Romania’s most important events in 2017
The frequent street protests, the official visits of European statesmen, and a royal funeral were among the events making headlines in Romania and about Romania this year. The year 2017 has largely been one of street protests across the…
RI Newsroom · Journalist
· Updated · 4 min read
The frequent street protests, the official visits of European statesmen, and a royal funeral were among the events making headlines in Romania and about Romania this year. The year 2017 has largely been one of street protests across the country. It all started in January, with protests against the Government’s initiative to pardon thousands of convicts and to change the criminal laws by weakening the anticorruption rules. The protests lasted for a month, and eventually the controversial emergency ordinance 13 (OUG 13) which aimed to change the criminal code was terminated. Still, the protests made international headlines for their massive attendance and creativity. The talks of changes being made to the justice laws and the criminal code continued throughout the year, culminating with the Parliament passing several amendments to the justice laws this December. In addition to the street protests, the end of the year saw protests from judges, prosecutors and law students. Again, the unconventional forms of showing dissent brought further attention to the changes that are seen as weakening the independence of the justice system and largely block the activity of the Anticorruption Directorate (DNA). The draft laws concerning the judiciary in Romania will be evaluated by the Council of Europe Group of States against Corruption (GRECO).
The Romanian citizens had this year the opportunity to attend debates on the future of the European Union, after the European Commission presented the five scenarios for the way the EU could evolve by 2025. Both Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, and Frans Timmermans, first vice president of the same body, came to Bucharest this year to attend public debates on the future of the EU. The meetings were part of the Citizens’ Dialogues series of events, taking place across the union. French president
