and average at around 300 euros per month.

Politicians listened to the people and this summer drafted a bill levying 85% taxes on the special pensions in excess of 1,400 euros, including those received by magistrates, the military and the police.

The bill did not eliminate the concept of special pensions, but rather reduced the benefits paid as such. But the Constitutional Court dismissed the law, ruling that it was unconstitutional as a whole.

The bill adopted by Parliament in June had been challenged by the Ombudsman and the by the countrys highest court, according to which the draft legislation came against the principle of fiscal equity. The High Court and the Ombudsman claimed the special pensions set by special laws are subject to double taxation, which comes against the principle of non-discrimination and fair tax burdens, while also breaching the independence of magistrates and the principle of legislative predictability.

The Constitutional Court, which had deferred a ruling on the case several times, is yet to make public its reasons for dismissing the bill.

A number of Constitutional Court rulings of late have fueled speculations that, in its current configuration, the Court is politically biased, ruling in favour of the Left. With the special pensions bill, the Court has an additional moral dilemma, noticed by everyone: constitutional judges are themselves receiving such pension benefits.

And the saga of this law includes another relevant episode: in the last plenary sitting of the Chamber of Deputies, before the elections, all MPs from the Save Romania Union resigned in order to not be eligible for special pensions. So did 6 Social Democrats, including the party president Marcel Ciolacu. While the decision of Save Romania Union is credible, as the party had constantly lobbied against special pensions, the Social Democrats are the champions of legislation that favours MPs, giving their opponents reason to claim the move was populist and driven by electoral goals. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

16 December 2020
September 30, 2020

COVID-19 Coronavirus outbreaks are spreading in Romania, particularly in care centres and in hospitals. The number of schools resorting to exclusively online classes is also on the rise. According to the latest official report, there are 2,158 new cases in the past 24 hours, and 33 new deaths. So far, 4,825 COVID-19 patients have died in Romania, and more than 127,500 people have tested positive.

ELECTIONS Police and prosecutors carry on investigations in a criminal case initiated after on Sunday a Social Democrat running for a local councilor post was caught by representatives of Save Romania-PLUS Alliance with nearly 500 official reports from polling stations. The Central Electoral Bureau is to announce today a decision regarding the Social Democrats request for a vote recount in Bucharest Sector 1. The candidate backed by the Liberals and Save Romania-PLUS Alliance, MEP Clotilde Armand, said she would request the General Prosecutors Office to take over the investigation. The acting Sector 1 mayor, the Social Democrat Dan Tudorache, said he also requested the Bureau to do a vote recount. According to centralised data, Clotilde Armand has won the election with 40.95%, while Dan Tudorache got 39.82% of the votes. In Bucharest, the independent candidate Nicuşor Dan, backed by the Liberals and Save Romania-PLUS Alliance, secured some 43% of the votes for General Mayor of Bucharest. At national level, partial results point to major changes in the administration of county capitals. The Liberals, in power, have won 15 county capitals, the Social Democrats in opposition 14, and Save Romania-PLUS Alliance and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians 4 each. As for county councils, the Social Democrats won 20, the Liberals 17, and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians 4.

COURT The Constitutional Court of Romania has dismissed an objection raised by the President and Government against a bill authorizing Parliament to set the date of this years parliamentary elections. The current bill is therefore deemed in line with the constitution, and president Iohannis is either to sign it into law, or to send it back to Parliament for a review. Meanwhile, in keeping with current legislation, the Liberal government decided on Friday that the parliamentary election will be held on December 6. Until its publication in the Official Journal, the bill tabled by the opposition parties, the Social Democrats, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians and ALDE, is not in force. If this happens, which specialists say is no longer possible because there is not enough time, it will be for the first time in 30 years that the date of general elections in Romania is set by Parliament and not by the Government.

CONFLICT The Romanian Foreign Ministry announces that Romanian embassies in Erevan and Baku are prepared to provide consular assistance to Romanian citizens in the conflict in the region. Romanian citizens are urged to be cautious and to seek information in official sources as regards possible changes in travel conditions in the 2 countries. The European Court for Human Rights (ECHR) called on Azerbaijan and Armenia to refrain from any measures, especially military ones, that might infringe upon civilians rights. Clashes between Azeri and Armenian troops over the Nagorno-Karabakh refion continue, in spite of an appeal for cease-fire and negotiations coming from the UN Security Council. According to official data, 98 people, mostly Armenian separatist fighters and , and 17 civilians on both sides, have been killed in the past few days in the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

