Radio România Internațional

Tag: justice system

  • August 13, 2018 UPDATE

    August 13, 2018 UPDATE

    PROTESTS – In Romania, military prosecutors called on people who
    protested on Friday in Bucharest to come forward if they have been injured or
    can provide important information. Dozens of people have filed complaints over
    the last two days against the gendarmes after being injured in the protests. Forensic
    medical reports have been issued for scores of people, including gendarmes. At
    the same time, the two individuals who assaulted a female gendarme and her
    colleague have been arrested. As a result of the violence that ensued on Friday
    at the protests against the government, around 500 people needed medical care,
    and 70 were hospitalized, including 11 gendarmes. The Romania 100 platform filed
    a request with the prosecutors with the High Court of Cassation and Justice to
    indict Bucharest Prefect Speranta Cliseru and Interior Minister Carmen Dan as a
    result of the extreme violence perpetrated on the night of August 10 to 11.




    MESSAGE – Romania is undergoing a period of
    turbulence due to the violent protests, President Klaus Iohannis said on Monday,
    referring to last Friday’s violent anti-Government protests. The president said
    the violent repression of protests is unacceptable, pointing out that those
    responsible must be identified and brought to justice. President Iohannis also
    condemned the actions of people who attacked the riot police, stating that no
    one is yet being held accountable for the violent acts of August 10, adding
    that at least one person should have stepped down by now. Romania is a balanced
    and respected country, but the Government is doing everything in its power to
    destroy this image, the President went on to say. Polls show that 80% of
    Romanians believe Romania is headed in the wrong direction, Klaus Iohannis
    argued. In turn, the Social-Democratic Party wrote in a press release that the
    President encouraged the anti-Government protests, calling on Klaus Iohannis to
    display responsibility and act like a President should, to help consolidate
    democratic rights and values and the rule of law.




    JUSTICE – European Commissioner for Justice Vera Jourova calls on
    the government in Bucharest to reconsider their recent changes in the judicial
    system, according to the DPA news agency, quoting an interview by the German
    publication Die Welt. The European official said that the new version of the
    laws threatens the independence of judges, limits the authority of prosecutors,
    and undermines confidence in the judicial system. Commissioner Jourova said it
    would be useful for the government in Bucharest to reconsider their plans. DPA
    mentions that the judicial reform in Romania has sparked protests. According to
    the source, the organizers of these protests claim that the laws favor corrupt
    politicians, as they decriminalize abuse in office.




    SUMMIT – Romania is ready to organize
    the informal summit of EU heads of state and Government on May 9, 2019 in
    Sibiu, central Romania, the Foreign Ministry reports. On Monday, Sibiu hosted a
    working meeting to prepare next year’s summit as part of Romania’s mandate at
    the helm of the European Council. Attending were representatives of the presidency
    and local authorities. Devoted to the future of the EU and the upcoming
    strategic agenda for the 2019-2024 period, the Summit will bring together 27
    heads of state and government of member states, 36 official delegations, 400
    high-ranking officials, some 900 journalists and 100 interpreters.




    NAVY- The Romanian Naval Forces on August 14 will pay homage to the
    heroes and soldiers who made history in the naval battles that helped preserve
    the independence and sovereignty of the country, the Defense Ministry reports.
    Romanian military will attend a special ceremony at the Sailors’ Monument in
    Constanta. Wednesday, August 15, is Navy Day, which will be marked by a big
    naval show held in Constanta and Mangalia. 2018 marks 116 years since the
    Military Navy was founded.




    VISIT – A delegation of the National Guard of the State of Alabama,
    led by Major-General Sheryl Gordon, is paying an official visit to Romania over
    August 13-16. The American delegation will attend the conference entitled 25
    Years of State Partnership Program, organized by the Carol I National
    Defense University in Bucharest. The agenda also includes visits to the Mihail
    Kogalniceanu airbase, to the military port in Tulcea, and the Constanta
    barracks, where they will meet with Chief of General Staff Nicolae-Ionel Ciuca
    to attend ceremonies marking Navy Day. Cooperation between the Romanian Army
    and the National Guard of the State of Alabama has been ongoing for the past 25
    years, as part of the State Partnership Program.




    THEATRE – Stage director Silvu Purcarete’s
    latest show, The Story of an Ill-reputed Princess, has been selected for the
    opening of the Cultural and Olympic Games in 2020 in Tokyo, the spokesperson of
    the Radu Stanca National Theatre in Sibiu has announced. The show is based on
    an original script written by Silviu Purcarete, grounded on a kabuki play. It
    will premiere in June.


