Radio România Internațional

Tag: Constitutional Court

June 22, 2017 UPDATE

CONSULTATIONS — President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday said the future Prime Minister of Romania should be a man of integrity without a criminal record and backed by Parliament. On Monday parties represented in Parliament are expected by the head of state to designate a new prime minister. Former head of government Sorin Grindeanu was voted out on Wednesday by the coalition his cabinet represented. Social Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea said that the measure was needed because an executive capable of carrying out the ambitious governing platform that got the Social Democrats elected in December 2016 is a necessity. The opposition did not take part in the vote.

EUROPEAN COUNCIL — Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is attending a two day session of the European Council in Brussels. The head of state will be informing European leaders on the conclusions of his recent visit to the United States. According to his staff, the president will meet his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, to talk about bilateral relations and European affairs. The main points on the agenda of the meeting are security and defence, jobs, economic growth and competitiveness, migration, and climate change. As part of discussions on the EUs trade policy, Klaus Iohannis will emphasize the fact that the Union has to consolidate its global leadership role in sustainable free and equitable trade, economic growth, jobs, and innovation. The Romanian President will also support European strategy regarding the single digital market, promoting innovation, competitiveness and sustainable growth in the EU, as well as easing access for people and businesses to new digital means.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT — The Constitutional Court of Romania on Thursday decided that the provisions of an article referring to the prevention, detection and sanctioning of acts of corruption with respect to abuse of office, go against the Constitution. On Wednesday the Court ruled that legal provisions in force regulating abuse of office are vague and ambiguous. In another development, the Justice Ministry on Thursday announced the timetable of public debates on the modification and amendment of the Criminal Code regarding the abuse of office, as per the Court’s decision. On June 28 the civil society and the business sector will be consulted, while on July 3 the debate will include representatives of institutions in the judiciary, magistrates’ associations, academia and liberal judicial professionals. Debates will hosted by the Ministry of Justice.

DEFICIT — Romania’s budget deficit in the central public administration will stand at 3,25% of the GDP this year, according to the Strategy on managing the Government’s public debt in the 2017-2019 period, made public by the Ministry of Finance on Thursday. Also this year, economic growth is estimated to stand at 5,2%, the current account deficit at 2,4% and the inflation rate will stand at 1,9%. Calculated against the international economic context and the economic and financial developments in the Eurozone, Romanian economy is estimated to report an annual average growth of 5,5% in the 2017-2019 period.

PROTEST — Over a million EU citizens have signed the campaign #StopTheTrucks against the export of live animals, including from Romania, according to the initiators of the protest, Eurogroup for Animals. The campaign was launched after the Eurobarometer indicated that 94% of Europeans believe that protecting the welfare of farm animals was important. According to official data, each year, over a billion poultry, as well as 37 million sheep, pigs and horses are transported alive to the EU and third party countries. Gabriel Paun, EU director of Animals International, pointed out that Romania is the country that exports the most sheep and calves to the Middle East and North Africa, with over a million a year. (Translated by C. Cotoiu & V. Palcu)

22 June 2017
June 21, 2017

MOTION – Romanias Parliament is today discussing and voting on the no-confidence motion filed by the Social-Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in the ruling coalition against Sorin Grindeanus Cabinet. Grindeanu refused to step down after coalition parties withdrew their political support for him. Grindeanu has dismissed the conclusions of an analysis of the Governments first six months in office conducted at party level. The other parliamentary factions, the National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania and the Peoples Movement Party announced they would not vote on the motion, as this is a matter for the Social-Democrats to solve on their own. President Klaus Iohannis has called for an immediate way out of this crisis, saying, however, that Romania remains a stable country despite this political crisis, with a strong economy, seen as a trusted partner.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT – The Constitutional Court of Romania ruled that any persons with an expired prison sentence, who have been pardoned or rehabilitated or whove been sentenced for something that is no longer considered a crime, can be members of the Government. Court judges claim the law is inconsistent in this respect, as someone who is criminally prosecuted cannot be part of the Government, although he can be president or a member of Parliament. The Court thus responded to a notification filed by the Ombudsmans Office earlier this year. The legislation in force did not allow Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea to be Prime Minister, after his party won the December 2016 legislative elections. Dragnea got a suspended sentence for election fraud attempt in the 2012 referendum to impeach the then president, Traian Basescu.

FARMING – Business in the farming sector has doubled in the last seven years, to reach some 3,5 billion euros in 2015, reads a recent KeysFin survey. Over 7,000 enterprises with more than 40,000 employees are currently operating in the field, a number which went up by nearly 30% as compared to 2009. The KeysFin analysis also shows that, according to the latest data provided by the European Commission at the end of May, Romania has become the main cereal exporter at EU level. On the other hand, National Bank Deputy Governor Liviu Voinea said Romania has been making constant progress in bridging the development gaps separating it from other developed states.

FINANCING – Over 400 million euros will be made available for funding Romanian SMEs after the European Investment Bank signed funding protocols with six local banks. Based on these agreements, banks can give loans both for starting SMEs as well as for developing those already on the market. The collaboration agreement between the EIB, the European Commission and the Government of Romania was signed in October last year.

GAC – State Secretary with the Romanian Foreign Ministry Bogdan Manoiu on Tuesday attended the General Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg, focusing on preparing the European Council meeting of June 22-23. The Romanian official said security and defense measures to be adopted must be balanced, lead to more cohesion between Member States and ensure added value for the EUs security contribution and its complementarity with NATO measures in this field. At the same time, Secretary Manoiu reiterated Romanias interest to implement all measures aimed at strengthening the EUs external borders. Referring to migration, the Romanian official underscored the need to consolidate progress reported in cooperation with countries of origin and transit countries based on the Partnership Framework adopted in 2016. Bogdan Manoiu also expressed Romanias readiness to continue dialogue in order to identify a consensual solution in terms of reforming the Common European Asylum System.