TENNIS The Romanians Simona Halep (no. 2 WTA, seeded 1st) and Irina Begu (72 WTA) are playing today in the 2nd round of the Roland Garros tournament. Other Romanians have also qualified into the second round: Ana Bogdan defeated Timea Babos (Hungary), Irina Bara secured a surprising win against Donna Vekic (Croatia), and Patricia Ţig outplayed the Swiss Stefanie Voegele. In the doubles, Ana Bogdan / Rebecca Peterson (Sweden) are taking today on Marie Bouzkova (Czech Republic) / Arantxa Rus (Netherlands), Romanians Andrea Mitu and Patricia Tig are pitted against Madison Brengle (USA) / Yana Sizikova (Russia), Monica Niculescu (Romania) / Misaki Doi (Japan) are playing against Irina Bara (Romania) / Fanny Stollar (Hungary), and Sorana Carstea (Romania) / Sara Sorribes Tormo (Spain) play against Alison Riske(USA) / Ajla Tomljanovic (Australia). (translated by: A.M. Popescu)

30 September 2020
Tax on special pensions, disputed

On Wednesday, the Chamber of Deputies passed a bill that introduced taxes on pension benefits. The bill had already been endorsed by the Senate in 2019, and it was backed by all parliamentary parties. It is meant to restore social justice, the MPs argued, given that disparities between the regular pensions and the pension benefits laid out in special laws are, in certain cases, outrageous.

Perhaps the most insistently covered case is the 15,000-euro pension—the biggest in Romania—paid to a former communist prosecutor who was the commander of a prison. At the opposite pole, the average pension in Romania is little over 250 euros.

From now on, according to an amendment introduced by the Social Democrat Party and Save Romania Union in opposition and by the Liberals in power, “pension benefits of up to roughly 410 euros are tax-free, those of up to 1,450 euros are subject to a 10% tax, while for pensions of over 1,450 euros, there will be an 85% tax charged for the amounts that exceed this threshold.

Beneficiaries of these so-called special pensions in Romania include, among other categories, judges and prosecutors, MPs and mayors. Military pensions also have a special status.

The bill passed on Wednesday did not include Senators and Deputies however, because this required a change in the statutes of MPs. And on Thursday, Parliament reviewed a bill modifying the Fiscal Code and approved the progressive taxation of MP pensions.

Opposing the parliamentary majority, the Save Romania floor group tried in vain to introduce a bill discarding special pensions for MPs, and explained that progressive taxation of these pensions does not need to be voted by the joint chambers of Parliament. This will lead to the Constitutional Court dismissing the law, on grounds that the same bill was actually voted on twice—once by the Chamber of Deputies as a decision-making body, and once again by the joint Chambers as a Fiscal Code amendment, Save Romania Union president Dan Barna argued.

He explained that “this is just like a movie where you shove a pack of dynamite at the constitutional foundation of this law, making sure that the Constitutional Court will reject it.

Conversely, the Social Democrats and the Liberals argued that there are Constitutional Court rulings that require joint Chambers votes on amendments to the statutes of MPs. Both parties emphasised that the law ensures social justice, and voiced surprise at the opposition of Save Romania Union.

Quite predictably, the Constitutional Court has been notified, by the High Court of Cassation and Justice and the Ombudsman. The supreme court says the bill overlooks successive relevant Court rulings, that the Higher Council of Magistrates has not been consulted and that a number of principles are breached, including the fair taxation principle and the independence of judges.

Last month, the Constitutional Court dismissed another bill abrogating special pensions, following notifications filed by the supreme court and the Ombudsman.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

19 June 2020
The Week in Review 31 May – 6 June

COVID-19 restrictions further eased in Romania

June 1 came with a new stage in easing restrictions in Romania, even though the threat of the novel coronavirus is not yet behind us. With the death toll recently passing 1,300 out of 20,000 infection cases confirmed in the 3 months since the virus first hit Romania, the country now lifts another set of restrictions.

Some of the measures introduced on March 15 to contain the spread of the virus had already been lifted two weeks ago, when the state of emergency was replaced by a state of alert. As of May 15, for example, people could leave their homes without needing a sworn statement to travel within the locality. Parks and museums reopened, and things took a turn to normalcy.

The results of an analysis run by decisionmakers now, 2 weeks into implementing the new rules, prompted them to announce that as of June 1 Romania would take further steps to lift containment measures.

