A new report under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism

The Cooperation and Verification Mechanism remains in place in Romanias case

Roxana Vasile, 26.01.2017, 13:47

This year’s report of the European Commission on Romania as part of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism with respect to the reform of the judiciary and the fight against corruption has highlighted the positive trends seen in recent years.

More precisely, the report notes that over the past 10 years as a member of the European Union, despite some periods when the pace of reform slowed down, Romania has seen major progress in the field of the judiciary.

There are still some recommendations from the European Commission that Romania needs to pay heed to for the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, which has been in place since 2007, to be discontinued. These include the implementation of a robust and independent system for appointing top prosecutors; the inclusion of clear provisions in the Code of Conduct for parliamentarians which is currently being developed, including with regard to the mutual respect between institutions and making clear that parliamentarians should respect the independence of the judiciary; as well as going ahead with the implementation of the National Anti-corruption Strategy, respecting the deadlines set by the government in August 2016.

President Klaus Iohannis welcomed the fact that the European Commission’s report acknowledges the progress made by Romania in the consolidation of its judicial system and the fight against corruption. He warned, however, about the concerns contained in the report regarding the two draft emergency ordinances on pardon and the amendment of the Criminal Code that are currently being considered by the government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats and which may affect the legal framework for combating corruption.

The government, through its minister delegate for European Affairs Ana Birchall, says however that the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism report confirms the undeniable progress made by Romania in the judicial system and that it hopes this monitoring mechanism would soon be closed.

Ana Birchall: “This would put an end to a situation in which Romania is being assessed, in parallel, by a number of different instruments, all of which have the same objectives.”

Senate speaker and leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats Calin Popescu Tariceanu shares this view: “I will propose that Romania sends a clear point of view to the Commission that we no longer wish to cooperate as part of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism. This has become a political mechanism by which Romania is being treated as a second-rate country.”

The Liberal opposition says, however, that the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism would probably be closed sooner if the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats abstained from undermining justice. The European Commission urges Romania to implement the recommendations included in its report, saying it will carry out a new progress assessment at the end of the year. (Translated by C. Mateescu, edited by D. Vijeu)