Radio România Internațional

Tag: judge

  • Talks on the reform of the judiciary

    Talks on the reform of the judiciary

    ‘The independence of the justice system is and must remain a principle from which nobody can depart,’ president Klaus Iohannis said on Wednesday, at the release of the annual report for 2020 of the High Court of Cassation and Justice. A year ago, the head of state had praised society for standing by magistrates and giving the appropriate response to attempts at making the Romanian justice system subordinated to political interests. But now, the president reiterated that the judiciary needs several reforms, in line with EU guidelines.



    Klaus Iohannis: “In 2020, with their votes, citizens clearly expressed their support for reforms and the strengthening of the rule of law. In this context, revising the Justice Laws cannot be postponed any further. I trust that in the forthcoming period, the framework that regulates the work of Romanias justice system will once again be predictable and in line with the standards of an EU member country.



    Klaus Iohannis pointed out that 2020 was a difficult year for all public institutions, which needed new and innovative ideas, solutions and practices. The crisis entailed by the COVID-19 pandemic required immediate response, including from the judiciary, which is why digitisation processes were stepped up, he explained. He also emphasised:



    Klaus Iohannis: “Large-scale discussions are needed in Parliament, with the participation of not only stakeholders in the judicial system, but also academia and human rights activists. I hope this dialogue will help address the controversial legislative acts passed in recent years and adopt solutions in keeping with the new judicial and social circumstances.



    In turn, the president of Romanias supreme court, judge Corina Corbu, said that in spite of the pandemic and of challenges like excessive workloads, retirement issues and a lack of office space, her colleagues finalised more cases than in 2019.



    Corina Corbu: “Being a supreme court judge is not easy. The emotional toll, the need to maintain the highest level of professionalism at all times, the possibility of criticism—sometimes harsh criticism—coming from the public, all come with the job. The issue of supreme court judge retirement remains for me a reason for sadness. The High Court is now losing judges, through retirement, at an age when everywhere else in the world one is believed to only acquire the wisdom and judicial refinement required in trying last-instance cases, in a supreme court.



    The High Court president also added that this year she would like a supreme court that is more forward-looking, more efficient and more focused on citizens needs, but she also said she wished public institutions were more open to the issues facing the judiciary. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

  • July 18, 2019 UPDATE

    July 18, 2019 UPDATE

    CONSTITUTION The Constitutional Court of Romania Thursday dismissed the legislative initiatives of the National Liberal Party and Save Romania Union, in opposition, and of the Social Democrats and ALDE in power, concerning proposals to revise the Constitution. The Court found that forbidding amnesty and pardons for corruption offences is outside the scope of Constitution revision initiatives, and that lawmakers must be allowed to decide the individuals and categories of offenders that may benefit from amnesty and pardon. On July 1, opposition parties presented Parliament with a bill transposing into legislation the outcomes of the May 26 referendum. Under the bill, amnesty and pardon are prohibited for individuals sentenced for corruption offences, the President may no longer pardon such offences, and integrity is included under the Constitution among the prerequisites for holding public offices. Individuals serving final sentences for crimes committed knowingly and wilfully were thus banned from running in parliamentary, local, presidential and European elections. The same bill made all emergency orders issued by the government subject to constitutionality checks. Also in early July, the ruling coalition tabled its own bill to revise the Constitution, prohibiting individuals sentenced to prison from holding public office and extending the right to notify the Constitutional Court with respect to government emergency orders. The bill also denied the presidents right to pardon corruption-related offences.



    MEDAL Tennis player Simona Halep was awarded on Thursday the highest distinction of the Romanian Orthodox Church, the Patriarchal Cross, for her performances in womens tennis. On Wednesday, tens of thousands attended a ceremony on the National Arena in Bucharest, where Simona Halep presented the trophy she won at the Wimbledon tournament. Halep was the first Romanian to win a singles title in Wimbledon, after defeating the American Serena Williams in the final. Attending the ceremony were also several Romanian sports personalities. The athlete will also be granted by President Klaus Iohannis the National Order of the Star of Romania, the highest distinction offered by the Romanian state. This was Simona Haleps second Grand Slam title, after she won the Roland Garros trophy last year.