These steps include the reopening of outdoor bars and restaurants and beaches, as well as the organization of outdoor performances with up to 500 people in attendance. Sports competitions that do not require direct contact between athletes are also resumed, and so is international road and railway transport. People can also travel freely from one locality to another. But even though some restrictions were eased, president Klaus Iohannis reiterated, caution is still needed.

Constitutional Court rulings

Romanias Constitutional Court ruled down any extension of local elected officials terms in office, and the date of the forthcoming elections must be agreed on by the Government and Parliament. On Wednesday, the Court ruled that a government emergency order extending the terms in office of local elected officials was unconstitutional. The Court also dismissed a bill passed by Parliament on the term in office for local public authorities and on the date of the local elections.

Judges argued that an extension of these terms in office can only be regulated by law, and not by a government order. Parliament had passed a bill extending the term in office in local administration until the end of the year, in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, and giving Parliament the right to set a date for local elections.

Constitutional Court judges argued however that institutional cooperation between Parliament and Government is necessary, and that local elections must be scheduled before the end of local authorities current term in office, on June 21. This means that as of next week parliamentary parties must start to prepare and table legislation to regulate the forthcoming local elections.

New economic recovery measures

The IMM Invest programme has been improved by the Government, which announced plans to also increase the budget earmarked for this programme, so as to triple the number of companies benefitting from these funds in a few weeks. Moreover, the Government has put together a plan to also support large companies affected by the crisis, similar to the programme devoted to small and medium-sized enterprises.

The finance minister Florin Cîţu said the programme to support large companies will have a budget of around 1.6 billion euro, and will be ready within a month. He also announced that Bucharest will have to deposit guarantees of 393 million euro to be able to access funds under the EUs SURE programme, which targets active employment measures and which could channel up to 5 billion euros into Romania.

Festivals postponed in Romania

Major festivals, which had become a tradition in Romania and used to be scheduled every summer, were officially cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic and of relevant restrictions. Untold was due to take place between July 31 and August 2 in Cluj-Napoca (north-west), while Neversea was scheduled for early July in Constanţa, on the Black Sea coast.

According to organisers, the decision was made in the context of the uncertainties looming over the events industry and of the strict conditions under which people are allowed to meet. The Culture Ministry presenting Parliament with a bill banning events with more than 1,000 people in attendance until August 31, 2020, did not help either.

Summer Well, held every summer for the past few years near Bucharest, was also rescheduled for next year, and so was Electric Castle, another festival due in Cluj in mid-July. Also in Cluj, another landmark event, Jazz in the Park, was cancelled over the COVID-19 pandemic. Those who have purchased tickets for this years festivals may choose to use them for the forthcoming editions, or to get a refund, where possible.

On the other hand, the 19th Transylvania International Film Festival, deferred because of the coronavirus containment measures introduced this spring, will be held between July 31 and August 9. TIFF comes with a summer edition with lots of outdoor screenings, holiday atmosphere and a programme adapted to the context. The screenings will be held in specially designed areas, with seats placed a safe distance from one another.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

6 June 2020
May 6, 2020 UPDATE

COVID-19 In Romania, the number of deaths caused by the novel coronavirus has reached 858. The number of confirmed cases exceeds 14,100. Some 5,800 people have recovered. Among the Romanians living abroad, more than 2,400 are confirmed to have caught the virus, most of them in Italy and Spain, while 96 have died, mostly in the UK. Meanwhile, Romanias Constitutional Court Wednesday ruled that the fines issued during the state of emergency for breaching the restrictions introduced over the COVID-19 pandemic are unconstitutional. The ruling concerns around 300,000 fines, totaling over 100 million euros. Prime minister Ludovic
Orban said he was shocked by the ruling, which, he said, was obviously
political in nature and was an invitation to breaking the law, a call for
anarchy. In
turn, Constitutional Court judges argue that the emergency order that regulated
the fines were lacking in clarity, precision and predictability, and issuing a
fine was left to the discretion of police officers.

ASSISTANCE The Romanian prime minister Ludovic Orban Wednesday attended the departure of a convoy of 20 trucks full of medical equipment as part of aid provided by Romania to the neighbouring Republic of Moldova, to help it fight the Covid-19 epidemic. Last week, the government in Bucharest decided to grant Moldova humanitarian aid worth 16.5 million lei in the form of medical equipment and medicines. Romania has also sent a team of 52 doctors and nurses who will be working in hospitals in Moldova treating patients infected with the novel coronavirus.