    (Translated by V. Palcu)

  • April 14, 2018

    April 14, 2018

    UPDATE: SYRIA– President Klaus Iohannis
    said on Saturday in a message he posted on Twitter that Romania further
    condemns the use of chemical weapons in Syria and expresses solidarity with the
    actions taken by its strategic partners. The Romanian Foreign Ministry also firmly condemns the use of chemical
    weapons in any circumstances, as the carrying out of such actions is totally
    unjustifiable and pleads for bringing to justice all those proven guilty of
    perpetrating such an act, following an investigation    .The statements are made after the US,
    the UK and France last night launched the most massive attack against Syrian
    targets since the start of the civil war, in response to the alleged use of
    chemical weapons by the regime in Damascus against its own citizens. US
    President Donald Trump has confirmed overnight precision strikes had been
    launched against targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of the
    Syrian government. British PM Theresa May has said it is about a limited and
    targeted strike that does not further escalate tensions in the region and that
    does everything possible to prevent civilian casualties, whereas the French
    President, Emmanuel Macron, said the Syrian actions were a threat to collective
    security. Russia, which supports the regime of Bashar Al-Assad, has deplored
    the attack on a sovereign state but it made clear that its military facilities
    in Syria have not been affected by the air strikes. On the ground, also on
    Saturday, the security forces of the Syrian regime entered the town of Douma,
    the last fiefdom of the rebels in Eastern Ghouta, near Damascus. A week ago,
    the town was the target of an alleged chemical attack, which left over 40
    people dead. The Syrian regime has denied any responsibility



    EC – The European Commission has never intervened in the trials unfolding in Romanian courts-says the EC President, Jean Claude Juncker. Thus, he answered the letter he received last month from the Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă, in which she called for clarifications from the EC about a notification sent in 2012 to the then justice minister, regarding certain files. Juncker underlined the information requested six years ago was meant to help prepare the technical mission of November 2012, without Brussels requesting information related to the cases proper. He recalls that the CVM of the Romanian justice system included from the very beginning cooperation between the EC and the Bucharest authorities.



    STEEL MARKET – The ArcelorMittal has confirmed it might sell the Steelworks in Galati, south-eastern Romania. Alongside five other works in Italy, Macedonia, the Czech Republic, Luxemburg and Belgium, the steelworks in Galaţi is on a list that the group has forwarded to the EC. Until May 23, European experts will analyse whether the selling of the six steel works manages or not to redress the steel output of the ArcelorMittal group, as ArcelorMittal is interested in buying the largest steelworks in Europe, located in Ilva, Italy. The EC says that by purchasing the Italian steelworks, ArcelorMittal will hold a dominant position on the continental steel market, a situation which might be redressed only by selling other steelworks the group owns in Europe. Arcelor Mittal is a multinational company, considered to be the largest steel producer in the world, with 310,000 employees in 60 countries. Disquieted by the arrival of another investor, which might resort to restructuring, the trade unions on the Galati steelworks platform, with a total number of some 7,000 workers, have stated their intention to discuss the situation with PM Viorica Dăncilă.

    MADRID – The minister for the Romanians Worldwide, Natalia Intotero, is
    currently on a visit to Spain, where she is having talks with representatives
    of the central and local authorities, of the Romanian associations and
    religious denominations. The number of Romanian residents in Spain exceeded one
    million, according to official data made public at the end of 2017 by the
    Spanish Permanent Immigration Observer. An increase of 2.4% was registered, as
    compared to 2016.

    APPOINTMENT -
    Israeli doctor Zvi Herman Berkowits has been appointed honorary counsellor of
    Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă, according to a decision published in the Official
    Gazette. He will not receive money for his activity. Berkowits is Romania’s
    honorary consul in Israel and the personal physician of Israeli Prime Minister
    Benjamin Netanyahu. He was born in Târgu-Lăpuş, Maramureş (north-western
    Romania), in 1947 and graduated from the Medical School in Cluj-Napoca, central
    Romania. He is a specialist paediatrician and leads his own general and paediatric
    medicine clinic in Jerusalem.

    SPORTS -
    The Romanian women’s handball team SCM Craiova
    (in the south) is today facing the Turkish team of Kastamonu, in a
    decisive match of the EHF Cup semi-finals. The Romanians won the first match,
    played away from home, 23-22. If they
    secure qualification, this would be the first finals played in the city of
    Craiova, by the local team, during its second participation in the European
    cups. On Sunday in the Champions’ league, the Romanian
    champion, CSM Bucureşti, plays away from home, the round match
    in the quarter-finals, with the French team of Metz.In the first
    round played in Bucharest, CSM secured a clear victory, 34-21. The Romanian handballers
    won the Champions League in     2016.