ATTACK –Belgian security forces shot dead a man suspected of being a suicide bomber on Tuesday evening in Central Station in Brussels. Previously he had detonated a small explosive device, without killing anyone. The incident is investigated as a terrorist attack. In March 2016 Brussels was hit by a wave of suicide bomb attacks at the airport and the subway system, which killed 32 people.

US-UKRAINE RELATIONS – US President Donald trump on Tuesday met in Washington with his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, on the very day the White House announced harsher sanctions against Moscow, whom they accuse of supporting pro-Russian rebel separatists in Eastern Ukraine. Russian immediately criticized the call and promised to retaliate. Broke out in 2014, the conflict in eastern Ukraine has so far killed over ten thousand people. The US and its European allies have called on Russia to observe the Minsk ceasefire agreements of 2015. The White House said that sanctions regarding the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia has illegally occupied wouldnt be lifted unless Moscow withdraws its troops from the region.

21 June 2017
May 12, UPDATE

CYBER ATTACK – The Romanian Intelligence Service announced on Friday that it had managed to counter an attempted cyber-attack against a Romanian governmental agency. The information comes after Romanian and foreign media announced that a group of elite hackers having ties with the Russian government masqueraded as NATO representatives to send phishing emails to diplomatic organisations in Europe, including the Romanian Foreign Ministry. Experts identified the emails as having been sent by a group known to the cyber defence community as APT28. According to the US intelligence community, APT28 has been actively involved in political espionage activities in Europe over the past 10 years, and has collaborated with Russian intelligence services.

VACCINATION – The PM of Romania, Sorin Grindeanu, Friday requested the immediate set up of a task force made up of representatives of the Government, of professional associations, of civil society, which should find immediate solutions to the vaccine crisis in Romania and prevent similar occurrences in the future. The task force will have a clearly defined role, which includes the drafting of legislation which would allow, in the short run, the procurement of the required vaccines, and in the medium run to ensure predictable and steady vaccine stocks. In turn, the Healthcare Minister, Florian Bodog, said he would propose the establishment of a Vaccination Programme Management Unit within the ministry. This structure will be tasked with the timely and constant procurement of vaccines. The vaccine crisis is a recurrent problem in Romania, with shortages reported in hospitals and drug stores once every several months, although they certain vaccines are compulsory.

STRIKE – Air traffic controllers in Romania Friday were on a warning strike, guiding only one-third of the flights. The humanitarian, medical, search and rescue and the emergency flights were not affected. Air traffic controllers are primarily disgruntled with the lack of a new collective bargaining agreement for 2016-2017 and with the fact that hiring has been frozen, although since the conflict in Ukraine the number of flights in the Romanian air space has grown significantly. The latest strike of air traffic controllers took place in July 2015.

INVESTIGATION – The former Romanian MP Sebastian Ghita will be heard by the Supreme Court in Belgrade on May 19, in view of extradition, but the hearing will not be public, Serbias Supreme Court announced. Sebastian Ghita is detained in Serbia, after he was apprehended by the authorities on April 14. Bucharest requested the extradition of Ghita, who fled the country late last year, ahead of a hearing with the National Anti-Corruption Directorate and one day before his parliamentary immunity expired. Sebastian Ghita was subject to a national search warrant, and on January 10 the Romanian Supreme Court ordered the issuing of a European arrest warrant. Ghita is tried in two corruption cases and prosecuted in another two.

MOLDOVA – The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova has a new president for the next 3 years, Tudor Pantaru. He has Romanian citizenship as well. Pantaru has been a judge with the Constitutional Court since 2013, and was a Deputy in Moldovas first democratic Parliament, in 1990-1994. He also served as the first ambassador and permanent representative of Moldova at the UN, and was one of the signatories of Moldovas Declaration of Independence. Pantaru held a number of international offices, including judge posts with the European Court for Human Rights and with the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina since 2002. The pro-Russian President Igor Dodon was critical of the Constitutional Court employing citizens of foreign countries, and said the institution needed to be freed of people who support Moldovas union with Romania.

TENNIS – The best ranking Romanian tennis player, Simona Halep (8 WTA), Friday qualified into the final of the Madrid tournament, which has 5.4 million US dollars in total prize money. She defeated Anastasija Sevastova (Latvia, 22 WTA) in 2 sets, 6-2, 6-3. Halep will play against the winner of the match pitting Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia, 9 WTA) against Kristina Mladenovici (France, 17 WTA). Simona Halep also played the quarter-final of the doubles event in Madrid, together with Irina Begu, against Timea Babos (Hungary) / Andrea Hlavaskova (the Czech Republic), but were edged out of the competition.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

12 May 2017
April 4, 2017

ATTACK — About 60 people were killed on Tuesday in a chemical attack in the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhun, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said. Dozens more suffered respiratory problems and other symptoms, the SOHR also said. The monitoring group could not confirm the nature of the substance, and said it was unclear if the planes involved in the attack were Syrian or those of government ally Russia. The Syrian opposition called on the UN Security Council to urgently open an investigation into the attack, which they suspect was orchestrated by President Bashar al Assad’s military forces. The Syrian regime denied having used chemical weapons in the conflict that started in 2011 and made over 320 thousand victims.

ST. PETERSBURG – Akbarzhon Jalilov, a naturalised Russian national born in Kyrgyzstan in 1995, is the man suspected of having planted the bomb that killed 14 people on the St. Petersburg metro on Monday, according to the Kyrgyz security service. We remind you that an explosion tore through a train as it was travelling between two stations in Russias second-biggest city. A second device was found and defused at another station. The Romanian Foreign Ministry condemned the attack and conveyed condolences to the victims’ families.

AUDIT — The Romanian Justice Minister Tudorel Toader has announced he will order an external audit of the Prosecutor’s Office with the High Court of Cassation and Justice, the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) and the Department for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) to check the prosecutors’ activity. Last week Tudorel Toader presented the conclusions of the assessment he made of Romanias General Prosecutor, Augustin Lazăr, and the Chief Prosecutor of the DNA, Laura Codruţa Kovesi. The decision to assess Lazar and Kovesi came against the background of the Constitutional Court ruling that there was a constitutional conflict between the DNA and Government. We recall that through decree no. 13 the coalition government made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberal and Democrats tried to amend the criminal anti-corruption legislation, which triggered large-scale street protests.

