Radio România Internațional

Tag: European Parliament debate

  • October 1, 2018

    October 1, 2018

    2018-2019 ACADEMIC YEAR – Nearly half a million students in Romania
    today are starting a new academic year. President Klaus Iohannis attended the
    opening ceremony in Iasi, recalling that the city hosted the first modern
    university in Romania in 1860. The President added that the recent decades,
    marked by economic and technological advancement, have turned the great
    university centers in pillars of economic growth. In turn, Prime Minister
    Viorica Dancila attended the opening ceremony at the Faculty of Medicine and
    Pharmacy in Craiova, saying that the Romanian medical school is an elite
    school, and that healthcare and education should underlie the development of
    society. The new academic year starts with the Education Minister position left
    vacant, after Valentin Popa resigned last week. Rovana Plumb, Minister of
    European Funds, has been nominated as interim Education Minister.




    REMARKS – The recent changes to the justice legislation in Romania
    risk throwing the country back in the early 2000s, a period marked by deep
    corruption, US Ambassador to Bucharest Hans Klemm said today at the opening
    ceremony of a new academic year at the Law School in Bucharest, also attended
    by the French Ambassador to Bucharest, Michele Ramis. Hans Klemm referred to
    the amendments brought to the Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code, the
    modifications brought to the Judicial Inspection Corps, and the magistrates’ protests
    against the changes, which were unimaginable in the past, Klemm argued. In
    their current version, these amendments will hinder or make it utterly
    impossible the investigation and prosecution of such crimes as murder and
    organized crime, the US official went on to say. According to Ambassador Klemm,
    international cooperation in the justice field will be reduced significantly
    over worries linked to sharing information with Romania.




    DEBATE – The latest developments in Romania related
    to the independence of the justice system are today under debate in the
    Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs at the European
    Parliament, in a meeting chaired by European Commission first vice-president
    Frans Timmermans. According to the European Parliament, the preliminary opinion
    issued by the Venice Commission regarding the three draft laws revising the
    status of judges and prosecutors, judicial organization and the functioning of
    the Superior Council of Magistracy will be also tackled. The meeting precedes
    Wednesday’s scheduled debate in the European Parliament, devoted to the rule of
    law in Romania, to be attended by Romania’s Prime Minister Viorica Dancila. The
    Romanian official discussed the topic earlier this week with the main political
    parties in the European Parliament.




    PARLIAMENT – Romanian Senators and Deputies will resume session on
    Tuesday after today they are attending ceremonies marking the start of a new
    academic year across the country. The Chamber of Deputies’ agenda includes the
    law regulating the exploitation of natural gas in the Black Sea. The debate and
    the vote on this matter was delayed by a week. The bill got Senate’s approval
    and has been tabled to the Chamber of Deputies. Members of the Alliance of
    Liberals and Democrats in Romania have announced they would introduce several
    amendments, while Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea wants to delay the vote,
    to give MPs enough time to analyze and discuss the offshore bill. Also this
    week the ruling coalition faces two simple motions. The Liberal Party in
    opposition has filed a simple motion against Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici
    in the Chamber of Deputies, while the Save Romania Union and Liberal party have
    filed a motion against Transport Minister Lucian Sova in the Senate. Both documents
    will be debated and voted on Wednesday. Parliament’s committee investigating
    the involvement of the Personal Security Service (SPP) in the activity of
    certain political parties and some of their leaders is also scheduled to start
    its activity this week. Deputy Prime Minister Paul Stanescu and the former
    director of the Service, Dumitru Iliescu, will be the first to be deposed.




    VISIT – European Union Chief Negotiator for Brexit Michel Barnier
    on Tuesday is paying an official visit to Bucharest. According to a press
    release made public by the European Commission’s Representation in Romania,
    Michel Barnier will meet with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, Senate Speaker
    Calin Popescu-Tariceanu, Chamber of Deputies Speaker Liviu Dragnea, Prime
    Minister Viorica Dancila and Minister Delegate for European Affairs, Victor
    Negrescu. Additionally, the EU official will hold talks with representatives of
    Parliament’s joint committees for European affairs and foreign policy and with
    members of Parliament’s special committee for the coordination of actions
    connected to the Romanian Presidency of the European Council in the first half
    of 2019.




    NOBEL PRIZE – Scientists James P. Allison of the United States and
    Tasuku Honjo of Japan were today awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2018
    for their discovery of cancer therapy by inhibition of negative immune
    regulation. The Nobel Prize for Literature will be announced next year along
    with the recipient selected for 2019, in the wake of wide-ranging sexual
    assault allegations targeting members of the Swedish academy, made public by
    #MeToo. The Academy has thus decided to postpone the literature prize for next
    year, to allow the institution to reform and replace its outgoing members. Five
    Nobel prizes were instated by Swedish inventors, industrialist and
    philanthropist Alfred Nobel, for medicine, chemistry, physics, literature and
    peace. A sixth Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was founded by Bank of
    Sweden in 1968.