PENSIONS Cancelling the so-called special pensions is unconstitutional, Romanias Constitutional Court ruled on Wednesday. The magistrates sustained the case filed by the High Court of Cassation and Justice and the Ombudsman against a bill passed by Parliament in January, which eliminated all special pensions except for those paid to Army and Interior Ministry staff, which are not calculated based on the contributions to pension funds. The ruling was based on procedural arguments, without discussing the contents of the bill.

PANDEMIC Europe must learn its lesson from the corona crisis, and secure its “strategic autonomy in key sectors like medical supply chains, which requires stocks and relocation of production, the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Wednesday. He emphasised that “It is not normal that Europe doesn’t produce a single gram of paracetamol, and 80 percent of the antibiotics production of the world is concentrated in China. At present 80% of the active substances used in pharmaceuticals come from third countries, with India and China alone accounting for 60%, according to a 2018 report by the French Senate. Confirmed coronavirus cases passed 3.7 million worldwide, with the death toll nearing 260,000, and 1.25 million people have recovered, according to measurements by ArcGIS and Worldometer. The United States is the worst hit country, with over 2,300 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, taking the death toll to over 71,000, and the highest number of confirmed cases, at over 1.2 million. The UK, with over 29,000 deaths, is now the worst hit country in Europe, followed by Italy, Spain and France. Elsewhere, high schools in Hubei, the Chinese province that was the epicentre of the pandemic, Wednesday reopened for final-year students.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

6 May 2020
December 15, 2019 UPDATE

ASEM The Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu Sunday had a meeting with New Zealands Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs, on the sidelines of the Asia-Europe meeting of foreign ministers held in Madrid. The 2 officials discussed areas of bilateral cooperation, with a focus on strengthening political and diplomatic dialogue and on cooperation within international organisations. Minister Aurescu also emphasised the importance of bilateral economic cooperation, and of bolstering relations between the EU and New Zealand. Also on Sunday, Aurescu met with the Romanian students who attended the Model ASEM Youth Conference, and voiced his support for the youth organisations that work on the sidelines of the summit meetings. The 14th ASEM foreign ministers meeting, held under the motto “Asia and Europa – together for effective multilateralism, is chaired by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell. Taking part are foreign ministers and senior representatives of over 50 European and Asian countries. This is the last event in the ASEM ministerial meeting series taking place in 2019 in which Romania has been an active contributor, including an ASEM education ministers meeting hosted by Bucharest on May 15th-16th, during the Romanian presidency of the Council of the EU.

COMMEMORATION Timişoara, the western Romanian city where the anti-communist uprising started 30 years ago, Sunday hosted a roundtable and a Freedom March to commemorate the event. On Monday, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies convene in a joint solemn session devoted to the anniversary of 3 decades since the anti-communist revolution in Romania. In turn, the European Parliament will commemorate on Monday, on the first day of the new plenary session in Strasbourg, the 30 years since the Romanian Revolution, with a resolution on this topic scheduled to be adopted Thursday. The anti-communist revolution started out on December 16th in Timişoara, which on December 20th became the first Romanian city free of communism. On December 21st, the uprising started to spread to reach Bucharest and other Romanian cities. More than 1,000 people died and some 3,000 were wounded in the clashes that followed across Romania, the only country in the Eastern Bloc where the regime was ousted violently and where the communist leaders (Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu) were executed.

LEGISLATION The Social Democratic Party in opposition will refer to the Constitutional Court on Monday 2 bills that the Liberal Government has these days rushed through Parliament by means of a special procedure. The bills concern the length in service requirements for entry-level magistrates and measures in the road transport sector, the Social Democratic leader Marcel Ciolacu has announced. The Government has also announced plans to request Parliaments confidence on a number of other measures, such as scrapping several provisions in the Government Order 114, dubbed “the greed tax order, through which a year ago the Social Democratic government had introduced additional taxes for banks and caps on the electricity and natural gas prices charged to households. After a first reading of the bill amending this Order, the Government announced it targeted the deregulation of natural gas prices as of July 1, 2020 and of electricity prices as of December 31, 2020, the scrapping of the 2% fee paid by energy companies to the state budget, and the repeal of provisions that allowed for money in privately-managed pension funds to be transferred to the government-managed fund.