    FESTIVAL Electric Castle music festival continues until Sunday on the Banffy estate in Bonţida, Cluj County, (north-western Romania). Banffy castle is a heritage monument dating back to the 15th century. The music festival here is the first in Romania accessible to the hearing impaired. Amber Galloway Galgow, the best known sign language interpreter specialising in concert interpretation, will translate all the songs performed on the main stage of the festival. Thousands of music fans attended on Wednesday the opening of this 7th edition of the festival, which tries to cover as diverse music genres as possible The festival area covers 300 thousand sq m, including 10 stages for musicians, a food area and a camping site for thousands of people. Performing at the Electric Castle 2019 are also Florence and The Machine, one of the most creative indie bands of the past decade, fronted and founded by singer and songwriter Florence Welch. Other bands performing in the festival are the rock band Limp Bizkit, with 3 Grammy nominations and more than 40 million albums sold, Jared Leto, Bring Me The Horizon, Chvrches, Giggs, Lemaitre, Mono, Tommy Cash, Handsome Furs and Viagra Boys.



    COURT Judge Corina Corbu was validated on Thursday as president of the High Court of Cassation and Justice by the Judges Division of the Higher Council of Magistracy. The outgoing president of the supreme court, Cristina Tarcea, whose term in office ends on September 14th, claimed the procedure breached the law on the organisation of courts. Corina Corbu was the only candidate for the post, after Cristina Tarcea announced she would not run for a new term in office. In 2014, Corina Corbu was indicted by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, alongside other supreme court judges, for criminal facilitation, but the charges against all the defendants were dropped in 2018.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • March 5, 2019 UPDATE

    March 5, 2019 UPDATE

    JUDICIARY The Government of Romania Tuesday passed changes to the controversial Emergency Order 7 on the justice laws, which had triggered protests across the country. Under the changes announced by Justice Minister Tudorel Toader, only prosecutors with at least 15 years of seniority may hold top positions in the Public Ministry, and only the prosecutors division of the Higher Council of Magistrates, instead of the entire body, is required to give an advisory opinion on appointments. Also, good reputation will no longer be a criterion in dismissing magistrates, and the salaries of IT experts in the judicial system remain unchanged. Tudorel Toader made no comments on the controversial provisions regarding the new division investigating magistrates, which stay in place. The new changes have been operated despite the negative opinion of the Higher Council of Magistrates. Last Sunday in Bucharest and other major cities nearly 8,000 people protested against Emergency Order 7 modifying the justice laws. The prosecutors and judges in some 80 courts and prosecutors offices in half the country have also protested these days, by suspending work or by picketing court buildings.




    VISIT The Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă announced a working visit to Brussels on Wednesday and Thursday, when she will attend 2 events devoted to equal opportunity and promoting womens rights and will have meetings with senior EU officials, including the European Commission first vice-president Frans Timmermans and the Brexit chief negotiator Michel Barnier. This years edition of the Womens European Council is held in a partnership with the Romanian presidency of the Council of the EU, and will focus on better representation of women in politics and on promoting women into leadership positions, Viorica Dăncilă said. The second event will be organised by Romanias permanent representation to the EU, and will also be devoted to gender equality. The Romanian PM also added that on Thursday and Friday in Brussels, the Justice and Home Affairs Council will convene, chaired by Interior Minister Carmen Dan and Justice Minister Tudorel Toader. The agenda includes EU-wide cooperation in the field of the judiciary and border security, the Common European Asylum System and the Unions response to migration and terrorism.




    FLU Two more people died in Romania because of the flu, the National Centre for Infectious Disease Monitoring and Control confirmed on Tuesday. The 2 women were over 80 and also suffered from other, chronic conditions, and only one of them had been immunised against the flu. The total number of deaths caused this season by the flu has reached 165. According to the latest data, over 1.3 million people have been vaccinated so far.




    VOLLEYBALL The Romanian womens volleyball team CSM Alba Blaj Tuesday defeated Ştiinţa Bacău 3-0, in the return leg of the Romanian semi-final of the CEV Cup, the second top official competition in Europe. Alba Blaj had also won the first leg, in Bacau, 3-0, a week ago. Last year, Alba also played the Champions League final, which they lost in Bucharest to the Turkish club VakifBank Istanbul. The other semi-final of the CEV Cup pits Hungarian team Swietelsky Bekescsaba against Yamamay e-work Busto Arsizio of Italy.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)