Radio România Internațional

Tag: justice laws

October 19, 2018 UPDATE

Brussels – The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis participated on Thursday and Friday in Brussels in the 12th summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), whose theme was “Global partners for global challenges”. In his speech, president Iohannis said that Romania would continue to actively and responsibly promote the strengthening of cooperation between Europe and Asia including during Romania’s presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019. In another development, president Iohannis said that for Romania, the shipping routes on the Danube and the Black Sea represented essential transport corridors and encouraged their inclusion into larger intra-regional transport networks and in the Europe-Asia networks. The main topic of debates was connectivity at all levels: political, economic, cultural, digital, institutional and inter-human. The Asia-Europe Meeting ASEM was set up in 1996 as a forum for dialogue and cooperation between the two continents. The ASEM summit is held every two years, alternately in Asia and Europe.

Venice Commission — The Venice Commission on Friday recommended to the Romanian authorities to completely modify the amendments brought to the criminal and criminal procedure codes by means of a comprehensive consultative process. The Commission claims that the Romanian authorities should come up with coherent and solid legislative proposals in the field of justice that should have the support of the Romanian society and that should observe the European standards and the decisions of the Constitutional Court of Romania. The Venice Commission adopted, with certain amendments, the preliminary report communicated in July in relation to the three justice laws regarding the status of judges and prosecutors, the organization of the judiciary and of the Superior Council of Magistracy. These laws will affect the efficiency and the independence of the act of justice, and will have negative effects on the anti-corruption fight, the Venice Commission says. Friday’s debates were also attended by the president of the special parliamentary committee for the justice laws in Romania’s parliament, Florin Iordache, a member of the ruling Social Democratic Party. After the critical opinion issued by the Venice Commission, the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis stated that the justice minister Tudorel Toader definitively compromised his credibility and consequently should present his resignation. In turn, minister Toader claimed that the President’s request is inadmissible arguing that it was not the justice minister the one who promoted the modifications brought to the criminal and criminal procedure codes.

CESAER — The European Commissioner for Regional Development Corina Cretu said Friday in Bucharest that innovation and research had to have a central role in the future EU fiscal period of 2021-2027. She made this statement at the 31st edition of the CESAER General Assembly- the Conference of European Schools for Advanced Engineering Education and Research — the most important European association that represents universities of science and technology. The event hosted by the University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest is being attended by representatives of more than 50 universities, and personalities from the research and higher technical education fields. The CESAER General Assembly is held for the first time in Romania to celebrate 200 years since the setting up of the University POLITEHNICA of Bucharest. The meeting is also occasioned by the anniversary of 100 years since the creation of the Romanian unitary state and by Romania’s future presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019.

Sports — The Romanian tennis player Simona Halep who will finish the year 2018 on the first place of the WTA classification was designated on Friday the best WTA player of the year, the WTA officials announced Friday. Halep has had the best season of her career in 2018 winning her first Grand Slam title in Roland Garros. Halep also won the tournaments of Shenzen and Montreal and played in the finals of the Australian Open, of the Rome and Cincinnati tournaments. Halep, 27, ends the year with a record of 46 wins and 11 defeats and will top the WTA ranking at the end of the season for the 2nd consecutive year.

Reshuffle — The leftist Social Democratic Party — PSD, the main party in Romania’s ruling coalition, announced Friday that the internal report on the activity of the party’s ministers was completed. On Wednesday the president of PSD Liviu Dragnea had said that the current makeup of the executive could not be maintained. He added that the details of the future reshuffle would be decided upon at the future meeting of the party’s executive committee. Last month the education minister Valentin Popa announced his resignation, and his position was taken over by the minister for European Funds Rovana Plumb. This is the 2nd resignation from the cabinet led by Viorica Dancila after the research minister Nicolae Burnete resigned in August. (news translated and updated by Lacramioara Simion)

19 October 2018
October 17, 2018 UPDATE

JUSTICE LAWS — The European Commission is watching with concern the changes brought to the justice laws made this week by the Romanian Government, through a government ordinance, the spokesperson for the EC, Christian Wigand, said on Wednesday. The Commission will continue the dialogue with the Romanian authorities and will draw the adequate conclusions, if the changes brought to the justice laws, the Criminal Codes and the legislation on the “conflict of interest” and “corruption” does not take these concerns into consideration, Wigand went on to say. In Bucharest, the Superior Council of Magistracy has decided that the emergency ordinance should not be applied retroactively, consequently, the prosecutors of the General Prosecutors’ Office, the National Anti-Corruption Directorate and the Directorate For Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism remain on their positions. In another move, also on Wednesday, the main opposition party, the National Liberal Party, announced it will table a simple motion against the justice minister Tudorel Toader, and the Save Romanian Union, also in opposition, calls on the Ombudsman to challenge the controversial ordinance at the Constitutional Court. The ordinance stipulates, among other things, that the prosecutors at the main prosecutor’s offices should have at least 10 year experience in magistracy, before getting nominated for a position in the respective prosecutor’s offices. Romania’s Prosecutor General, Augustin Lazăr, has said the new regulations will create numerous functional problems in the system, whereas the justice minister ,Tudorel Toader, the initiator of the ordinance, said he did nothing but correlated the opinions and stands expressed by the European Commission, the Venice Commission and the Superior Council of Magistracy.

RESHUFFLE – The President of the Social Democratic Party, the senior party in the ruling coalition, Liviu Dragnea, has said there are zero chances for the current membership of the government to remain unchanged. Dragnea, who is also the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, has said the details of the government reshuffle will be established during the future session of the National Executive Committee of the Social Democratic Party. The date of the session will be set together with PM Viorica Dăncilă, Dragnea has announced. Last month, the education minister Valentin Popa stepped down, following a meeting with Dragnea. The portfolio is temporarily held by a caretaker, the current minister for European Funds, Rovana Plumb. That was the second resignation tendered by a member of the Dancila cabinet, after the research minister Nicolae Burnete stepped down in August.

COOPERATION — Wednesday was the last day of the state visit paid by Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, to Italy. The president had a meeting with the mayor of Naples, Luigi de Magistris, focusing on the Romanian community in Italy, made up of approximately 1.2 million people. Klaus Iohannis hailed the fact that the Romanian community is growing more active, more involved and more capable of doing business, contributing to arts and sciences and to the development of the society that has welcomed them. Previously, he had formal meetings with his Italian counterpart Sergio Mattarella, the president of the Council of Ministers Giuseppe Conte, the Senate Speaker Maria Elisabetta Alberti Casellati and the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Roberto Fico. Also, Klaus Iohannis had a meeting with the mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, and talked with representatives of the Romanian community in Italy. The Romanian Presidential Administration has recalled that the visit paid by Iohannis to Italy took place against the background of this year’s celebration of 100 years since the Great Union and of 10 years since the ties between Romania and Italy were lifted to the level of consolidated strategic partnership. This is the first state visit paid by a Romanian head of state to Italy in the past 45 years.