  • March 1, 2018 UPDATE

    March 1, 2018 UPDATE

    Visit — The situation of the Romanian justice system was the central topic of discussions the First Vice President of the European Commission Frans Timmermans held on Thursday in Bucharest with the Romanian officials: President Klaus Iohannis, PM Viorica Dancila, the speakers of Parliament’s two chambers, Calin Popescu Tariceanu and Liviu Dragnea, the leaders of the ruling coalition, as well as with the members of the parliamentary committee in charge of modifying the justice laws. Mr. Timmermans also had meetings with representatives of the justice system. Fresh from these talks the European official had a press conference in which he said that contact with the Romanian authorities would be intensified on the issue of the judiciary. He praised the progress Romania reported in this field after EU accession in 2007. Mr. Timmermans also underlined that the EC’s ambition was to be able to stop the Mechanism for Cooperation and Verification for Romania by 2019, given that Romania will take over the presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019.



    Weather — Code yellow and code orange alerts for cold weather have been issued for the whole of Romania until Friday evening. The skies will be overcast and light snowfalls are expected in all of the country’s regions. Minimum temperatures will drop to minus 24 degrees C while the highs will not exceed plus 2 degrees C. Schools remained closed for the entire week in the capital Bucharest and several counties in the southeast. Several national and county roads in the south and east of the territory are still closed. Because of the strong winds, the Black Sea ports remained closed. Trains have reported delays, many have been cancelled and airports are operating in winter conditions. According to the authorities, problems related to electric power and natural gas supply have been dealt with.



    Brexit — The EU chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, on Thursday said that London’s stand regarding the future relations with the community bloc leaves room for a free trade agreement between the two sides. According to Barnier, the only possible model remains that of a free trade agreement, as recently happened with Canada, Japan and South Korea. He added that Great Britain would remain a member of the European Customs Union but it would have to accept more responsibilities, among which border controls with the EU. Barnier said that the success of Brexit negotiations entailed accelerated talks, only 13 months ahead of the official date for Brexit.



    Tennis — The pair made up of Romanian Horia Tecău and Dutch Jean Julien Rojer on Thursday qualified to the semifinals of the Dubai tournament with prizes up for grabs worth more than 2.6 million dollars. They defeated 6-4, 6-4 the pair Marcin Matkowski (Poland)/ Uisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Pakistan). For a place in the final, Tecău and Rojer, 2nd seeded and title holders, will be up against the pair Ivan Dodig (Croatia) / Rajeev Ram (the US) on Friday. (news translated and updated by Lacramioara Simion)

  • Decisions and recommendations regarding Romania’s justice system

    Decisions and recommendations regarding Romania’s justice system

    Since 2007, the European Union has used its Cooperation and Verification Mechanism as a means to monitor the Romanian justice system. The latest report, issued in autumn, shows that progress has been made in the field, but it also underlines Brussels’s concern over the global pace of reform, which was rather flat in 2017.



    The same concern has been voiced this week in Strasbourg by the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), according to which Romania has made little progress in implementing the Group’s recommendations with regard to preventing and combating corruption among parliamentarians, judges and prosecutors.



    More precisely, Bucharest has fully complied with just 2 of the 13 recommendations included in a previous assessment, has implemented only partially 4 recommendations and totally ignored 7. GRECO has stressed that the main initiative adopted in Romania with regard to parliamentarians was a Code of Conduct, in October 2017, with the aim of regulating the issue of gifts and other benefits received by MPs, as well as the management of conflicts of interest.



    The anti-corruption group has also underlined the fact that the provisions included in the Code are too general and its rule of application rather inconsistent, therefore the code cannot provide a 100% satisfactory framework.



    Another cause for concern for GRECO is the legislative process as such, given the ongoing controversies and accusations telling of insufficient consultations, excessive use of expedited procedures and lack of transparency.



    GRECO has stressed the fact that the year 2017, against the background of high tensions triggered by the political power’s intention to amend the justice laws, was marked by a number of proposals and counter-proposals regarding appointments and disciplinary procedures, some of which were perceived as an attempt to undermine the independence of the Romanian judiciary.



    One of the arguments put forward by the Social Democratic Party and its junior ruling partner, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats was that, in their current form, the laws left plenty of room for abuse on prosecutors’ and judges’ part.



    In order to guarantee the presumption of innocence and the right to a fair trial, the Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday that the evidence obtained illegally and declared null in a criminal trial must be removed from the case’s files. According to the Constitutional Court, the permanent access of a judge to evidence declared null would bring to their attention information that might influence them as to the potential guilt or innocence of the defendant. Once declared null, such evidence can no longer be used in trying the case.