MIGRANTS Romanian border police found 20 citizens from Iraq, Syria, Libya, Algeria and India trying to illegally cross the border into Hungary through the Vărşand, Borş and Nădlac II checkpoints in western Romania, the Border Police Inspectorate General announced on Sunday. According to the source, 2 of them are children, the others are men aged 22 to 40, all of them having sought asylum in Romania. They said they were trying to get to a Western European country. The police investigate them for attempted illegal border crossing, identity fraud and forgery.

PROTEST Hundreds of people protested in Buzau, south-eastern Romania on Sunday against the recent dismissal by the Liberal Government of researcher Costel Vînătoru as head of the Vegetable and Ornamental, Aromatic and Medicinal Plant Gene Bank based in the city. Costel Vînătoru, a corresponding member of the Academy of Farming and Forestry Sciences, is the initiator of the Gene Bank, set up in September by the Social Democratic Government. He has been working in vegetable research for 34 years, working to reduce Romanias reliance on seed and vegetable imports.

BREXIT Queen Elizabeth II will set out on Thursday Prime Minister Boris Johnsons legislative agenda following his December 12th election victory. According to the Royal House, the agenda will include a pledge to bring the EU Withdrawal Agreement bill back to parliament before Christmas. The parliamentary approval for the Brexit deal is expected to be a mere formality now, when the Tories have a comfortable 365-seat majority after their biggest national election win in decades.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

15 December 2019
Constitutional Court dismisses changes in criminal legislation

The changes operated by Parliament on the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure come against the Constitution, the judges of the Constitutional Court decided unanimously on Monday. The reason put forth by the Court was that Parliament did not comply with its obligation to bring these changes in line with previous Constitutional Court rulings. The Constitutional Court had postponed a ruling in this respect 7 times, before reaching Mondays decision.

The changes in question include, among others, a considerable reduction of prescription periods for offences posing high social threats, concurrently with a reduction of special prescription periods to a half. Also halved were the penalties for embezzlement and abuse of office, if offenders cover the damages before a final ruling is passed. Criminal negligence was also decriminalised under the proposed legislation.

As for the Code of Criminal Procedure, changes concerned, among others, the intelligence obtained under national security warrants, which was to no longer be used by courts of general jurisdiction even in corruption, rape or murder cases. Other changes were intended to forbid prosecutors from collecting evidence in a search, if the evidence concerns another offence than the one for which the search warrant has been issued, and to invalidate reports to the authorities against an offender, if the offence is older than one year.

It was President Klaus Iohannis and the Save Romania Union and National Liberal Party in opposition that challenged these changes at the Constitutional Court. They argued that through the bills passed by the parliamentary majority made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, more than 300 damaging changes are operated on the Romanian criminal legislation.

Klaus Iohannis welcomed the Courts decision, and urged Parliament to dismiss all the attempted changes of the criminal law and to cancel the changes already operated on the justice laws. In turn, the Liberal Party president Ludovic Orban asks Parliament to reject the new criminal codes as a whole, and if necessary to operate any subsequent adjustments through a new bill, following public consultation and debate. Along the same lines, Save Romania Union requests that police chiefs be appointed based on their merits.

Meanwhile, the leaders of the ruling coalition announced they were working on an emergency government order to improve the legislative framework. The Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats decided to call a special parliamentary session, and PM Viorica Dancila promised that her Cabinet will waste no time.

The Constitutional Court ruling against the modified criminal laws was also covered in international media. Reuters reports that since taking power in 2016, the Social Democratic government has operated a number of legislative and staff changes seen as threats to the independence of the judiciary and causing concern in the European Union, the US State Department, and among thousands of Romanian magistrates, whereas the Venice Commission requested the annulment of these changes.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

30 July 2019
The new administrative code approved through an emergency ordinance

The new
administrative code comes to support the citizens currently facing the
shortcomings of the administrative system, Romania’s Deputy Prime Minister
Daniel Suciu announced on Tuesday after the aforementioned code had been passed
through an emergency ordinance.

According to
Suciu, the code is simplifying Public Administration regulations and sets in
place mechanisms aimed at preventing various institutional dysfunctions. The
document isn’t perfect, but can be improved in Parliament. Romania was in dire need
of a fresh administrative code and those criticizing this government decision actually
don’t want it passed since the document largely contributes to streamlining local
and central public administration.

Daniel Suciu: The document had been subjected to Parliament debates for six-seven
months, then challenged at the Constitutional Court and sent back to
Parliament. We have been already working on the next financial exercise with
the European Commission and we must accomplish what we have assumed regarding
the public function. We are two years behind the schedule regarding one
provision and one year behind another one assumed with the European Commission.