VISIT – The Romanian Prime Minister Viorica Dancila on Wednesday continued her visit to Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates. Dancila visited the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, the largest mosque in the United Arab Emirates. During the talks she had with the Emirati officials, Dancila mentioned the ethnic and religious diversity in the UAE and hailed the efforts made by the Emirati authorities to integrate religious minorities in that country. Dancila has also said that in Romania, mainly in the south-eastern region of Dobrogea, in the south-east, but not only there, religious communities, including the Muslim one, have been coexisting peacefully and in harmony for hundreds of years. On Tuesday in Dubai, during the meeting she had with Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Dancila presented the latest investment opportunities in Romania and encouraged the companies in the Arab Emirates to participate in tenders organized either for projects funded from the existing operational programmes, or for public-private partnership projects. She stated that Romania will keep paying special attention to the eastern neighbourhood of the EU, especially given that our country will be holding the presidency of the EU Council for six months. Previously, the Romanian Prime Minister had paid a visit to Turkey.

MOTION – The Romanian Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday rejected the simple motion filed by the opposition National Liberal Party against the Minister of Culture, George Ivascu, after debates held on Monday. The Liberals said culture in Romania is in a grave situation, needing urgent solutions for the many problems it is faced with. In turn, minister George Ivascu stated that the motion included distorted information and superficial accusations, which prove nothing but ill faith.

VISIT – The President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on Wednesday started a two day visit to the Republic of Moldova, the former Soviet country with a predominantly Romanian-speaking population, aimed at boosting bilateral relations. The agenda of the visit includes talks with the president of the country Igor Dodon and the pro-European prime-minister Pavel Filip, and the signing of a joint strategic cooperation declaration. Radio Chisinau reports that Erdogan’s visit is taking place against the background of a recent scandal concerning the detention and expulsion from Moldova of seven teachers from the Moldovan-Turkish High-School, accused of being members of the network headed by the Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen. Gulen is accused by the power in Ankara of having organized the attempted coup in Turkey, two years ago.

OLYMPIAD – Romanian pupils have won five medals — two gold, on silver and two bronze — at the International Astronomy Olympiad, held over October 6-14 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The competition brought together 80 contenders from 18 countries. Romanian pupils have had great results this year in other competitions as well: 9 prizes at the International French Language Olympiad in Ohrid, Macedonia, 5 medals from the International Physics Olympiad in Lisbon, 4 medals from the Central European Olympiad in Informatics and 4 medals from the International Earth Science Olympiad in Warsaw. (Translated by M. Ignatescu and D. Vijeu)

17 October 2018
New changes to the justice laws in Romania

On Monday, the Romanian Government passed an
emergency ordinance amending the justice laws, which have been the topic of
fierce debates for some time. Applauded by some and contested by others, the
amendments have been validated by the Constitutional Court, as the Prime
Minister Viorica Dancila announced in the latest government meeting, also
stressing that the changes will ensure a better functioning of the justice
system, for the benefit of the Romanian citizens. In turn, the Justice Minister
Tudorel Toader has stated that passing this ordinance was necessary in order to
incorporate some of the recommendations made by the Venice Commission and some
of the requests made by the Superior Council of Magistracy. The minister has emphasized
some of the changes, such as the provision according to which, in order to hold
a leadership position within the General Prosecutor’s Office, the National
Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) and the Directorate for Investigating Organized
Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT), prosecutors will need to prove 15 years of
seniority, instead of 8 as before. Interviews for these positions will be
recorded, archived and available to all those interested in watching them.
Also, the prosecutors who want to work with the National Anticorruption
Directorate or DIICOT will have to have 10 years of seniority. The provision
regarding the early retirement of magistrates after 20 years of seniority will
be applied after December 31st, 2019, in order to avoid shortage of
staff, which is one of the concerns voiced by the Venice Commission. Minister
Toader explained:

In order to strike the balance between
the desire of some of the magistrates to retire immediately after 20 years of
work, the ruling of the Constitutional Court and the recommendations made by
the Venice Commission, which believes that this would create staff shortage, we
have decided to postpone the implementation of this provision up until the end
of 2019. In the meantime we will see how the system works.

The president of the opposition National Liberal
Party Ludovic Orban has stated, however, that out of the nine recommendations
made by the Venice Commission, the Government has only complied with two and
that the current ruling coalition ignores all the messages conveyed at European
level. Ludovic Orban:

The National Liberal Party firmly blames
the Government for continuing to mock the independence of the judiciary, the
citizens’ fundamental rights and freedoms and the cooperation with the European
Commission and other European institutions.

In turn, Romania’s Prosecutor General Augustin Lazar
has stated that the changes brought to the justice laws were done hastily, thus
affecting the solving of important cases:

Staff from several prosecutor offices
have been mobilized and posted to solve big and complex cases. In this new
situation, the staff working on these cases will be dismantled.

According to Augustin Lazar, unless these so-called
‘big cases’ are solved, Romania might have to pay large amounts of money
following rulings by the European Court of Human Rights.

(Translated by M. Ignatescu)

16 October 2018
October 12, 2018 UPDATE

EU TALKS – Romanias vision within the EU is strongly pro-European, and the motto of the Romanian presidency of the EU Council is cohesion, which reflects the need for unity and cooperation among the member states. The statement was made by the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Liviu Dragnea during the meeting he had on Friday in Bucharest with the Secretary General of the European Commission Martin Selmayr and Clara Martinez Alberola, Head of Cabinet of the EC President Jean-Claude Juncker. On Friday, the EU officials also had talks with the Speaker of the Romanian Senate, Calin Popescu Tariceanu, about Romanias stand on the main European issues and its priorities as president of the EU Council as of January 1st, 2019. Tariceanu said that Romania will be holding the rotating presidency against a very complex background, marked by many challenges that impact citizens and governments.

EUROPEAN ISSUES – The Romanian Minister of the Interior, Carmen Dan, stated on Friday that Romania, as the country holding the presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019, will pay close attention to the phenomenon of radicalisation. The Romanian official also stated that Romania was not faced with a direct and imminent terrorist threat or violent extremism, but was concerned about the development of such phenomena in the past years. The Romanian official made these statements at the High-Level Conference of the Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN), held in Luxembourg, occasioned by the meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council held on Thursday and Friday.

ANTI CORRUPTION – Prosecutor Adina Florea, a candidate for the office of head of the National Anticorruption Directorate, demonstrates poor resistance to stress and also a low capacity of analysis and synthesis, reads the opinion of the Superior Council of Magistracy. The Council also noted that, during the interview, the candidate could not prove honesty and impartiality, which are a must for a good manager. On Monday, the Council gave a negative opinion on the proposal set forth by the Justice Minister Tudorel Toader. The opinion is however advisory. The decision to appoint the new head of the Directorate lies with the president of the country, Klaus Iohannis. We recall that the post became vacant in July, when Laura Codruta Kovesi was dismissed by president Iohannis, who had to enforce a ruling issued by the Constitutional Court, although the dismissal was not endorsed by the Superior Council of Magistracy.

