Former Cluj mayor wins case against Romania in Human Rights Court, others may follow

The Human Rights Court in Strasbourg ruled against Romania in a case filed by the former mayor of Cluj-Napoca, Sorin Apostu. Although the court dismissed his claim for just satisfaction, this decision could bring more complaints against the Romanian state. The Human Rights Court decided that the publication in the media of personal information from former mayor’s criminal case file violated his right to respect for private life. “The Court observed that the publication of recorded conversations in the press revealed information about Mr Apostu’s private affairs which cast him in an unfavourable light and gave the impression, before the case had been examined, that he had committed crimes. Furthermore some of the published conversations were strictly private and had little or no connection with the criminal charges against Mr Apostu,” reads the Court’s decision. “The Court noted that the essence of the complaint was the fact that the authorities had allowed information to leak to the press, rather than its subsequent publication (...) Once the information had been published Mr Apostu had no means to take immediate action to defend his reputation as the merits of the case were not under examination by a court and thus the accuracy or interpretation of the recorded conversations could not be challenged.” The Court decided that the leak of information from the prosecution file was not justified, as it neither advanced the criminal prosecution nor met a pressing social need. More people might file cases against the Romanian state after this decision, as in many of the high profile corruption cases which broke in recent years judicial sources leaked information from the files, and even whole transcripts of phone interceptions. Private conversations between politicians and local businessmen thus became public. The Human Rights Court also ruled against the Romanian state for inappropriate detention conditions. “The personal space available to him was, for the most part, appropriate. However, Mr Apostu had been deprived of the ability to maintain adequate personal hygiene whilst in prison. Furthermore the Court was not convinced that the cells in Rahova and Gherla prisons, where Mr Apostu had been kept for several weeks in early 2012, had been adequately heated,” the Court said. Sorin Apostu was arrested in November 2011 on bribery charges. In July 2014, Romania’s High Court of Cassation and Justice sentenced him to four years and six months in jail, no parole, for corruption. editor@romania-insider.com