The code also
includes a series of controversial provisions regarding the special pensions of
local officials and the deadline for the president to appoint a government
member in case of reshuffling or resignation. The period for the Prime
Minister’s nominations are of five days, while the president will have to
validate or invalidate the nominee in 10 days.

Under the new
code, the president is allowed to refuse the nomination only once. According to
Daniel Suciu, no response term is stipulated under the present legislation and no
one can be held accountable for a prolonged interim position. The new code also
provides for a series of regulations and procedures for the validation of the
local councilors, elected through a court ruling and not through a decision by
a validation committee. Decision-making in local and county councils will need a
majority, which means half plus one of the total number of councilors.

The country’s
president, Klaus Iohannis, considers the present document a serious attack against
the entire administrative system adding that it should have been passed only after
a new round of Parliament debates and large-scale social dialogue. The
right-wing opposition is also contesting the new code.

The Save Romania
Union believes the document comprises a series of controversial provisions
favouring the local officials elected. The Liberals, who have described the new
code as being dedicated to the local PSD tycoons and tantamount to a national
hold-up, have called on the Ombudsman to notify the Constitutional Court.

In turn, Marian
Oprisan, the Social Democratic chair of the National County Councils Union has
hailed the new administrative code about which he said it helps clarifying
things and improving the administration relation with the citizens.

(translated by bill)

26 June 2019
Severe political crisis in the Republic of Moldova

The pro-Russian Socialist President of the Republic of Moldova Igor Dodon has requested international mediation for the political crisis in Chisinau, one of unprecedented magnitude in the nearly 3 decades since the country declared its independence. Essentially, the 2 sides in the dispute are the Constitutional Court and the incumbent Government formed by the Democratic Party, both of them controlled by the controversial and unpopular tycoon Vladimir Plahotniuc, on the one hand, and President Igor Dodon and the new parliamentary majority, on the other hand.

This past weekend, the political conflict reached its peak. The Constitutional Court ruled to suspend Igor Dodon, replacing him with the Democratic PM Pavel Filip, and to dismantle the current Parliament. In response, the new parliamentary majority made up of the Socialists and the MPs of the Pro-European right-wing bloc ACUM, voted in a new government, headed by former presidential candidate Maia Sandu.

The 2 teams exchange accusations of usurping power. Sandu says the Democratic Party blocks the functioning of public institutions, and after the chief of police refused to recognise the authority of the new Interior Minister she urged civil servants to peacefully hand over power. Meanwhile, Plahotniuc took his supporters to the streets and asked them to be prepared to defend public institutions.

On behalf of neighbouring Romania, President Klaus Iohannis has called on all political forces in Chisinau to respect democracy and the rule of law. Stability is vital if Moldova is to follow through its European accession efforts, translating in a large-scale reform process, including in terms of the rule of law and good governance, reads a news release issued by the Romanian Presidency. The Government of Romania has also announced that it watches closely the political developments in Moldova, and urges all political players in that country to comply with the rules of democracy.

Brussels, in turn, calls for calm. The European Union stands ready to work with a democratically legitimate government, on the basis of a mutual commitment to reforms and to the core principles enshrined in the Association Agreement, reads a joint statement issued by the EU diplomacy chief Federica Mogherini and the Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy, Johannes Hahn. Moscow says it is vital for the forces in charge with Moldovas foreign policy to comply with the actual will of the people.

All these come after 3-and-a-half months of failed attempts at forming a parliamentary majority. In the February 24 legislative elections, the Democratic Party and ACUM bloc each got around one-third of the seats in Parliament. This, analysts noted, reflects the dramatic fragmentation of the Moldovan society between the pro-Russians and pro-Europeans, between the supporters of the fight against corruption and those who favour an oligarchic regime.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

10 June 2019
Romania’s Prime Minister in Brussels

The tone seems to have changed in the dialogue between the left-of-center Government in Bucharest and Brussels authorities after a long period ridden with warning signals launched by Brussels. Romanias Prime Minister and Social-Democrat interim leader Viorica Dancila was encouraged by EU officials, pledging not to continue any controversial judicial reforms.

The meeting follows the poor results grabbed by the Social-Democratic Party in the European Parliament election and the imprisonment of the Social-Democrat strongman Liviu Dragnea, sentenced for corruption. Observing the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary were high on the agenda of talks between Viorica Dancila and the President and Vice-President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker and Frans Timmermans, respectively. The Prime Minister gave assurances that Romania wants an independent judiciary and to observe citizens rights.