JUSTICE LAWS – On Friday, Romanias president Klaus Iohannis promulgated the law on the status of magistrates, the last of the three justice laws, after the bill had been challenged at the Constitutional Court several times. On July 19th, the head of state notified the Court with regard to the changes brought by Parliament to the law on the status of magistrates, motivating that the extraordinary session of the Chamber of Deputies, during which the bill was voted, had not been legally convened. In another move, also on Friday, the Constitutional Court admitted in part the notifications submitted by the Supreme Court, the National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union and president Iohannis concerning the bill amending the Code of Criminal Proceedings, as well as the one amending the judicial organisation law. According to magistrates, the laws include unclear provisions, while the opposition representatives say now the law favours criminals.

ROMANIAN-ITALIAN RELATIONS – Romanias President, Klaus Iohannis, will travel to Italy, between October 14th and 17th, on the first visit by a Romanian president to that country in the past 45 years. According to a communiqué issued by the Presidential Administration, Klaus Iohannis is due to meet his Italian counterpart, Sergio Mattarella, PM Giuseppe Conte, and the Speakers of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies, Maria Elisabetta Alberti Casellati and Roberto Fico, respectively. The agenda of the visit also includes meetings with representatives of the Orthodox, Greek-Catholic and Roman-Catholic religious denominations as well as with representatives of the Romanian community, the largest outside the borders of the country. The visit is paid against the backdrop of celebrations marking the Great Union Centennial and 10 years since Romanian-Italian relations were raised at the level of Consolidated Strategic Partnership, the communiqué also reads.

FRANCOPHONIE – Romania will keep playing the role of flagship country of the Francophone Movement, the Romanian deputy prime minister Ana Birchall said during the Conference of heads of state and government of the Francophone countries, held in Yerevan, Armenia, between October 10 and 12. Ana Birchall gave a speech in her capacity as head of the Romanian delegation, underlining Bucharests commitment to Francophonie and its values. The agenda of talks also covered issues related to the adoption of documents and resolutions concerning the Francophone area, electing the Secretary General of the Francophonie for the 2018-2022 period, debates on crisis situations in the Francophone area and accepting new members of the International Organisation of the Francophonie. Talks also covered such issues as the importance of culture, education and research for the development of countries in the whole Francophone area. On this occasion, the Romanian deputy PM signed an agreement regarding the headquarters of the Regional Bureau of the International Organisation of the Francophonie for Central and Eastern Europe, concluded by the Romanian Government and the International Organisation of the Francophonie.

POLL- Almost two thirds of the Europeans say they are not convinced that their lives would be worse without the European Union, a poll carried out by a polling institute in Brussels, Europes Friends, shows. The poll was conducted in September, among 11,000 interviewees, from all member states. According to the poll, 64% of the Europeans are not convinced that their lives would be worse without the EU, and almost half of the respondents said the Union is irrelevant. The poll underlines that over 30% of the North Europeans, the French and the Germans want to promote values and democracy in the EU, whereas over 40% of the citizens in Southern Europe and the Vishegrad Group, namely the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, believe the main objective of the European bloc should be economic growth.

12 October 2018
September 18, 2018

Three Seas Initiative — The Three Seas Initiative summit continues Tuesday in Bucharest with a plenary session devoted to energy, transports and digital interconnection. The summit was opened on Monday by a Business Forum, when the participants signed a Joint Declaration on the setting up of a network of Chambers of Commerce of the Three Seas Initiative as well as a Letter of Intent related to the creation of an investment fund of the same initiative. President Klaus Iohannis has pointed out that the Three Seas Initiative needed to go to another level, that of concrete economic projects and pragmatic results. Three Seas Initiative is a flexible political platform at presidential level that gathers 12 EU member states located between the Baltic, Adriatic and Black Seas.

Referendum — The Romanian government is today discussing the technical aspects related to the organization of the referendum on redefining the concept of family. On Monday, Romania’s Constitutional Court decided that the law for the revision of the Constitution which stipulates that the family is based on the freely consented union between a man and a woman, and not between spouses as it is stipulated at present, observes constitutional provisions. The government is to establish a date for the referendum and other technical, administrative and financial aspects. The campaign will start upon the announcement of the date of the referendum. The law for the revision of the Constitution in the sense of redefining the concept of family is based on a citizens’ initiative of some Christian organizations that managed to obtain 3 million signatures. The initiative is being contested by the associations defending the civil rights and liberties, including those of sexual minorities.

CCR — Romania’s Constitutional Court is today discussing the notifications made by President Klaus Iohannis in relation to the changes brought to the Law on the status of judges and prosecutors and the Law on the Superior Council of Magistracy. Among the articles contested by the presidency are those related to cases of dismissal of judges and prosecutors, to the elimination of the written examination for promotion to the position of judge at the High Court of Cassation and Justice, to the impairment of the constitutional role of the Supreme Council of Magistracy as a guarantor of the independence of the judiciary, as well as to the functioning of the Judicial Inspection. Klaus Iohannis has toughly criticized the modifications brought to the criminal legislation. They have been also contested by the opposition parties and the High Court of Cassation and Justice that have, in turn, submitted notifications to the Constitutional Court of Romania.

Eurostat — 48% of Bucharest’s inhabitants are discontented with the schools and education facilities in their city, show data published by Eurostat based on a 2015 survey that covered 24 EU capitals. Alongside Bucharesters, the Europeans who are the most discontented with the schools in their city are the inhabitants of Sofia, Bulgaria (47%). In exchange, the inhabitants of Dublin, Ljubljana, Nicosia and Helsinki are content with their schools. As for public transportation, the highest level of contentment was reported in Zurich (97%), Vienna (95%) and Helsinki (93%). At the other end, the most discontented with public transportation are the inhabitants of 16 cities among which Athens, Warsaw, Budapest, Bucharest, Riga, Bratislava and Rome. The biggest differences have been reported in terms of air quality, the highest number the inhabitants discontented with the air quality being in Krakow, Ostrava and Bucharest. In 62 cities most respondents said they were content with the level of noise while the citizens of Istanbul, Bucharest, Palermo and Athens are among those most discontented with the noise level.

