EC Report on Romanian Judiciary
Report on progress under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism in Romania
Bogdan Matei, 28.01.2016, 13:52
On January 1st 2007 when Romania was admitted into the European Union, this country was yet to convince its western partners that it complied with all community benchmarks in the judicial field. This is why the European Commission established the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism to assess the progress made by Romania and the neighbouring Bulgaria in the reform of their judicial systems and the fight against corruption and organised crime.
The 2015 report on Romania has been positive for the third consecutive year and, according to its government, proves the durable and sustainable nature of the countrys justice reforms and of its fight against corruption. The National Anticorruption Directorate has reported an increase in the number of signals from the public, which appears to reflect the publics confidence in this institution, something also indicated by opinion polls. Public support for action against corruption was considered to be a strong factor in the street demonstrations leading to the resignation of the Social Democrat prime minister Victor Ponta in November 2015.
Last year, the National Anticorruption Directorate indicted more than 1,250 defendants, including prime minister Ponta himself, as well as former ministers, members of parliament, mayors, county council presidents, judges, prosecutors and a wide variety of senior officials, the European Commission report also notes.
However, the Commission has criticised Parliament for refusing requests from the National Anticorruption Directorate for the lifting of immunity of members of parliament to allow for the opening of investigations without giving clear and consistent motivation for refusals.
In 2016, Brussels expects Romania to focus on preventing corruption and providing the necessary conditions for judges to carry on their work. The Commission also recommends Romania to conduct a more thorough assessment of the integrity of the candidates in this years local and parliamentary elections.
Romania is making progress towards reaching the objectives laid down in the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, says president Klaus Iohannis, adding that its commitment to the consolidation of the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary is irreversible. In the opinion of the justice minister Raluca Pruna, the report gives Bucharest hope that the mechanism may be lifted in the near future. Senate speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu has described the report as unfair, while his counterpart in the Chamber of Deputies Valeriu Zgonea says the report should be a wake-up call for MPs and the way in which they have sometimes treated important matters. The latter has admitted to the need for more political will to respond to the peoples legitimate desire to see Parliament represent their interests.