As regards the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism in the justice field, Viorica Dancila said talks have to be very strict, since some requirements can be implemented while others cant, because they go against Constitutional Court rulings.

Viorica Dancila: “I have reiterated what Ive been saying since I took over the interim presidency of the party, namely there wont be any emergency decrees in the justice field, as this discussion is now obsolete and we want an independent justice system, we want a rule of law and to observe the rights and liberties of our citizens. We also talked about the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, where talks have to be very punctual. Vice-President Frans Timmermans did not make any threats against Romania.

EU officials have hailed Romanias commitment to uphold the justice system and resume dialogue under CVM, with a view to reporting progress in terms of reforms and combating corruption. Not too long ago, however, the Commission warned Romania it would not hesitate to take swift action, including invoking Article 7, if Romanias actions went against European values.

According to a Government release, President Juncker thanked Prime Minister Dancila for the remarkable results obtained by the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU, which completed over 100 pending files, some of the most notable being the European Border Police and Coast Guard, the European Labor Authority, the Copyright Directive and the Gas Directive. At political level, the Social-Democratic Party still has to mend its relations with the European Socialists. Concerns regarding the rule of law and the independence of the justice system prompted the latter to freeze relations with the Social-Democrats.

Prime Minister Dancila also met in Brussels with the President of the Party of European Socialists, Sergei Stanishev, ensuring him the Social-Democratic Party is on the path to reform. Viorica Dancila pointed out the Social-Democratic Party belongs to the family of European Socialists, and that her party will make efforts to stay the course.

(translated by: Vlad Palcu)

5 June 2019
The Week in Review: February 18 -22

The president to refer the state budget bill to the Constitutional Court

President Klaus Iohannis has decided to refer the budget bill for 2019 to the Constitutional Court before signing it into law. He says the bill drawn up by the ruling coalition formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats is a threat to the Romanian economy and that it appears that some of its provisions are unconstitutional, preventing Romania from fulfilling its commitments before the European Union. He also says the budget is unrealistic, overvalued and delayed considering it should have reached Parliament by 15th November last year. According to the president, it is ridiculous to characterise the 2019 budget as investment-orientated in the words of prime minister Viorica Dancila, when the figures in the bill itself point to what can more accurately be described as an austerity budget with subsistence financing, zero investments in some areas, the need for reorganisation and even redundancies owing to the lack of funds for current expenses. The president has accused the government of not having money for investments but allocating large sums for political parties, mainly the Social Democratic Party, the senior partner in the ruling coalition. In response, the speaker of the Senate and leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats has said the presidents gesture is inopportune.

New changes in the judiciary and reactions from Brussels

The Government in Bucharest this week issued an emergency decree to bring new changes to the justice laws referring, among other things, to the appointment of top level prosecutors and even the responsibilities of the head of the investigation department. Toader explained that these positions can also be occupied by prosecutors who have not worked as judges, and the people currently delegated to occupy them can only do so for a period of 45 days. The National Anticorruption Directorate says there is no extraordinary situation to justify issuing an emergency order to adopt provisions referring to the dismissal of magistrates or changing the organisation of the prosecutors offices. The DIICOT anti-mafia prosecutors have also criticised the decree saying the changes run counter to the constitutional architecture and place the public ministry in a position in which it will be impossible for it to carry out its specific responsibilities. The Superior Council of Magistrates through its department for prosecutors has warned that the changes made by the government to the justice laws will seriously affect the activity of the prosecutors offices. The European Commission has also reacted. Spokesperson Margaritis Schinas said the community executive is monitoring with great concern the latest developments concerning the rule of law in Romania, both with respect to the content and the procedure of the latest changes, through the use of emergency decrees and without any prior consultations with the representatives of the judiciary and stakeholders. These changes, the Commission official went on to say, seem to run counter to the recommendations made under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, backed by all member states. The main opposition parties, the National Liberal Party and the Save Romania Union, have tabled a simple motion in the field of justice, in the Chamber of Deputies. The changes have been criticised by the Romanian President. The magistrates took to the street in large numbers, to protest against the changes which, they say, deeply affect the independence of the judiciary.