Rome — The Romanian justice minister Tudorel Toader continues, Tuesday, his visit to Rome, at the invitation of his Italian counterpart, Alfondo Bonafede. On Monday, after the visit to a penitentiary with almost 100 Romanian detainees, the two ministers talked about bilateral cooperation and collaboration during Romania’s presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019. They also tackled issues related to the transfer of convicts from one country to another as well as the situation of minors from mixed families in which parents are in conflict. (news translated by Lacramioara Simion)

18 September 2018
September 13, 2018 UPDATE

Venice Commission — The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday received in Bucharest the visit of a Venice Commission delegation, which will come to an end on Friday. President Iohannis said that he appreciated the Commission’s technical expertise as well as the importance of their opinions in relation to both the justice laws and the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes. The Romanian President also highlighted that the involvement and support of the Venice Commission experts are meant to help Romania have an efficient and modern legislation. In turn, the Venice Commission experts said the opinion of the Commission related to the modifications brought to Romania’s Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes would be adopted during the plenary session of October 19-20. The opinion of the Commission was asked by the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly. The agenda of the Venice Commission delegation also includes talks with the justice minister Tudorel Toader, among others, and with representatives of the High Court of Cassation and Justice, of prosecutor’s offices and civil society. Promoted by the majority coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the legislative changes were virulently criticized by the rightwing opposition, the press and NGOs that accuse the power of intending to stop the anti-corruption fight and to subordinate magistrates.

Visit — The European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan is in Romania for two days, starting on Thursday, where he will be visiting Bucharest and Cluj Napoca in the northwest. In Bucharest, Commissioner Hogan met with PM Viorica Dancila who asked the EC for full technical and financial support to reduce the impact of the African swine fever crisis on Romanian pig farming. Phil Hogan said that 75% of the pigs grown in households within the EU are in Romania and that the EC intends to grant financial aid to help the Romanian farmers affected by the swine fever crisis. Also on Thursday the European official met with the Romanian Agriculture Minister Petre Daea as well as with members of the Committees for European affairs and for agriculture and rural development in Romania’s Parliament. Together with the European Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu, who is also on an official visit to Romania, Phil Hogan, on Friday will have a dialogue with the citizens of Cluj Napoca with the theme ‘A modern budget for a stronger EU’.

EU funds — The European Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu is visiting Romania until September 18. During her visit she will be meeting with the representatives of the local and regional authorities, will assess certain EU-funded projects and will participate in high level conferences. On Wednesday Corina Cretu visited Sibiu, on Thursday she went to Petrosani alongside the Romanian minister for European funds Rovana Plumb to attend a conference that analyzed the present and future of coal mining in the context of the transition to renewable energy.

Bucharest New Delhi direct flight — On Thursday the speaker of the Romanian Senate Calin Popescu Tariceanu received the new Indian ambassador to Romania Thanglura Darlong. CP Tariceanu congratulated the Indian ambassador on his appointment and wished him success in fulfilling his mission. During the talks the speaker of the Romanian Senate highlighted the importance of high level visits as well as of delegation exchanges in such domains as the economy, culture, technology and science and academic education. He also showed interest in re-establishing a direct flight linking Bucharest to New Delhi in order to boost trade exchanges and tourism, shows a Senate communiqué.

Swine fever — The African swine fever is spreading in Romania. According to the National Sanitary — Veterinary and Food Safety Authority, 207 localities from 12 counties are currently affected. The number swine fever outbreaks reached almost 900. The presence of the swine fever virus in Romania was confirmed for the first time on July 31, 2017. So far, more than 232 thousand pigs affected by the virus have been culled. PM Dancila announced that the government will pass an emergency decree under which all employees of the pig farms affected by the crisis that lost their jobs will receive money compensations for 6 months at the most.

EP — The situation in Romania will be debated in the plenum of the European Parliament in the first session of October and in the second session, later that month, a resolution will also be passed, the Romanian MEP Siegfried Muresan announced on Thursday. He added that the debates were asked by the Greens/ European Free Alliance after the violent repression of the antigovernment protests of August 10 in Bucharest and that Romania’s PM Viorica Dancila was invited to attend the session. The debates on the rule of law in Romania were approved by the Conference of Presidents, whose members are the leaders of the political groups in the European Parliament. (news translated by Lacramioara Simion)

13 September 2018
September 4, 2018 UPDATE

MEETING – The meeting of the Supreme Defence Council was suspended, and the Government must come up with a new budget adjustment proposal, after the Council members failed to reach an agreement on the current plan, the President of Romania Klaus Iohannis announced on Tuesday. The head of state asked the Cabinet to come up with a plan to eliminate the “unaccountable cuts in the budgets of national security institutions. The President decided to convene the Supreme Defence Council after the Government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats criticised him for obstructing the first budget adjustment of this year, one concerning salaries, social assistance expenditure, the funding of activities to fight the African swine fever and Romanias contribution to the EU budget. Iohannis replied that the Government was free to adjust the public budget at any time, except for the part concerning the national security field. He also said that the Social Democratic Party is building an irresponsible budget, which cannot be implemented in practice.

HEARINGS – At the request of the Social Democratic Party in power, the Defence Committee of the Romanian Senate cancelled Tuesdays hearings concerning the violent clashes during the August 10th anti-government protest in Bucharest. Originally invited to take part were the Interior Minister Carmen Dan, the coordinator of the riot police intervention, Laurenţiu Cazan, and the Prefect of Bucharest Speranţa Cliseru. Hearings on the same topic were however held at the General Prosecutors Office, and they were attended by the Mayor of Bucharest, the Social Democrat Gabriela Firea. She said that investigations would reveal who is to blame for the violence in Victoriei Square, and added that attempts had been made to turn the Bucharest Prefect Speranta Cliseru into a scapegoat. On Saturday during a meeting of the National Executive Committee of the Social Democratic Party, Gabriela Firea requested the resignation of the Interior Minister Carmen Dan, who, Firea said, had blamed the Prefect for the intervention of the gendarmes. So far 770 criminal complaints have been filed, by people injured in that intervention.

VENICE COMMISSION – A Venice Commission delegation will be in Bucharest on September 13th and 14th, to prepare a report on the recent changes of the Criminal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure made by the Parliament of Romania, according to the web site of this Council of Europe institution. The delegation will have talks with President Klaus Iohannis, the Justice Minister Tudorel Toader, and with officials of the High Court of Cassation and Justice, the General Prosecutors Office, the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, the Directorate Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) and the Higher Council of Magistracy. The Venice Commission team will also have meetings with MPs, including the members of the special parliamentary committee in charge with modifying the justice laws, with judge and prosecutor associations, as well as with civil society representatives.

ANTI-CORRUPTION – A new proposal for the chief prosecutor of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate will be announced on Thursday, the Romanian Justice Minister Tudorel Toader says. On Tuesday the last 3 candidates for the office were interviewed by the Justice Minister, while 3 other candidates had their interviews scheduled on Monday. The Minister will select a candidate, who must be accepted by the Higher Council of Magistracy and approved by President Klaus Iohannis. The former chief of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate Laura Codruta Kovesi was dismissed in July, under an order signed by President Iohannis in conformity with a ruling of the Constitutional Court. The dismissal had been requested by the Justice Minister, further to a report that had not been approved by the Higher Council of Magistracy.

