Parliament examines tougher sanctions for major crimes
Perpetrators of particularly serious crimes will no longer be able to elude criminal sanctions, which are expected to be toughened
Ştefan Stoica, 21.05.2024, 14:00
Romania’s electronic monitoring project for protection orders is to be extended nationwide as of October 1, three months earlier than originally planned. The Interior Ministry also intends to apply the surveillance system to people placed on pre-trial or house arrest, two years earlier than planned. On the other hand, Parliament is eyeing tougher punishments in the case of major crimes. After eliminating the possibility that drivers who caused fatal traffic accidents under the influence of alcohol or drugs can get away only with suspended prison sentences, sentences for human trafficking, slavery or child pornography will no longer be suspended. This is one of the amendments to the legislation in the field, which awaits the decision-making vote of the Chamber of Deputies.
The new regulations also provide for an increase in the penalties for these crimes. Thus, for slavery, child pornography and human trafficking, prison sentences can reach up to 12 years, or up to 20 years if minors are involved. Romanian MPs are also debating the draft law which will introduce new security elements into the Automated National Register regarding individuals who have committed sex crimes. Thus, it is mandatory for those registered in the sex offenders register to periodically notify the authorities regarding their employment. At the same time, special law-enforcement structures must immediately notify the employers in the education, health or social protection systems, as well as any institution whose activity involves direct contact with children or elderly people. Another provision stipulates that employment or volunteering contracts cease immediately upon being listed in the register, if the individual in question works in fields involving contact with children or vulnerable people.
We recall the Government launched the National Strategy for Combating Human Trafficking, a document that establishes coordinated mechanisms at national and international levels aimed at reducing the scale of the phenomenon. In the last two decades, Romania has been recognized as one of the source states for human trafficking in Europe. Annually, 500 Romanians are trafficked, but the real figure may be higher, because human trafficking is a difficult crime to identify directly. Last year, we managed to convince 451 victims of human trafficking to ask for our help, but more efforts are needed in this regard, because the greatest allies of human traffickers are fear and silence, said the deputy director of the National Agency for Combating Human Trafficking, Maria Cristina Stepanescu. (VP)