VISIT – Romania’s Minister Delegate for European Affairs, Ana Birchall is paying a two-day visit to Paris starting on Tuesday. She will have meetings with Harlem Désir, State Secretary for European Affairs with the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development and with Jean Bizet, President of the French Senate’s European Affairs Committee. The meeting’s agenda includes talks about the future of the EU, Brexit and the Schengen area.

COURT — Romania’s Constitutional Court is today debating the Ombudsmen’s notification as regards the law that prevents convicted criminals from holding government offices. In the previous two meetings magistrates failed to reach a conclusion and postponed the ruling. Romania’s Ombudsman notified the Constitutional Court in January over an article from the Romanian law that he believes violates international laws. The law prevented the Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea, the current Chamber of Deputies speaker, from becoming PM after the parliamentary elections of December 2016.

EU – Sixteen European Union countries, Romania included, have launched plans to create an EU public prosecutor’s office to combat fraud, the bloc announced on Monday. Plans for a European prosecutor first emerged in 2009 to combat fraud that costs the bloc nearly 900 million euros a year. But they have met resistance from some states who fear a loss of sovereignty as the proposed prosecution office would have powers to operate directly in member states.

(Translated by Elena Enache)

4 April 2017
The ruling of the Constitutional Court

The lack of an expert opinion, be it consultative, in the adoption of the famous ordinance 13 gave rise to suspicions, which made the National Anti-Corruption Directorate start an investigation. However, the Constitutional Court said that the anti-corruption prosecutors had exceeded their prerogatives.

It has been a month since the Romanian government adopted the controversial emergency Ordinance 13 trying to relax the criminal legislation, but responses to that undertaking continue to be reported, even if the ordinance was repealed. On Monday, the Constitutional Court noted there had been a legal conflict of a constitutional nature between the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) and the government.

The conflict — the Court made it clear — was triggered by the fact that the prosecutors assumed the prerogative of checking the legal and opportune character of the famous Ordinance 13, violating the constitutional powers of the government and Parliament. The Court explained that Parliament was the law-passing authority, but that the government could do the same adopting ordinances.

In this case, the only authority empowered to check the legal character of government ordinances is the Constitutional Court. The anti-corruption prosecutors’ inquiry into the opportune character of issuing the ordinance and the existence of expert opinions exceeds the DNA’s authority and is the prerogative of Parliament and the Constitutional Court respectively, the president of the Court, Valer Dorneanu said.

Valer Dorneanu “We believe that the smooth running of the government’s activity has been upset and so have the relations between the three authorities judicial, executive and legislative”.

Ministers should be held responsible for political decisions, not for those related to criminal law, the Court said. After the Constitutional Court had announced its ruling, the president of the Senate, Calin Popescu-Tariceanu, who had submitted the notification, said that the Court’s ruling entailed the avoiding of future inter-institutional conflicts.

Calin Popescu Tariceanu: “Parliament authorizes the government to adopt draft laws and emergency ordinances and Parliament is the one to say whether a law or ordinance is opportune or not; the Constitutional Court alone can decide on the legal character of a law or ordinance and not the Prosecutor’s Office”.

On Monday, when the Constitutional Court issued its ruling, the DNA closed part of the file on the adoption of Ordinance 13, forwarding it to the General Prosecutor’s Office. Anti-corruption prosecutors suspect that the law was violated in that the offender was favoured, documents were destroyed and inaccurate data were dishonestly provided.

The president of the Constitutional Court, Valer Dorneanu, made it clear that from now on only deeds involving direct criminal responsibility could be investigated and the investigation must be made with the observance of the prerogatives of the Constitutional Court, Parliament and government.

28 February 2017
Justice Minister resigns

On January 31st, the Government adopted late into the night a controversial decree amending criminal legislation. Since then, Justice Minister Florin Iordache, the man who spearheaded the project, has become the main target of criticism and biting irony voiced by anti-government protesters, along with Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea, seen as the main beneficiary of the Government’s attempt to decriminalize the corrupt behavior of elected officials.

The decree was repealed last Sunday when over half a million people protested against the Government in Bucharest and other cities. Protesters were disgruntled with the content of the decree and secrecy and urgency of its adoption. Four days later, Florin Iordache tendered his resignation, in what many have seen as a gesture waiting to happen. For his part, Florin Iordache said he had no regrets about his term in office.

Florin Iordache: “All my initiatives were legal and in line with the Constitution. The projects I have proposed or which are currently under public debate at the Justice Ministry are now being debated by Parliament. Still, this was not enough for the public, which is why I have chosen to resign as Minister of Justice”.

Consulted in this matter, the Constitutional Court ruled that Iordache’s decrees are legal, thus rejecting the notifications filed by the Superior Council of Magistracy and the President regarding possible institutional conflicts the decree might have resulted in. However, the Court did not say whether the decree was constitutional, simply because the decree had in the meantime been repealed.

The court thus did not analyze its content, although some commentators claimed it had to. Politicians have responded to Florin Iordache’s resignation in different ways. For the main parties in opposition, the National Liberal Party and Save Romania Union, Iordache’s resignation presents no guarantees against future abuses of the governing coalition made up of the Social-Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats from Romania.

Siding with voices from the street, the two former parties see Iordache’s departure as insufficient, calling on Liviu Dragnea himself and on Prime Minister Sorin Gridneanu to step down as a sign of acknowledgement for their failure.

Instead, the leader of the Social-Democratic group in the Senate, Serban Nicolae, said he disagreed with Iordache’s decision to resign. Other voices in party have condemned the bad image Iordache has given to the party, just as the Social-Democrats were starting to relish their victory in the legislative elections of December 11.