SPORTS MINISTER – The Ambassador of Romania to Paris, Luca Niculescu, Tuesday congratulated the Romanian-born former French swimming champion Roxana Mărăcineanu on her appointment as Sports Minister in France. The Romanian Embassy in France also mentions, in a Facebook post, that Roxana Mărăcineanu was one of the 10 Romanians living in France whose merits were recognised in a gala called “100 for the Centenary, organised by the Embassy in Paris in June 2018. Roxana Mărăcineanu, born in Bucharest in 1975, replaced the former Olympic fencing champion Laura Flessel, who resigned as sports minister in France.

(translated by Ana-Maria Popescu)

4 September 2018
The justice laws in the focus of politicians’ attention

President Klaus
Iohannis has challenged the law on the status of judges and prosecutors at the
Constitutional Court, but has announced that he had to promulgate the law on
judicial organization. The two bills, alongside the one regarding the
organization and functioning of the Supreme Council of Magistracy, make up the
legislative package to which the left wing majority represented by the Social
Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats brought dramatic
changes, which have been criticized not only by the president of the country,
the opposition and magistrates’ associations, but also by the Venice
Commission.

Here is President Klaus Iohannis:

At
the moment, as regards the law on judicial organization, I have unfortunately
exhausted all constitutional ways to challenge it, and therefore I must
promulgate it. But this does not mean that the road is closed for good.

The country’s
president has criticized the lack of transparency with which the ruling
coalition amended the laws and has stated that the outcome is worrying. Failing
its own supporters after the dismissal of the head of the Anticorruption
Directorate Laura Codruta Kovesi, when he let his spokesperson make the
announcement, Klaus Iohannis has tried to come back into the battle. Parliamentarians’
loyalty should lie with the Romanian people, the president has stressed:

We
must not turn into a negative example in Europe by drafting laws aimed at
protecting certain political leaders against prosecution. No politician can or should
trade the principles that shaped democratic Romania after the 1989 Revolution
for their own benefit. No political decision maker has been mandated by the
Romanian people to do that.

The president’s
warning was clearly targeted at the iron fist in the ruling coalition, the
president of the Social Democratic Party and Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies
Liviu Dragnea, who’s been accused of maiming the justice system only to get
away unscathed from the cases of corruption he is involved in. In response to
that, representatives of the governing coalition have recalled that the justice
laws were amended in keeping with the rulings of the Constitutional Court and
say that discussing them again in parliament would make no sense.

The
opposition, however, supports the request made by the head of state, namely for
the Government to take into consideration the recommendations made by the
Venice Commission. In a preliminary report, the advisory body of the Council of
Europe warns that the changes brought to the justice laws in Romania might
undermine the independence of the judiciary and create negative effects with
regard to the fight against corruption.

20 July 2018
July 19, 2018 UPDATE

Promulgation. Romania’s
President Klaus Iohannis has announced he has promulgated the law on judicial organization, after having exhausted all challenge procedures. Still,
the head of state has called on the Romanian Parliament to reintroduce the law
into the parliamentary circuit as of next autumn. The law is raising many
question marks and includes unclear provisions, which lack coherence and
predictability, the president has stated. He has also stressed that the justice
laws, promoted and endorsed by the left-wing coalition formed by the Social
Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, would de facto
push Romania far from the European values. We recall that last week, the Venice
Commission, in its preliminary opinion, drew attention to the fact that,
because of the changes brought to the justice laws, the independence of the
Romanian prosecutors and judges becomes questionable.

Forecast. The National Prognosis Commission has revised Romania’s economic
growth rate for this year down to 5.5% from 6.1% in its previous spring
forecast. The inflation rate has been revised up to 3.5% from 3.2% in spring.

Danube Region. Romania and Austria are to host the Secretariat of the EU Strategy
for the Danube Region, whose re-establishment was decided at a meeting of the
Monitoring Committee of the Danube Transnational Programme and the member
states national coordinators of the EU Strategy, an event held in Split,
Croatia. Beginning in September this year, Bucharest and Vienna will open two offices
of this body. The EU Strategy for the Danube Region is a high-visibility
political project and Romania’s first large-scale initiative after joining the
European Union. According to a press release published in Bucharest, Romania’s
presidency of the EU Council in the first part of next year is an opportunity
to promote this important framework for macro-regional cooperation on the
agenda of the Union and to ensure the necessary financial allocations for the
priorities proposed for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region and the other
macro-regional strategies.

Prices. In Romania, the price of
natural gas for domestic consumers will increase by 6% as of August 1st,
the National Energy Regulatory Agency announced on Thursday. Also on Thursday,
the Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovoci announced that the Government is
discussing a draft decision regarding the flattening of the price of natural
gas from the domestic production until June 2021. The minister has also stated
that he would like the same thing for the price of fuels.

Culture. The Romanian Government on
Thursday approved the funding of two big cultural projects, worth a total of 12
million Euros. The two projects are E-culture: Romania’s Digital Library and
Historical Monuments, Strategic Planning and Optimized Public Policies. Under
the E-culture project 550,000 cultural resources will be included in Romania’s
digital library, and an IT platform for the digital library and a catalogue
titled ‘culturalia.ro’ will be created . Also, some 200,000 cultural resources
will be included in the europeana.eu portal. The second project’s outcome will
be a cultural heritage code, as well as a national strategy concerning the
preservation of historical monuments. The projects will benefit from European
non-reimbursable funding.

Brexit. The European Commission has called on the EU countries to
accelerate preparations for the situation in which Great Britain leaves the
union without a clear agreement. The Commission has stated that the failure of
negotiations would seriously affect government affairs and travels. The
European Commission believes that preparations must be made at all levels, so
as to cover all potential consequences, in particular with regard to borders,
transport and data transfers.

Broadcasting. Radio Free Europe says it will resume news programs in
Bulgaria and Romania in December this year in a bid to consolidate the media
landscape in these countries. The station, which is funded by the United States
Congress, will carry multi-media reports and analyses in Romanian and Bulgarian
and will collaborate with the local media to expand existing projects that
promote public accountability and debunk fake news. The station’s Romanian
language service opened in 1950 and ended in 2008, when Romania had already
become a member of the European Union and NATO. Historians view as essential
the station’s contribution to the erosion and final collapse, in 1989, of the
communist dictatorship in Bucharest. The station still has a Romanian language
service in the Republic of Moldova. Radio Free Europe broadcasts to 26 million
people in 20 different countries with restrictions on media freedom and
where professional journalism is not fully developed.

Pop music. 18 singers from 15 different countries will be vying for the Grand
Trophy of the Golden Stag Festival to be held in Brasov, central Romania,
between the 29th of August and the 2nd of September. The initial line-up was
15, but organizers decided to expand it following great demand. Romania has
three representatives, Dora Gaitanovici, Ovidiu Anton and Raluca Blejusca,
while the Republic of Moldova is represented by Lidia Isac. The Golden Stag
Festival this year celebrates its 50th anniversary with a special edition and
65,000 Euros worth of prizes. The festival will come to an end with a Romania
Centenary show featuring traditional Romanian music and contemporary
reinterpretations of his genre.

