Recommendations on combating corruption

The foreign diagnosis confirms what the Romanian president, the opposition, civil society and the media have been saying for two and a half years. On Tuesday, the Council of the European Union voiced concern over the modification of the justice laws in Romania, which could undermine the efficacy of the activity of judges and prosecutors and reduce trust in the judiciary.

Also on Tuesday, the Council of Europe's anti-corruption body GRECO said that under the government led by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, Romania has made very little progress in putting in place measures to prevent corruption among parliamentarians, judges and prosecutors and to address the concerns raised by its controversial reform of the judicial system. The GRECO reports voice deep concern in particular about the fact that the authorities completely disregarded the recommendation to abandon the creation of a department to investigate offences in the judiciary and which is viewed as a means to intimidate and inhibit magistrates. GRECO welcomed the announcement made by the country's Social Democrat prime minister Viorica Dancila to abandon the controversial reforms in the judiciary, which have been repeatedly criticised as seeking to subordinate magistrates and halt the fight against corruption.

GRECO has requested the Romanian authorities to report back on progress achieved by 30th June 2020. This is the final deadline in the evaluation process, after which the Council of Europe may declare that the situation in Romania is not compliant with its standards.

The political class in Bucharest was quick to comment on the GRECO reports. Ludovic Orban and Dan Barna, the leaders of the Liberal Party and the Save Romania Union, respectively, both in opposition, say the reports confirm the fact that the decisions taken by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats were aimed at blocking the fight against corruption and undermine the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law. They call for the dismantling of the special department to investigate magistrates.

The leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats Calin Popescu Tariceanu has accused the GRECO experts of bias, saying they disregarded the existence of secret protocols between magistrates and the intelligence services. The justice minister Ana Birchall believes that, based on the GRECO reports, each institution mentioned should conduct its own assessment and take the necessary measures.

The president of the High Court of Cassation and Justice Cristina Tarcea says GRECO experts have confirmed the worries voiced by the Supreme Court with respect to the lack of transparency and dialogue, the risk of magistrates leaving, arbitrary promotions and the weakening of the independence of judges and prosecutors. She expressed hope that those who proposed and supported unconditionally the legislative amendments that violate the independence of the judiciary would accept responsibility for the consequences of their actions by doing the decent thing, resigning or withdrawing from public life.