10 February 2017
February 7, 2017 UPDATE

ADDRESS – In a Parliament address on Tuesday, Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis called on the left-wing government to find solutions to the crisis it caused with the ordinance on amending the criminal legislation, an ordinance they later withdrew. The head of state blamed the ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for having collided with a large part of society only a month after coming to power and reminded the large-scale protests triggered by the government’s decision. Iohannis pleaded for a responsible governing, predictable and transparent, and called on Parliament to draw up laws for Romania, not for a group of politicians with legal problems. He warned that unless the Social Democratic Party found a rapid solution to the crisis he would summon talks to settle the issue. At the same time, the president reiterated his decision to call a referendum, for the Romanians to have their say on the continuation of the anti-graft fight and on ensuring the integrity of public functions. The leaders of the ruling coalition accused the president of partisanship and of not playing his part as a mediator in society. On the other hand, the members of the parliamentary parties in opposition, the National Liberal Party, Save Romania Union and People’s Movement Party said that President Iohannis did nothing but express Romanians’ will.

PROTESTS — The anti-government protests continued in Bucharest and other Romanian cities on Tuesday, for the 8th consecutive day. Protesters, who gathered in front of the government offices in smaller numbers than in the previous days, asked for the resignation of the leftist government. We remind you that on Sunday, more than half a million people protested in the capital Bucharest and in other cities against the emergency decree amending the criminal codes, in spite of the fact that the decree had been abrogated that same day. Also on Tuesday protests against the head of state were held in Bucharest for the third day in a row. The government has announced that for the time being it scraps plans to amend the criminal codes.

RULING – Romania’s Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday that that the draft law on the conversion of loans in Swiss francs into national currency is unconstitutional. The Constitutional Court had postponed several times a decision on this matter. The draft law adopted by the Chamber of Deputies on October 18, 2016, stipulated the conversion into the national currency of loans in Swiss francs at the exchange rate valid when the loan was contracted. The law was challenged at the Constitutional Court by the former government headed by Dacian Ciolos, who specified that he did that for clarification and not because he was against it.

BUDGET – Parliament in Bucharest adopted on Tuesday the 2017 budget bill and social security bill. On Monday, Prime Minister Grindeanu underlined the budget contributed to raising the Romanians’ standard of living and was based on a GDP under 200 billion euros, an economic growth of 5.2% and a deficit of 3% of the GDP. The opposition parties’ amendments to the bills have been dismissed.

MOLDOVA – The president of the Republic of Moldova, the pro-Russian socialist Igor Dodon discussed on Tuesday in Brussels with the European Council president Donald Tusk about the relationship between Chisinau and the EU. In a Facebook post Dodon said that he pointed out, during the meeting with Tusk, that two years since his country signed the Association Agreement with the EU the situation in Moldova has worsened. Dodon also said that in the case of a referendum on this matter, if people voted for the annulment of the agreement, he would respect their wish. The Moldovan president proposed, in Brussels, three-side talks among the EU, Moldova and Russia on trade. Igor Dodon is yet to meet the speaker of the European Parliament, Antonio Tajani, foreign policy commissioner Federica Mogherini, and NATO officials.

(Translated by Elena Enache)

7 February 2017
February 3, 2017 UPDATE

EMERGENCY ORDINANCE— Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis will address Parliament on the 7th of February on the subject of the government’s changes to criminal laws and the events sparked as a result. The president challenged the government’s move at the Constitutional Court invoking a legal conflict of a constitutional nature between the Government, on the one hand, and the judiciary and Parliament, on the other. After the Superior Council of Magistracy and the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Ombudsman is now also contesting the government ordinance. In turn, Romania’s Prosecutor General will challenge the ordinance in court. On Tuesday night, the government passed a bill on prison pardon and issued an emergency ordinance to amend the criminal codes. Tens of thousands of people again took to the streets on Friday for the fourth day in a row to protest against the government’s decree that would partly decriminalise some forms of corruption. Despite unanimous condemnation by the country’s judicial institutions, the Social Democratic government has decided to go ahead with the changes. The Social Democratic Party on Thursday reaffirmed its support for Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu. The leader of the party Liviu Dragnea says a disinformation campaign is being waged on the subject and believes that any attempt to undermine the activity of the government is in fact an attempt to destabilise the rule of law.

BUDGET — Parliament’s specialist committees on Friday debated the 2017 budget bill, greenlighting most of the budget allocations to state institutions and ministries. Finance Minister Viorel Stefan said the budget observes the main guidelines, such as cutting the VAT from 20% to 19% or eliminating the income tax for pensions lower or equal to 2,000 lei. This year’s budget is based on a 5.2% economic growth rate and a deficit of maximum 3% and will allow Romania to comply with its commitments to allocate 2% of its GDP to the defence ministry. The government expects an inflation rate under 1.4% and an unemployment rate of 4.3%. On the other hand, the opposition claims the revenue forecast underling the bill is hyped.

SUMMIT — Heads of state and Government adopted new measures to stop the flow of migrants into the EU at Friday’s informal meeting of the EU Council where Romania was represented by its president Klaus Iohannis. The 28 EU leaders discussed in particular the migration from Libya and the central Mediterranean routes. Attending the summit, Klaus Iohannis stressed the importance to tackle the root causes of migration and to support the countries receiving the highest number of arrivals. Another topic was EU-US relations. European Council President Donald Tusk said relations remain an absolute priority for the EU, as one of the major pillars of the free world. In turn, Klaus Iohannis said Romania favors a strong EU-US relationship, pointing out that the Strategic Partnership with the US is vital for Romania.

REACTION — The United States has expressed its deep concern with the Romanian Government’s recent measures undermining the rule of law and curbing accountability for financial and corruption offences, Spokesperson of the US State Department Mark Toner told Radio Romania. The US official said that by withdrawing the ordinance, the Government can support Romania’s credibility at international level, keeping it on track towards investment and economic growth. The US official said the United States is committed to supporting Romania in its efforts to consolidate the rule of law and to combat corruption.

