Criticism and recommendations from the Venice Commission

criticism and recommendations from the venice commission  The Venice Commission recommends Romania to give up emergency ordinances in the area of the judiciary.

 "The most problematic elements of the 2018 reform, identified in the opinion of October 2018, either remained unchanged or were aggravated", notes the Venice Commission, the Council of Europe's advisory body in matters of constitutional law, in an opinion published on Monday. The Commission levels fresh criticism at the amendments to the justice legislation made by the Romanian government last year and calls on the Romanian authorities to drastically limit the use of emergency ordinances in this area. The practice of making legislative amendments by emergency ordinances "weakens external checks on the government, it is contrary to the principle of separation of powers and disturbs legal certainty", writes the Commission in its conclusions.


As for the recently established special section for the investigation of criminal offences in the judiciary, the Commission's experts say the reasons for its creation remain unclear. Moreover, they warn that "it risks being an obstacle to the fight against corruption and organised crime". In Bucharest, the opposition and magistrates' associations view this section as a means of intimidating judges and prosecutors and believe it should be dismantled. The Venice Commission also notes that the justice minister still plays a decisive role in the appointment and dismissal of top prosecutors, without counterbalancing powers of the president or the Superior Council of Magistracy. The Commission says it remains at the disposal of the Romanian authorities and the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly for further assistance in this matter.


President Klaus Iohannis believes the aspects highlighted by the Venice Commission reinforce the conclusion that the government has abused the instrument of emergency ordinances, bypassing both real debate in Parliament of the measures pursued and consultation with the representatives of the judicial system. Overnight changes in such a sensitive area and the lack of real control in terms of the constitutional nature of the emergency ordinances not only upset the entire system, but also affect the very essence of the rule of law: legal stability and predictability and the principle of the separation of powers, the president has emphasised. He added that the message conveyed by the Venice Commission is loud and clear: the government has to repair the damage caused to the judicial system by putting into application the recommendations of the European bodies in the field as soon as possible and in their entirety.


We recall that president Iohannis was the initiator of a referendum on judiciary-related themes held at the same time as the European elections. An overwhelming majority of Romanian voters agreed with a ban on amnesty and pardon for corruption crimes and on government's ability to issue emergency ordinances in the area of crimes, punishments and judicial organisation. 



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Publicat: 2019-06-25 12:43:00
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