    TSUNAMI – The Government of Indonesia
    today called for international aid in the wake of Friday’s earthquake and
    ensuing tsunami that hit Sulawesi Island, killing some 830 people. The
    Government said 1,200 inmates escaped from three prisons, speculating the chaos
    that followed Friday’s catastrophe. The Romanian Foreign Ministry has conveyed
    condolences to the families of the victims and expressed its deepest compassion
    and solidarity with the Indonesian people and authorities. In another
    development, at least two people died and some 120 were wounded after Trami
    typhoon swept through southern Japan, disrupting the transport network.




    REFERENDUM – 90% of Macedonian voters on Sunday favored the name
    changing to North Macedonia in a Government-organized referendum.
    Unfortunately, the referendum was invalidated due to low voter turnout. The
    name-changing plan is aimed at putting an end to a long-standing spat with
    Greece, a country which this summer signed an agreement unlocking Macedonia’s
    path to NATO and the EU. To become a member of the North-Atlantic Treaty
    Organization, Macedonia needs to ratify the agreement with Greece by referendum
    and change its constitutional name. Only then will the Greek Parliament be able
    to ratify the agreement. The European Union has urged both parties to respect
    the results of Sunday’s referendum, with NATO also hailing what it has termed
    a historic decision to put aside all differences with Greece.




    TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep is ranked first and
    enjoys a considerable lead in WTA standings. Halep is up 2,400 points over
    runner-up Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark and 2,700 against Germany’s Angelique
    Kerber. The gap will shrink starting next week, considering Halep withdrew in
    the first round in Beijing this year. Last year the Romanian player reached the
    finals. This is Simona’s 48th consecutive week at the top of the
    women’s singles rankings. Also the Romanian player is ranked 11th in
    an all-time ranking. Other Romanians ranked in the WTA Top 100 are Mihaela
    Buzarnescu (24), Irina Begu (53), Sorana Cirstea (61), Ana Bogdan (80) and
    Monica Niculescu (82).

    (Translated by V. Palcu)

  • February 7, 2018

    February 7, 2018

    DEBATE — The European Parliament in Strasbourg is today hosting a debate analyzing the rule of law and judicial overhaul in Romania. The decision to hold the debate was taken on January 18 in the European Parliament, in response to the ruling coalition’s modifications to the justice laws, which were harshly criticized by magistrates’ associations, the opposition as well as the European Union. On Tuesday Justice Minister Tudorel Toader met in Strasbourg with European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans as well as members of the Party of European Socialists, discussing the justice laws and their implementation, as well as the Government’s plans to amend the criminal and criminal procedure codes. After meeting with European Socialists, Toader expressed confidence that the EU has been misinformed over the justice reform in Romania.



    CORRUPTION — The problem of corruption in Romania cannot be solved just by arresting suspects, putting public employees on trial and getting sentences, Laura Codruta Kovesi, the head of the National Anticorruption Directorate said earlier today, on the sidelines of a debate titled “Fraud and corruption in the field of public procurement”. Kovesi pointed out that prosecutors’ efforts should be backed by pre-emption and anticorruption education. In turn, Prosecutor General Augustin Lazar said maintaining public trust in the Romanian judiciary should be a priority for those working in the system. Lazar went on to say that any initiative aimed at amending criminal legislation ought to be grounded on impact studies.



    CONSTITUTIONAL COURT — Romania’s Constitutional Court is today discussing a notification filed by President Klaus Iohannis with respect to the modifications brought to the law allowing MPs, ministers, local elected officials, prefects and presidents of county councils to operate as individual traders. The President believes procedure was violated in this case, and that the Senate was supposed to be the decision-making body. In addition, Klaus Iohannis says that the rule-out of this incompatibility clause could diminish integrity standards and hinder the rule of law. The law goes against international integrity standards Romania has pledged to observe and is unconstitutional, the Presidency also says.



    GERMANY — The Conservatives and Social-Democrats in Germany today reached an agreement to form a coalition Government, four months after legislative elections were held in this country. The Christian-Democratic Union, its ally from Bavaria the Christian-Social Union and the Social-Democratic Party managed to compromise over the distributions of ministries in the new cabinet. The parties also overcame divergences linked to the healthcare reform and tightening rules for short-term employment contracts. After a 20-hour round of talks, the German Social-Democrats, who ruled over 2013-2017 alongside the Conservatives, will get to keep the Labour, Social-Affairs, Justice, Finance and Foreign Affairs ministries. The Finance Ministry was previously held by Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian-Democratic Union.