ARREST — The Romanian Intelligence Service has confirmed the arrest of a Romanian national in Germany, suspected of planning a terrorist attack in this country. The Romanian Intelligence Service said it contributed important information to the investigation carried out by their German partners, which led to the arrest of the Romanian citizen. According to the Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe, the 21-year-old Romanian was detained on Frankfurt Airport. He is suspected of being tied to an Islamist organization and of having been exchanging online message with various people with a view to staging a terrorist attack in Germany. The man was getting ready to travel to Romania and was arrested on Thursday. The Baden-Wurttemberg Police has searched the man’s home in the Heidelberg region and seized digital data and documents.

TENNIS — Romania and Belarus are tied 1-all after day 1 of the Davis Cup match counting towards Group 1 of the Europe-Africa zone. Adrian Ungur, 313 ATP, defeated Ilya Ivashka, 175 ATP, while Marius Copil, 129 ATP, lost to Egor Gerasimov, 341 ATP. In the doubles, Horia Tecau and Nicolae Frunza on Saturday face Max Mirnyi and Egor Gerasimov. In the final single matches on Sunday, Romania’s Marius Copil faces Ilya Ivashka, while Adrian Ungur plays against Egor Gerasimov. In other news from tennis, Romania’s highest ranked player in the women’s ranking, world no. 4 Simona Halep, who was due to play Russia’s Natalia Vikhlyantseva in the quarterfinals, has withdrawn from the Saint Petersburg tournament worth more than 700,000 dollars in prize money due to a knee injury. (Translated by V. Palcu)

3 February 2017
December 14, 2016 UPDATE

CONSULTATIONS – Romanias President Klaus Iohannis held a first round of consultations with political parties that entered Parliament after the elections of December 11. The Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats from Romania, currently holding majority, have turned down the invitation. The leaders of the two parties explained there were irregularities in the legal basis of the invitation. Their refusal has been labelled as an “impolite attitude by the president. He met with representatives of the National Liberal Party, Save Romania Union, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians from Romania, the Peoples Movement Party and the group of national minorities. Iohannis pointed out that if the final results of the elections are made public by the end of the week, he might be able to summon the new Parliament over the course of next week. During the consultations, the Liberals said that from an economic point of view, the Social Democratic Party cant be the solution for the citizens well being. The president of the Save Romania Union, Nicusor Dan said his party will note endorse a government made up around the Social Democratic Party, PSD, and its leader, Liviu Dragnea. The Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians from Romania has announced it is not looking for ministerial portfolios or high positions, but for partners in Parliament, in order to put into practice its political program, and the President of the Peoples Movement Party, Traian Basescu, told the Romanian President, Klaus Iohannis, that his party will be part of any anti-PSD political solution. The Social Democratic Party has won Sundays parliamentary elections by a large margin, with over 46% of the votes, followed by the National Liberal Party with 20%, Save Romania Union, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the Peoples Movement Party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT – The Constitutional Court of Romania today ruled against the notifications filed by the Government and the National Liberal Party referring to the law amending the ordinance on the salaries of public sector employees, providing for an average 15% increase of salaries of employees in the education and healthcare sectors. In its notification, the Government pointed out that the law breached three articles in the Constitution on the separation of powers in the state, and that no budget expense can be approved without a source of funding. Also today the Court postponed ruling on a notification filed by president Klaus Iohannis on the law eliminating 102 non-fiscal taxes, initiated by Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea. The president says eliminating these taxes could affect the survival of some public institutions and would have too large an impact on the budget.

ROMANIA AND NATO – Romania will consolidate its defence against Russia boosting its military presence in the Black Sea Region, Defence Minister Mihnea Motoc told Associated Press on Tuesday. The Romanian official said Romania will start earmarking 2% of its GDP to defence starting 2017, a prerequisite NATO has demanded of all its member states. Amidst escalating tensions between Moscow and the West after the illegal annexation of the Crimean Peninsula by Russia, NATO last year set up a NATO Force Integration Unit in Bucharest and activated the NATO Multinational Division South-East. The measures were part of NATOs action plan to increase its operational capabilities, adopted at the NATO Summit of 2014 in Wales.

TURKEY – The European Union has currently no intention of opening new chapters of negotiation for Turkeys EU accession. The announcement was made on Tuesday by the Slovakian presidency of the European Council, ensuing a ministerial meeting in Brussels, where Romania was represented by State Secretary for European Affairs Cristian Badescu. Despite long talks on the matter, a unanimous decision of the 28 member states could not be reached, due to opposition from Austria. The General Affairs Council addressed the anti-democratic interventions in Turkey after the failed coup of July.

SYRIA – The last of the rebels strongholds in Aleppo will be overrun within two-three days, after over four years of conflict in Syria, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said today. Also today, the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accused the Syrian regime and the military of trying to prevent the implementation of the ceasefire allowing civilians and rebels to evacuate eastern Aleppo. The Syrian Observer for Human Rights reports that the Syrian regime has resumed bombing rebels in Aleppo after a several-hour break.

REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA – The President of the Republic of Moldova, Nicolae Timofti, has been awarded the highest distinction offered by the Romanian state for his personal contribution to the development of friendship and cooperation relations between Romania and the Republic of Moldova. The award-grating decree signed by President Klaus Iohannis has been presented by Romanias ambassador to Chishinau, Daniel Ionita. (Translated by V. Palcu and D. Vijeu)

14 December 2016
December 14, 2016

CONSULTATIONS – Romanias president Klaus Iohannis is today holding consultations with political parties that entered Parliament after the elections of December 11, with a view to agree on the future Government. The Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats from Romania, currently owning majority, have turned down the invitation. The leaders of the two parties explained there were irregularities in the legal basis of the invitation. Their refusal has been labeled as an “impolite attitude by the president. Klaus Iohannis will meet representatives of the National Liberal Party, Save Romania Union, Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians from Romania, the Peoples Movement Party and the group of national minorities. Iohannis pointed out that if the final results of the elections are made public by the end of the week, he might be able to summon the new Parliament over the course of next week. The Social Democratic Party has won Sundays parliamentary elections by a large margin, with over 46% of the vote, followed by the National Liberal Party with 20%, Save Romania Union, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the Peoples Movement Party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT – The Constitutional Court of Romania today ruled against the notifications filed by the Government and the National Liberal Party referring to the law amending the ordinance on the salaries of public sector employees, providing for an average 15% increase of salaries of employees in the education and healthcare sectors. In its notification, the Government pointed out that the law breached three articles in the Constitution on the separation of powers in the state, and that no budget expense can be approved without a source of funding. Also today the Court postponed ruling on a notification filed by president Klaus Iohannis on the law eliminating 102 non-fiscal taxes, initiated by Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea. The president says eliminating these taxes could affect the survival of some public institutions and would have too large an impact on the budget.

