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Commission chiefs warn

Romania against justice law


changes
Carmen Paun 1/24/18, 1:30 PM CET

Demonstrators stage an anti-government and anti-corruption protest in front of the Romanian parliament building
in Bucharest January 20, 2018 | Daniel Mihailescu/AFP via Getty Images

Commission chiefs warn Romania against justice


law changes
‘The independence of Romania’s judicial system and its capacity to fight
corruption effectively are essential cornerstones of a strong Romania.’

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and First Vice


President Frans Timmermans on Wednesday asked the Romanian parliament
to rethink changes to laws governing the judiciary, which have raised
concerns about the country’s fight against corruption.

The justice laws are “an important test of the extent to which the legitimate
interests of judicial and other stakeholders are given an opportunity to be
voiced, and are taken sufficiently into account in the final decisions,” Juncker
and Timmermans said in a joint statement.

Tens of thousands of Romanians protested on Saturday against the


changes, passed by the parliament in December, which include new sanctions
against judges and prosecutors thought to have acted in bad faith.
However, many believe they will allow political corruption to go unpunished.

Juncker and Timmermans on Wednesday slammed the Romanian authorities


for not doing anything to address the Commission’s concerns about the
changes, as set out in a November 2017 report as part of the EU’s anti-
corruption monitoring scheme for Romania and Bulgaria.

Brussels asked the parliament to put the changes up for debate and “build a
broad consensus on the way forward.” MPs from the ruling coalition — the
Social Democrats (PSD) and its junior liberal partner ALDE — pushed
through the changes last year despite vocal criticism from judges and
prosecutors, opposition parties and civil society organizations.

The country’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday said that a change to the law
setting up a judicial section dedicated to the prosecution of judges and
magistrates was legal, national media reported. The court is due to rule on
January 30 if changes to the legal status of magistrates and the organization
of the Superior Magistrates Council are also in line with the constitution.

“The independence of Romania’s judicial system and its capacity to fight


corruption effectively are essential cornerstones of a strong Romania in the
European Union,” Juncker and Timmermans said.
Juncker has said that he would like to see the EU’s anti-corruption
mechanism lifted for Romania by the end of his mandate next year, but the
latest changes have called that into question.

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