Football. The Romanian football squad Viitorul Constanta on Thursday
qualified for the second round of Europa League’s preliminaries, after a 0-0
draw in the match against Racing FC Union Luxembourg. In the first match, away
from home, the Romanians had won 2-nil. The other teams representing Romania in
Europa League are the vice-champion FCSB (formerly known as Steaua Bucharest),
which will play in the second round against the Slovenian squad NK Rudar
Velenje and the cup winner CSU Craiova, which will play straight into the third
preliminary round. Romania’s champions CFR Cluj will take on the Swedish team
Malmo FF in the second preliminary round of the Champions League.

19 July 2018
The Venice Commission gives preliminary opinion on Romania’s justice laws

For a year and a half, justice has been the subject of the most
heated public debates in Romania. The government coalition made up of the
Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE)
says revising the laws on the functioning of the judicial system and amending
the criminal codes are in keeping with rulings by the Constitutional Court and
the European Court of Human Rights. The opposition, civil society and the media
say, however, that the purpose of these changes is to place magistrates under
political control and put an end to the fight against corruption and crime in
general. Eventually, the sides called for the external arbitration of the Venice Commission, the Council
of Europe’s advisory body, whose opinions are generally respected by Member
States.

In its preliminary opinion, the Commission has warned that the draft
amendments to the three justice laws will most probably undermine the
independence of Romanian judges and prosecutors and the public’s trust in the
judiciary. The Commission’s experts recommend creating a balance between the role
of the president, the Superior Council of Magistracy and the justice minister
in the appointment of high-ranking prosecutors. They are also concerned about
the restrictions to the magistrates’ freedom of expression, the creation of a
body to investigate their activity and the diminution of the role of the Superior
Council of Magistracy as a guarantor of the system. Although some amendments
were adopted as a result of Constitutional Court rulings, it is difficult to
avoid the risk of their undermining the independence of the justice system and
have a negative effect on the fight against corruption, the Venice Commission
also warns.

A fierce critic of the government’s actions, president Klaus Iohannis
says the assessment of the Venice Commission is an extremely worrying signal as
far the independence of the judiciary is concerned. He says its preliminary
opinion confirms the views of civil society, the Superior Council of Magistracy
and magistrates and justifies the challenges of unconstitutionality and the
requests for re-examinating these draft laws. The National Liberal Party, the
biggest party in opposition, has requested the Constitutional Court to take
note of the preliminary opinion on the justice laws, which the party says
should be re-discussed by Parliament. The Save Romania Union and the People’s
Movement Party, also in opposition, share this view.

In response, Social Democratic MPs say the preliminary opinion
contradicts the view of the opposition and the president that the justice laws
should not be amended. Moreover, this is not an official document and even
contradicts a previous report of the Venice Commission on the European
standards on the independence of the judicial system. The Senate speaker and
ALDE leader Calin Popescu Tariceanu also says the warnings of the foreign
experts amount to a political opinion without much substance.

A final assessment of the
Venice Commission is expected in autumn.

16 July 2018
July 14, 2018 UPDATE

France — The French ambassador to Romania, Mrs. Michele Ramis, said Saturday at the reception given on the occasion of France’s National Day that France needed a Europe that protects citizens, and Romania is a visible partner in this project. Mrs. Ramis recalled that 2018 marks the 10th anniversary of the two countries’ strategic partnership. The French official hailed the Romanian people’s European spirit and their resilience in front of nationalism and euro-skepticism. Michele Ramis talked about the success of the Romanian presidency, next year, in the direction of a Europe of convergence, protective and stronger in the world, based on common values. Attending the reception at the French embassy, the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said that at end of November he would open, in Paris, together with the French President Emmanuel Macron, the season France-Romania. President Iohannis expressed conviction that, in the spirit of their historic fraternity, Romania and France will contribute to the success of re-launching the project of a stronger Union. In another development, trade exchanges between France and Romania increased by 4.4% in 2017 as compared to 2016, reaching 7.8 billion Euros, showed the French Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture in Romania. There are almost 3 thousand French companies operating in Romania, with a total of direct investments of 4.2 billion Euros.

Venice Commission — The Romanian President, Klaus Iohannis, believes that the preliminary opinion of the Venice Commission related to the changes made to the justice laws is an extremely worrying signal regarding the independence of the judiciary and calls on Parliament not to ignore these recommendations. According to the Presidential Administration, the Venice Commission confirms the points of view expressed by civil society in Romania, by the Supreme Council of Magistracy, by judges and prosecutors as well as by the Romanian president, including through notifications related to the unconstitutional character of these modifications and the requests for re-examination of these laws. The Venice Commission recommends the Romanian authorities to reconsider the modifications to the justice laws mainly in relation to the appointment and dismissal of chief prosecutors of the main prosecutors’ offices. According to these modifications, the Romanian president can refuse the appointment made by the justice minister only once and providing solid arguments. The European experts also recommend the authorities to give up the scheme for the early retirement of magistrates which would entail a massive depopulation of courts and also to give up the idea of setting up a special section for investigating magistrates. The opposition National Liberal Party has called on the Constitutional Court to take note of the preliminary report on the justice laws. Social Democrat MP Eugen Nicolicea, the president of the legal commission in the Chamber of Deputies, claims the Venice Commission’s preliminary report runs counter to a previous report related to European standards regarding the independence of the judiciary.

Football – Belgium defeated England, Saturday, 2-0, in the third-place playoff of the World Football Championship hosted by Russia, thus obtaining the bronze. Belgium already played in a third-place playoff at the 1986 World Cup, when it was defeated by France. A world champion in 1966 England fought for bronze in 1990 but it was defeated by Italy. Sunday will see the final that will pit France against Croatia for which qualification to the final is a premier. France won the world title in 1998, when it organized the final tournament, and Croatia won the bronze.

Fitch Ratings — The Fitch Rating agency has confirmed the ratings for Bucharest’s long term credits in hard currency and local currency at BBB-stable, shows a communiqué of the rating agency. Fitch ratings has also confirmed the F3 rating for currency on short term. The confirmation of the ratings reflects Bucharest’s robust operational performance, the moderate level of debt in relation to its operational balance and current revenues. The rating also includes the solid taxation base, due to Bucharest’s welfare level, which is substantially higher than the national average. The negative side of it is that the rating reflects the dependence of operational revenues on economic cycles and the uncertainties related to contingent debt, shows the Fitch Ratings. Following the 2016 local elections, an ambitious and modern plan for investments was adopted, with the leftist government willing to further develop the city infrastructure, mainly the road infrastructure, Fitch Ratings reports.