ROMANIA AND NATO – Romania will consolidate its defense against Russia boosting its military presence in the Black Sea Region, Defense Minister Mihnea Motoc told Associated Press on Tuesday. The Romanian official said Romania will start earmarking 2% of its GDP to defense starting 2017, a prerequisite NATO has demanded of all its member states. Amidst escalating tensions between Moscow and the West after the illegal annexation of the Crimean Peninsula by Russia, NATO last year set up a NATO Force Integration Unit in Bucharest and activated the NATO Multinational Division South-East. The measures were part of NATOs action plan to increase its operational capabilities, adopted at the NATO Summit of 2014 in Wales.

TURKEY – The European Union has currently no intention of opening new chapters of negotiation for Turkeys EU accession. The announcement was made on Tuesday by the Slovakian presidency of the European Council, ensuing a ministerial meeting in Brussels, where Romania was represented by State Secretary for European Affairs Cristian Badescu. Despite long talks on the matter, a unanimous decision of the 28 member states could not be reached, due to opposition from Austria. The General Affairs Council addressed the anti-democratic interventions in Turkey after the failed coup of July.

SYRIA – The last of the rebels strongholds in Aleppo will be overrun within two-three days, after over four years of conflict in Syria, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said today. Also today, the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accused the Syrian regime and the military of trying to prevent the implementation of the ceasefire allowing civilians and rebels to evacuate eastern Aleppo. The Syrian Observer for Human Rights reports that the Syrian regime has resumed bombing rebels in Aleppo after a several-hour break.

HANDBALL – The Romanian womens handball team is today playing Denmark in a match the will decide the teams that will perform in the semi-finals of the European Championship in Sweden. To advance to the next phase, Romania needs at least a draw, while Denmark has to win. Norway tops the second main group, with eight points, followed by Romania with six and Denmark with five. On Tuesday, Romania defeated the Czech Republic narrowly 30-28, while Russia drew against Denmark 26-all. The defending European champions Norway defeated Hungary narrowly 24-23 and have secured their presence in the semi-finals. Romania is coached by Ambros Martin of Spain, who last month replaced Tomas Ryde of Sweden, with whom our team won bronze at the 2015 World Championships in Denmark.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

14 December 2016
December 7, 2016 UPDATE

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT– Romanias Constitutional Court will decide on December 14 in relation to the notifications filed by the National Liberal Party and the technocratic government regarding the law that changes the ordinance on the salaries of personnel paid from public funds. The Chamber of Deputies passed the law on November 7, with the amendments proposed by the experts committees, which provide for pay rises by 15% in the education and healthcare systems. The PM Dacian Ciolos subsequently announced that the government had to ask for a constitutionality check of the law passed by Parliament, and not of the emergency ordinance.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS – The Romanian foreign minister, Lazar Comanescu, on Wednesday expressed Bucharests unequivocal support for Ukraines independence and territorial integrity, as well as for boosting cooperation between the Ukrainian authorities and the North-Atlantic Alliance. Attending the meeting of the NATO foreign ministers held in Brussels, Comanescu encouraged Ukraines domestic reform efforts. The participants also analyzed the situation in Afghanistan, with the Romanian foreign minister presenting Romanias significant contribution to NATOs commitments to that country.

QUAKE – As many as 100 people have died and several hundreds have been injured, and tens of buildings have collapsed in Indonesia following a 6.4 magnitude quake that hit the province of Aceh, in the north. The earthquake occurred in the morning at a depth of 8 kms. No tsunami alert has been issued. The province of Aceh was seriously damaged in 2004 following a 9.2 magnitude quake that was followed by a tsunami. 120,000 people died in that natural disaster.

TABLE TENNIS – Romanian table tennis players Adina Diaconu and Andreea Dragoman on Wednesday won the gold medal in the doubles of the World Junior Table Tennis Championships in Cape Town, South Africa. In the finals, Diaconu and Dragoman defeated the Japanese Hina Hayata and Miyu Kato, 4-2. In the singles, Diaconu won the bronze medal, and afterwards lost in the semi-finals to Mak Tze Wing of Hong Kong, 0-4. (Translated by L. Simion and D. Vijeu)

7 December 2016
Constitutional Court to establish the constitutionality of new bill

Parliament in Bucharest quickly voted last
month a bill to eliminate over 100 non-fiscal duties, but the bill is yet to be
signed into law by president Klaus Iohannis. Initiated by the Social Democratic
Party, the bill stipulates the elimination, beginning January 1st
2017, of the environment stamp duty for vehicles, the tax for issuing
provisional passports, the radio and TV licence fee, and the fee for issuing
fiscal records, among others.