    CLIMATE CHANGE — The European Parliament on Tuesday passed a law to limit industry-generated CO2 emission and start implementing the directives of the Paris agreement on climate change. Romania and Bulgaria were subject to derogation for using a new fund under the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) aimed at modernizing fossil fuel-based heating systems. Informally approved by ministers from Member States, the new law will accelerate the cancellation of emission certificates on the carbon dioxide market, which cover some 40% of greenhouse gas emissions EU-wide. At the same time, under the new law, two additional funds will be created, with a view to increasing innovation and encouraging a switch to a low-carbon economy. An ETS Modernization Fund will help upgrade the energy systems of low-income EU states, including Romania and Bulgaria.



    LAUNCH — The world’s most powerful space rocket, Falcon Heavy, today launched successfully from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Designed by billionaire Elon Musk, the rocket can carry twice the payload of the closest operational vehicle. Falcon Heavy is also fitted with auxiliary boosters which can be reused, thus saving millions of dollars on launch costs. Prior to the launch, the authorities said this would be a high-risk launch. Falcon Heavy was conceived to carry some 64 tons into orbit, the equivalent of five London double-deckers. Elon Musk confirmed that his 2008 Tesla Roadster is onboard the rocket, which is heading for the orbit of Mars, 225 million kilometers from Earth. Falcon Heavy is the largest and most powerful rocket launched in space after Saturn V, the rocket used for the Apollo space missions, which landed the first NASA astronauts on the Moon.


    (Translated by V. Palcu)

  • February 2, 2017

    February 2, 2017

    EMERGENCY ORDINANCE — Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis today announced he has notified the Constitutional Court regarding the Government’s emergency ordinance modifying criminal legislation, which creates a legal conflict between the Government, Parliament and the judiciary, thus breaching the Constitution, the president has argued. Klaus Iohannis has also criticized the Interior Ministry for the way it handled last night’s protest, when an isolated group of people resorted to violence. The President claims the Ministry and the riot police had been duly informed regarding the risk of such incidents aimed at compromising the protest. In turn, Interior Minister Carmen Dan said she received no information regarding any intention to instigate violence in last night’s protest. We recall that unprecedented protests were staged in Bucharest and many other cities across the country against the Government’s decision to modify the criminal codes by emergency ordinance. Protesters called on the Government to withdraw the ordinance and step down. Romanians in the Diaspora also protested the Government’s decision. Florin Jianu, Minister for the Business Sector, has stepped down.



    DEBATE ON THE PROTESTS — The recent street protests staged in the wake of the Government’s ordinance modifying the criminal legislation were the subject of a heated debate in the European Parliament today. Romanian MEPs, members of the European People’s Party called for withdrawing the ordinance, while the representatives of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats and the Social-Democratic Party, claimed the protesters were trying to overthrow a legitimate Government. The European Commission has called on the Romanian Government to re-evaluate the ordinance. In turn, the Embassies of France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada and the United States in Bucharest have expressed their deep concern regarding the Government’s actions, which they see as undermining Romania’s progress regarding the rule of law and the fight against corruption in the last ten years.



    REACTION — The Pro Democratia Association, one of the oldest and most respected NGOs in Romania, has expressed concern with respect to the rapid and serious degradation of democracy in Romania, also in connection with the concerted attack of political forces on the fundamental principles of the rule of law and human rights. The systematic campaign against democracy saw its apex with the adoption of a controversial Government emergency ordinance modifying the criminal and criminal procedure codes, which seems to be preventing certain political leaders and their election and financial contributors from facing criminal justice. The Association calls on those responsible to stop all attacks on institutions, organizations and the principles of the rule of law and human rights and the immediate and unrestricted withdrawal of the emergency ordinance criticized by the general public.



    BUDGET FOR 2017 — Romanian MPs can file amendments to the draft laws on the state and social security budgets for 2017, before the report of the Budget and Finance committees can elaborate a final report on the two bills this coming weekend. On Monday, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies will debate the two laws, and a final vote is scheduled for Tuesday. The draft budget for 2017 is based on an economic growth of 5.2%, and a budget deficit below 3% of the GDP. The Government estimates an inflation rate of 1.4% and an unemployment rate of 4.3%. According to Finance Minister, Viorel Stefan, investment, healthcare, education and infrastructure will be given special importance over the coming period.



    TENNIS — The best-rated Romanian tennis player, Simona Halep, WTA no. 4, has qualified to the quarterfinals of the Sankt Petersburg tournament in Russia, totalling over 700,000 dollars in prize money. On Friday, Halep will play Natalia Vikhlyantseva of Russia, who in the second round ousted her better-seeded co-national, Daria Kasatkina. Halep is the tournament’s no. 1 seed. In the women’s doubles, Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu will take on Daria Gavrilova of Australia and Kristina Mladenovic of France. (Translated by V. Palcu)