Kidnapping — The Romanian Foreign Ministry on Saturday activated a crisis cell to deal with the situation of the Romanian citizen who, according to the international press, ws abducted in Libya. According to a foreign ministry communiqué, the crisis cell started the urgent verification to assess the situation. The Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu said that the top priority was to verify whether a Romanian citizen was indeed taken hostage, what his situation was and what group is involved in the kidnapping. The case is being managed by the Romanian Embassy to Libya relocated in Tunis. According to the Romanian Foreign Ministry officials the maximum alert level was set up for Libya in 2015. According to international news agencies at least two people, among whom a Romanian engineer, were abducted Saturday by an armed group in an attack on an oilfield in the southwest of Libya.

Pollution — Between 2015-2016 Romania, Poland, Spain and Great Britain reported the biggest reduction of sulfur oxides emissions, a high reduction being operated in the energy sector, shows a report of the European Environment Agency. Nevertheless Romania still reports the 6th highest level of sulfur oxides emissions in the EU, after the levels reported by Poland, Great Britain, Spain, France and Germany. Also Romania reports the 11th highest level of NOx nitrogen oxides emissions, which is on a downward trend, oxides that contribute to the formation of smog and acid rain. (news translated and updated by L. Simion)

14 July 2018
July 13, 2018 UPDATE

VENICE COMMISSION — The Venice Commission on Friday presented its preliminary report on the modifications brought to the justice laws in Romania, following notifications filed by the Romanian President and the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly Monitoring Committee. The report urges Bucharest authorities to reexamine the manner in which high-ranking prosecutors are appointed and dismissed, including by revising key provisions in the Constitution, in the sense of ensuring neutral procedures that should maintain the role of the country’s president and the Superior Council of Magistracy to counterbalance the influence of the Justice Ministry. Other recommendations are related to removing or clarifying provisions seen as ungrounded, lifting restrictions regarding the freedom of expression of judges and prosecutors. The Commission will publish a final report in October, when it will also present its opinion on the modifications brought to the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes.

ANALYSIS — Romania’s Prosecutor’s Office on Friday announced it finalized its analysis on the modifications Parliament has brought to the Criminal Code, finding a total of 21 unconstitutional articles, and recommending a referral to the Constitutional Court. According to an official press release, the aforementioned articles include provisions which lack clarity, coherence and predictability or blatantly violate Constitutional stipulations. Some of them refer to influence peddling, abuse of office, extended confiscation, first-degree murder, false testimony or the setup of an organized crime group. The Prosecutor’s Office also states that a series of modifications have been brought to criminal legislation without taking under advisement the observations and recommendations formulated by the Superior Council of Magistracy and judges and prosecutors’ associations, also without consulting and cooperating with the related institutions in the system.

SUMMIT — Romania has fulfilled its set targets for the NATO summit in Brussels, the most important of which regards Romania hosting a three-star NATO command, whose future structure will be decided by autumn this year, Defense Minister Mihai Fifor announced on Friday. By hosting this NATO structure, Romania proves it is one of the most important players on the NATO eastern flank, Minister Fifor said.

US SUPPORT – Washington supports the territorial integrity and political sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia and reiterates its support for the democratically elected governments and people of those three countries, shows a US Congress resolution. The document shows the US’s commitment to supporting the three former Soviet republics on their way to European integration, and to obtain energy security and intensify commercial cooperation. The resolution also condemns the Russian aggression in the region, and calls for the withdrawal of Russian troops and ammunition which are illegally deployed on the territory of these three states. The resolution asks the allies from the EU and the UN to continue to put pressure on Moscow for it to comply with its international commitments and calls on the US Department of State to have a full-fledged and active dialogue against Russia’s interference in the democratic processes of the three sovereign nations. The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly has recently reiterated the need for a complete withdrawal of foreign armed forces from the territory of the Republic of Moldova, and NATO called for the pullout of Russian troops stationed in the three states, without their consent, in line with international commitments.

LOANS — The Parliament in Chisinau on Friday ratified a loan agreement with the European Investment Bank worth 80 million euros for the interconnection of Romania and Moldova’s electricity grids. Covering a period of 25 years, the money will be used to build the first link from Isaccea to Vulcanesti, which will provide an alternative energy source to the Republic of Moldova. Construction works are due to complete in 2022. Moldova will receive a second loan, also worth 80 million euros from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, a third loan worth 70 million euros from the World Bank and a 40-million-euro grant from the European Commission.

REFERRAL — Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis has referred to the Constitutional Court the latest modifications Parliament has brought to the law on local public administration. The president claims the new law allows the possibility for the transfer of assets with unclear property documents into public domain, through a simple statutory declaration of the secretary of the administrative-territorial unit in question. The president also criticized the instatement of certain procedural exemptions under which the concession of assets from the private domain of local municipalities no longer requires a public tender.

PROSECUTION — Anticorruption prosecutors have indicted 90 people, including leaders of the National Health Insurance Authority, the Health Insurance Agency of Bucharest and public officials from the two institutions, but also private health providers, in a case of health insurance fraud. According to the National Anticorruption Directorate, some 4,5 million euros were embezzled by illegally refunding home-based medical care services by the Bucharest Health Insurance Agency.

TRUMP — Great Britain and the United States will try to further post-Brexit cooperation, British Prime Minister Theresa May told a press conference held on Friday jointly with US President Donald Trump. On a visit to London, the White House leader said relations between the two countries are very strong, just hours from harshly criticizing Prime Minister May’s Brexit strategy. The British Government on Thursday outlined its plans on future UK-EU relations after Brexit, which provides for the setup of an area of free trade with the 27 EU Member States. With simplified customs procedures, the accord would also prevent the creation of a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. The proposals have stirred harsh reactions from Euroskeptics, while Foreign Minister Boris Johnson and Brexit Minister David Davis resigned, unhappy with London’s approach to negotiations.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

13 July 2018
15 June, 2018

Visit. The Romanian
prime minister Viorica Dancila is today having talks in Tallinn with Estonia’s
president Kersti
Kaljulaid, her counterpart Jüri Ratas and the Speaker of Parliament Enn Eesmaa.
This is the first visit at this level in the history of political and
diplomatic relations between the two countries since 1991, when Romania
formally recognised the new Baltic sovereign state, until then under Soviet
occupation. On Saturday, prime ministers Dancila and Ratas will be on board the
first flight of the Estonian airways Nordica from Tallinn to Constanta, the
biggest Romanian Black Sea port, where they will attend the inauguration of
Estonia’s Honorary Consulate. On Thursday, Viorica Dancila travelled to Lithuania,
where she had talks with her counterpart Saulius Skvernelis about bilateral trade exchanges and
finding new areas of cooperation, such as IT, energy and agriculture. The two
sides also tackled European issues of common interest.