President Iohannis on Tuesday challenged the
bill at the Constitutional Court, arguing that it fails to comply with several
Constitutional provisions. In a note sent to the Court’s magistrates, Iohannis
says the bill departs from constitutional norms related to the principle of the
separation of powers and legality, the government’s relationship with
Parliament and the role of the executive. The president also says that many
citizens wish to have some duties removed but this has to be done coherently,
effectively and responsibly. Iohannis says that because the bill was drafted in
haste, it may contain some unconstitutional aspects:

For reasons I’m personally not aware of, Parliament moved very quickly,
which resulted in a failure to comply with certain procedural requirements,
perhaps intentionally. I believe that some issues related to both procedure and
fundamental issues have not been well clarified by Parliament so I have
requested that the bill’s constitutionality be verified. Of course, if the
Court rules that some parts of the bill have to be reformulated, Parliament may
do this, and if the bill is sent back to me to signed into law I will see at
the time whether I will endorse it or send it back to Parliament for
completion.

President Iohannis has cautioned that by
implementing this law Romania runs the risk of exceeding the 3% target deficit
agreed upon with international bodies. An exclusively political decision,
this is how the initiator of the law, Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea
has described president Iohannis’ decision to challenge the constitutionality
of the law. For their part, the Liberals agree with most of the provisions of
the bill but argue that the environment stamp duty and the radio and TV licence
fee need to be maintained. The elimination of the latter has sparked heated
debates of late. Its supporters say that doing away with the fee and funding
the public broadcasting services exclusively from the budget could lead to
their political subordination.

The Court has set December 14th as
the date for giving the verdict on the president’s challenge.

16 November 2016
15 November, 2016

President Klaus Iohannis filed a motion in Constitutional Court in Romania to declare unconstitutional the law introduced by Social Democrats that slashes 102 non-fiscal taxes, among them the public radio and TV fees. The head of state claims that the law violates separation of powers and legal principles governing the relationship between Parliament and the government, the role of the government, and the national budget. In a debate on the impact of the elimination of the public radio and TV fees, the president emphasized that the fees paid by citizens for public radio and television are a guarantee of public service. Klaus Iohannis criticized the way in which the bill was rushed through, and the fact that there was no public debate regarding this issue. He specified that he received requests to block the law from international bodies. The sponsor of the law, the head of the Social Democratic Party, Liviu Dragnea, said that the funding of the two institutions would not be affected, and that their management has to be depoliticized, ensuring editorial independence.

The Romanian economy has grown in the third quarter of this year by 4.4% as compared to the same period in 2015, and by 0.6% as compared to the previous quarter, according to the National Institute of Statistics (NIS). The data indicates a significant slowdown of economic growth as compared to the second quarter, when Romanias GDP went up 6% compared to the same period last year. The IMF expects the total economic growth for 2016 to be 5%, and the latest forecasts by the European Commission shows that the growth in the real GDP in Romania is among the fastest in Europe, by 5.2% in 2016, 3.9% in 2017, and 3.6% in 2018. The Commission, however, reiterated its warning on Romania going above the 3% deficit threshold due to tax cuts and increased public wage spending.

Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu pleaded for continued reforms to be carried out by the neighboring Republic of Moldova, while taking part in the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, saying that the EU should continue its engagement with the authorities in Chisinau. His statements come after Sundays presidential elections in the ex-Soviet republic, won by pro-Russian Socialist Igor Dodon. The opposing candidate, pro-European Maia Sandu, said that elections were badly run. Thousands took to the streets in Chisinau to protest, claiming the elections had been rigged. Stay tuned for more after the news.

In Romania, the head of the Permanent Election Authority, Ana Maria Patru, is under investigation by the Anti-Corruption Directorate for money laundering and influence peddling. She has been the head of the Authority since 2012. For two years, between 2005 and 2007, she acted as coordinating director of the Southern Regional Branch of the Permanent Election Authority. Since October 2013 she has been the vice-president of the world association of election bodies.

Former star athletes Gabriela Szabó and Mihai Covaliu run today for president of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee. Szabó, multiple Olympic, world and European champion in track, was appointed in 2013 ambassador of Romanian tourism, and one year later she came to head the Ministry of Youth and Sports. Her opponent, Mihai Covaliu, is Olympic and world champion in fencing, coaches the Romanian national mens saber team, and is head of the Romanian Fencing Federation. In Rio at the Olympics, Romanias womens epee team won the only gold medal for the country.

US President Barack Obama went on his last foreign tour before ending his term. He will be visiting Greece, Germany and Peru, where he will be taking part in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit. According to Radio Romanias correspondent in Washington, Obama will try to reassure European allies of the future of NATO, as president elect Donald Trump has them worried. In his first post-election press conference, Obama warned Trump that it will be hard to pull out of agreements such as the Paris climate accord and the nuclear deal with Iran, or take rash action against illegal immigration.

Romania’s national football team in Grozny today takes on Russia, in a friendly game ahead of the World Football Championship in 2018. We recall that after the dismantling of the Soviet Union in 1991, Romania had taken on Russia only once, in 2008, when our national squad grabbed a 3-nil win. This past Friday on home turf, Romania sustained a 3-nil defeat against Poland, and diminished its chances to go through to the World Championship in 2018. With only 5 points on its record sheet, Romania is 4th-placed in preliminary Group E, where Poland is at the top of the table with 10 points, Montenegro is the runner-up team with 7, while Denmark is 3rd placed, with 6 points. Romania’s next scheduled fixture will be played in March, when the national squad takes on Denmark.

15 November 2016
Pre-election decisions on pay rises

The government has decided to challenge the law on a 15% pay rise for healthcare and education employees at the Constitutional Court. The law on the increase of salaries on Monday was passed by the Chamber of Deputies, which is the decision-making forum in that case, after it had previously been passed by the Senate.

Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos has explained that there are several reasons related to the unconstitutional character of the law. He claims that the law on fiscal-budgetary responsibility was violated, which stipulates that pay rises shall not be adopted six months before the elections.

Dacian Ciolos: “This request for compliance with constitutionality aims only at the law amending the emergency ordinance and not the emergency ordinance as such. So, what the emergency ordinance decided is further valid, whatever the Constitutional Court may rule. Those amendments recreate or deepen salary inequities which we want to be corrected and I believe that public sector employees want not only their salaries to be increased, but the increase to be sustainable too; moreover, they want to be sure the increase will not be changed after one or two years depending on the budget availability, all the more as not only pay rises are adopted, but also inequities triggering so many problems are corrected.”