New ministers in Romania

President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday signed the decrees appointing Vasile-Daniel Suciu as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Regional Development and Public Administration and Alexandru-Răzvan Cuc as Transport Minister. Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă has said she made those nominations to put an end to a deadlock, which hindered the proper activity of the government, the more so as the interim period at the two ministries has expired. “Regional Development and Transports are two key domains, for which we have provided the necessary sums of money in the state budget law, to be able to make the investments Romania needs. The ministers with full responsibilities in carrying out their prerogatives should coordinate themselves for a better implementation of investment projects, the Prime Minister has also added. Olguta Vasilescu and Mircea Drăghici had earlier been nominated at the two ministries. They have been however rejected several times by President Klaus Iohannis and in the end they decided to withdraw their candidacies.

Meeting of the EU trade ministers in Bucharest

The EU Commissioner for Trade, Cecilia Malmström and the director general of the World Trade Organisation, Roberto Azevędo, attended the informal meeting of the EU Trade Ministers, held in Bucharest earlier this week, under the auspices of the Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union. Talks focused on the modernisation process of the World Trade Organisation and on trade relations between the EU and the US. Also this week, the EU member states validated, during the meeting of the Permanent Representatives Committee, the political agreement secured by Romania and the European Parliament on the Copyright Directive in the Digital Single Market. The directive offers correct payment to copyright holders and takes into account private users interests. The directive will have a positive impact on a large category of actors, such as press publishers, cultural institutions, education institutions, artists, performers and professionals in the field of culture.

(translated by: Diana Vijeu, Cristina Mateescu)

23 February 2019
February 22, 2019 UPDATE

BUDGET The Constitutional Court of Romania has announced that on March 6th it will discuss the notification filed by President Klaus Iohannis against the 2019 state budget law. On Friday, the head of state notified the Constitutional Court over the state budget bill submitted for his promulgation. He described the bill as unrealistic and over-optimistic, and dismissed it as a national disgrace. There are unconstitutional elements in this law, the President said, such as failure to comply with commitments taken within the EU and violation of fundamental rights. Iohannis lashed out at the Social Democratic Party, the senior partner in the ruling coalition in Romania, which he said is unable to govern the country and only rules to the benefit of its leader, Liviu Dragnea. Klaus Iohannis also said political parties are getting too much money, public education is under-funded, and Romania has been in turmoil, particularly since an ordinance was passed in late 2018 modifying the justice laws. According to the President, the entire ruling term of the Social Democrats has been an assault on the rule of law in Romania. In response, the Senate Speaker, Calin Popescu Tariceanu (ALDE, also in the ruling coalition) said the Presidents sending the budget bill to the Constitutional Court is unwarranted and ill-timed. He added the President is “harassing the Cabinet and trying to prevent its work.

JUDICIARY In several cities in Romania, magistrates protested on Friday against the changes to the justice laws introduced by a government emergency decree, and called for independence of the judiciary. They also announced they would suspend their work for several days, and said only urgent cases would be tried. The changes operated by the left-of-centre Government concern, among other things, the appointment of senior prosecutors and the powers of the special division investigating offences committed by magistrates. The emergency decree has been criticised both in Brussels, by the European Commission, and in Romania, by magistrate associations, by the prosecutor division of the Higher Council of Magistrates, and by the right-wing Opposition.

TRADE The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is in a difficult situation at the moment, and swift action is needed for the entity not to fall apart, the EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said on Friday in Bucharest. In turn, the Romanian Minister for the Business Environment, Ştefan-Radu Oprea, said that promoting free trade under the WTO aegis remains a priority for the EU, and member states have voiced their willingness to start negotiations on e-commerce. He added that, with respect to trade relations between the EU and the USA, stakeholders are trying to maintain a positive bilateral agenda and to adopt as quickly as possible the negotiating directives on conformity assessment and the liberalisation of trade in industrial products. EU trade ministers convened on Friday in Bucharest to discuss the modernisation of the WTO and the trade relations between the European bloc and the US.

CONGRESS Cluj Napoca (in north-western Romania) is hosting the congress of the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, the main political party representing the 1.5-million strong Hungarian community in Romania. Attending the event are over 900 delegates, who will elect the new party president. The incumbent leader, Hunor Kelemen, is the only candidate, and is running for a 3rd term in office. Before the congress, Hunor Kelemen told a press conference that in his opinion the main task ahead is for the party to define a general framework for the political decisions to be made in the future. The delegates will also discuss the new economic platform of the organisation and the list of candidates for the European Parliament elections. Another topic on the agenda is the collaboration between the Union, which supports the ruling coalition in Romania, and the other Romanian parties. Represented in Parliament without interruptions since 1990, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians has been a member of many coalition governments in Romania.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

22 February 2019