Conference. As acting president, Romania
is playing host to the Salzburg Forum Ministerial Conference, an informal
assembly of states from Central and Eastern Europe that promotes cooperation on
issues related to internal security. Attending are representatives of the nine
member states, such as six interior ministers, including Romania’s Carmen Dan,
and the Europol director Catherine De Bolle. The Salzburg Forum was founded in
2000 and includes Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary,
Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Since 2007, the states in the Group of
Friends of the Salzburg Forum, namely Albania, Bosnia and Hertegovina, the
Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, have also been invited to the
meetings, as well as the Republic of Moldova, an ex-Soviet country with a
majority Romanian-speaking population.

Poll.
Romanians are optimistic about the economic situation in the European Union and
pessimistic about the state of their country’s economy, according to the
results of the Eurobarometer published on Thursday by the European Commission.
31% of Romanians believe the state of the EU economy will improve, while only
27% say the situation of their country’s economy is good at the moment,
compared with the EU average of 49%. Romanians also have more trust in the EU,
namely 52%, than in national institutions.

Drills.
The air base in Campia Tuzlii, in the centre, is today
hosting the 2018 Dacian Eagle exercise, which involves 200 Romanian and 300
American military. The American aircraft participating in the manoevres belong
to the Massachusetts Air National Guard. The exercise, which lasts two months,
is meant to develop bilateral cooperation in the field.

Law. Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis has today sent the law on
judicial organisation back to Parliament for reexamination. The president says
some of its provisions are unclear and lack coherence and predictability, which
can affect the constitutional requirements and European and international
standards with regard to the independence and good functioning of the judicial
system. Earlier, the president unsuccessfully challenged the law before the
Constitutional Court. The law in question forms part, together with those on
the status of magistrates and the functioning of the Superior Council of
Magistrates, of a wider legislative package through which the ruling coalition is
seeking major changes in the field of justice. Many of these changes have come
under criticism from the president, the opposition, magistrates’ associations
and civil society.

15 June 2018
Venice Commission delegation visits Romania

A delegation of
the Venice Commission, the Council of Europe’s advisory body on constitutional
matters, was in Bucharest for two days. Its agenda was extremely busy. The
international experts met representatives of many important state institutions,
including the president Klaus Iohannis, the Justice Ministry, the High Court of
Cassation and Justice, the Constitutional Court, the Prosecutor’s General
office, the National Anticorruption Directorate, the Superior Council of
Magistracy and Parliament, as well as judges and prosecutors associations and
civil organisations.

The president of
the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council
of Europe had requested the opinion of the Venice Commission on three draft
laws on judicial organisation, on the Superior Council of
Magistracy and on the statute of judges and prosecutors. For two days, the
experts from the Venice Commission heard completely opposing views, which have
been dividing the power and the opposition in Romania, and implicitly, society
in general. Based on the data gathered, they will draft a preliminary report in
July and a final one in October.

The
president of the special parliamentary committee that oversaw the revision of
the justice laws, the Social Democrat Florin Iordache, believes the report will
not alter the substance of the laws in their amended form:

The
clarifications they received and the material we have provided and which solves
many of the untruths that have circulated will help the representatives of the
Venice Commission, both in their preliminary opinion and the final opinion expected
in autumn, to make the best observations and note that three justice laws are
in keeping with both the opinions expressed by the Commission and the rulings
of the Constitutional Court.

The
Liberals, in opposition, are, however, sceptical that the ruling coalition made
up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats
will take into account the final report of the Venice Commission, given the
stage of the revision process. Liberal senator Alina Gorghiu:

The
revision is in its final stage and it will be quite difficult to work so fast
so as to be able to publish the report within a timeframe that allows the
country in question, Romania, to take it into account.

The
right-wing opposition, part of the media and a number of civic organisations
have said that, by amending the three laws in such haste, the government
coalition is trying to put an end to the fight against corruption and place
magistrates at its orders. The power, on the other hand, says the laws in
question had not been revised for a long time and that justice is not free from
abuses and violations of the rule of law. They also speak about the existence
of an illegitimate, subterranean structure they call the parallel state which
they say paralyses state institutions and influences magistrates’ decisions.

13 June 2018
June 11, 2018

VENICE COMMISSION – A Venice Commission delegation is in Romania on a 2-day visit focusing on the changes to the justice laws. The delegation will have meetings with President Klaus Iohannis, with Parliament members, and officials from the Justice Ministry, High Court of Cassation and Justice, the Constitutional Court, the Prosecutor Generals Office, the National Anti-corruption Directorate, the Higher Council of Magistracy, judge and prosecutor associations and civil society organisations. Both President Iohannis, and the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe have requested the opinion of this body, which comprises independent experts in constitutional law, with respect to the Romanian laws on the organisation of courts, the operation of the Higher Council of Magistrates and the status of judges and prosecutors. The requests came after the right-wing opposition, the media and civil society claimed that these laws are used by the ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in order to stop the fight against corruption and get control over magistrates.

TRADE – Romanias exports totaled over 22 billion Euros in January – April 2018, while imports reached nearly 26 billion euros, according to data made public today by the National Statistics Institute. The trade deficit reached 3.7 billion euros in the first 4 months of the year, as against 3.3 billion euros last year. According to the Institute, in the first 4 months most of the imports and exports were accounted for by vehicles and transport equipment and other manufactured products.

EXERCISE – A large-scale military exercise involving more than 800 Romanian and British troops is taking place until June 22 in the counties Braşov (in central Romania) and Prahova (in the south). The troops are training as part of Sarmis 18, which is coordinated by the Brasov-based 2nd Mountain Troops Brigade. Also taking part are members of Battalion 47 Communications and IT and 1st Battalion, The Rifles from the UK. The exercises are designed to simulate military interventions in case of hybrid threats.

THEATRE – In Sibiu (central Romania), the 25th International Theatre Festival continues. This is the largest performing arts event in Romania and one of the most important in Europe. Today, on the 4th day of the festival, over 40 events will take place, including the opening of the performance exchange, a structure launched 22 years ago in Romania, which brings together companies and festival directors from around the world. Thousands of artists from over 70 countries are performing every day both in theatre halls and in unconventional venues.

SUMMIT – The North-Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and US President Donald Trump are in Singapore, where they will hold a historic meeting tomorrow morning. The summit is the first one between a Kim dynasty member and a US president in office. The talks, whose outcome is uncertain, will focus on the achievement of a special agreement regarding, above all, a full, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of North Korea in exchange for relaxing international economic and diplomatic sanctions. President Donald Trump has today voiced optimism about the eagerly awaited meeting, which was unimaginable just months ago, when Trump and the Pyongyang leader were exchanging harsh lines that made the world fear the worst.

TENNIS – The Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, number 1 in the world, returns to Bucharest today, when she is to present her first Grand Slam trophy, won in Roland Garros on Saturday, to the Romanian public. We remind you that Halep defeated the American Sloane Stephens in the final.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

11 June 2018