Ciolos also argues that the bicameralism principle was not observed, the law being substantially amended by deputies as compared to the draft law passed by senators. Furthermore, the Prime Minister argues, the Parliament had not called for the government’s opinion on those pay rises, according to procedure, and a transparent debate on the draft law had not taken place.

Attending the voting in the Chamber of Deputies, Labour Minister Dragos Paslaru said that as compared to the law drafted by the government providing for pay rises by 30% on an average in the next 5 years for all public sector employees, the law amended by the Chamber of Deputies gave rise to inequities. He also denounced the fact that those pay rises, estimated at about 1.1 billion Euros a year, were not covered by the budget.

However, the Social-Democratic Party, which initiated the law, believes that there is enough money for those pay rises, that were also backed by the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, ALDE and the group of national minorities.

Social-Democrat leader, Liviu Dragnea, believes that the budget deficit will not be higher than the allowed ceiling and that the impact of the pay rises on the budget will stand just at 1.9 billion lei and not at nearly 5 billion lei as the government claims. The National Liberal Party refused to take part in the debates and the voting in the Chamber of Deputies, estimating that the pay rises had no financial coverage, having only an electoral purpose. In the pundits’ view, those so-called “electoral alms” given in the run up to the parliamentary elections due in December will leave their mark on economic growth and will trigger a drop in investments.

9 November 2016
The Week in Review 31.10 – 06.11

The strike of the healthcare staff has been declared illegal

The
Bucharest Court on Thursday ruled that the strike of the healthcare staff held
early this week was illegal. The decision can still be appealed, but it is
binding. The magistrates thus agreed with the Health Ministry officials who
claimed, among other things, that the trade unionists’ action did not comply
with the legal conditions for starting a labor conflict. The healthcare staff
went on strike on October 31, asking for higher salaries and better working
conditions. On November 1st the protest was suspended, after the
parliamentary committees approved a pay rise for the healthcare staff and the
trade unionists received assurances that the amendments would be voted in the
plenum of Parliament next week. The labour minister, Dragoş Paslaru, has warned that these pay rises could
affect the country’s economy.

The government criticizes the pay rises and the
elimination of charges proposed by Parliament.

The
Romanian government believes that the pay rises and the elimination of more than
100 charges, as proposed by Parliament proposals, will have a negative impact
on next year’s state budget.

Dacian
Cioloş: As
is customary for Romania’s Parliament before elections, a number of measures
have been passed in recent months, which raise salaries for various categories
of public sector employees, without thorough previous calculations. The total
amount of money stands at around 9 billion lei, that is more than 1% of the
GDP.

The budget
impact of the populist laws voted before the elections amounts to 2 billion
euros, which will lead to either a deeper budget deficit or to a reduction of
the funds to be allotted for investments. Moreover, the imbalances between
several categories of state employees will increase. If the bills are passed in
the form wanted by Parliament, the Government will challenge the salary law at
the Constitutional Court. In the run up to the December 11 elections, on
Tuesday the MPs in the joint budget – finance and labour committees amended the
order on the salaries of state employees and introduced new categories of staff
in the education and healthcare systems that will benefit from pay rises or
bonuses, although salaries in these fields have already been increased in the
past year by an average 30%. These pay rises were announced shortly after the
MPs passed a draft law on the elimination of more than 100 non-fiscal taxes,
including the radio and TV license fees.

The government sets maximum levels for
mandatory motor-vehicle liability insurance policies.

Wednesday’s
decision by the Romanian Government to impose certain caps, for a period of 6
months, on the mandatory car liability insurance policies, has triggered
conflicting reactions depending on the interests of the sides involved. The
National Union of Insurance and Reinsurance Companies notified the European
Commission on the 6-month freeze on car liability insurance prices, claiming
that the measure infringes on the principles of free market and competition as
stipulated in the Romanian Constitution. On the other hand, road carriers have
hailed the measures passed by the government. Moreover,
they call on Parliament to issue a new insurance law in these 6 months, before
the expiry of the government’s ordinance on capping car liability insurance
policies. Transporters also ask for the future law to ensure total transparency
as regards the calculation of tariffs for all categories of vehicles held by
natural persons and legal entities. The insurance companies that will sell
insurance policies at prices exceeding the maximum value set by the government
risk big fines. New regulations in the insurance field were adopted by the
government after the protests organized by transporters. They have frequently
contested the very high prices they had to pay especially for trucks and the
fact that car liability insurances policies are growing by the year.

Criminal prosecution to expand in case related
to the 1989 anti-communist revolution.

Almost 27 years after the fall
of the Ceausescu regime, army prosecutors have expanded in rem the
criminal proceedings in the so-called Revolution case to investigate crimes
against humanity committed after the 22nd of December 1989.
Prosecutor Marian Lazăr
explains the reasons of this decision.

Marian Lazar: It transpires from documents that are part of the case that,
in order to hold on to power, through their actions and measures, the new
political and military leadership instated after the 22nd of December
1989 caused the death, gunshot injury, physical and psychological damage and
unlawful deprivation of freedom of a large number of persons, actions that fall
into the scope of crimes against humanity.

The actions in question point
to the existence of a plan aiming to create a state of confusion among the
armed forces and thus enable the new leaders to take over power and acquire
legitimacy. According to a document from the Military Prosecutor’s Office with
the High Court of Cassation and Justice, more than 1,200 people were killed in
the events of December 1989, of whom 800 died after 22nd of
December, when the regime collapsed. More than 5,000 people were wounded and
several thousand unlawfully deprived of freedom and subjected to bad treatment.
The reopening of the Revolution case, which earned Romania a series of
convictions at the European Court of Human Rights, comes a few months after
interim prosecutor general Bogdan Licu called for the reopening of the
inquiries. According to Licu, the ruling to close the case in October 2015 was
ungrounded and illegal, and the legal classification of the deeds was wrong.

5 November 2016