EC report criticizes Romania for lack of justice reforms, praises Bulgaria

A recent report from the European Commission on the reforms in the judiciary system points out several shortcomings of the Romanian side while praising the reforms implemented by Bulgaria. The Commission has asked Romania to correct the weaknesses urgently so that it can go back on track with the reform process. The report says “the amendments to the law on the National Integrity Agency voted on 30 June represent a serious step back.” Although Romania has made progress in adopting the Civil and Criminal Procedure Codes, the country “showed overall insufficient political commitment in support of the reform process,” writes the EC. Lack of efficiency of the judicial process and the lack of consistency of jurisprudence remain fundamental weaknesses in Romania. “Accountability of the judiciary and disciplinary procedures require improvements. […] In particular, Romania should establish a close and constructive cooperation between the different political and judicial actors and to strengthen the commitment of the judiciary to reform,” the EC advises. After a slow-down of Parliamentary work, Romania registered important progress in the second quarter of 2010 with the Parliamentary approval of the civil and criminal procedure codes on 22 June. The Ministry of Justice also launched a consultation on a strategy for the reform of justice. The preparations for the entry into force of the four new codes, now scheduled for October 2011, are an important opportunity for a thorough reform of the Romanian judicial system. To sustain this reform process, the Commission calls upon Romania to build on the strong Parliamentary support for the procedural codes and extend this political will to other areas. Read the entire official statement from the EC here