Chamber of Deputies speaker on EU embassies letter: Romania is a sovereign state

The Romanian Parliament has the right to legislate, Liviu Dragnea, the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, said. He was referring to the letter of several EU embassies, requesting those involved in the justice reform project to avoid any action that could weaken the independence of the judiciary, Agerpres reported. Dragnea also said he reminded Senate president Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu and Foreign Affairs minister Teodor Meleşcanu that Romania is a sovereign, independent state, with rights. “Is this the first time they get together [e.n. the embassies]? How is it possible that these embassies did not first grant themselves the opportunity to have the final draft of the laws, to look at them carefully and say their opinion, if we are to talk honestly, if we are talking about good faith? Leaving aside that the Romanian Parliament is elected by Romanians, in a sovereign state, and has the right to legislate,” Dragnea said, in a show at Romania TV, when asked about the EU embassies letter. The Embassies of Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden sent a joint statement, asking the Parliament to avoid any back steps in justice reform and to seek the Venice Committee’s advice on the new justice laws. The US State Department also urged Romania’s Parliament not to vote any amendments that may weaken the rule of law and the fight against corruption. Dragnea said no changes were made to the appointment of head prosecutors, who are still named by the president. He gave the examples of several EU countries where head prosecutors are appointed “politically.” “By contrast, in Denmark, Finland, Germany, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Slovenia, Lithuania, the head prosecutors are appointed directly either by the Government, or by the president, the Justice minister, or by the Parliament, meaning they are appointed politically and we are talking about countries with a tradition of democracy. Moreover, in some states, such as Denmark, the Netherlands, France, Finland, Ireland, the Justice minister can intervene in the activity of the prosecutor, can request the beginning or the stop of a legal investigation. In Romania, with these laws, the independence of prosecutors increases, the independence of judges increases, I think this is what is bothersome,” Dragnea said. He also said the changes brought to the justice laws were made constitutionally, through previous debate, and that “over 90% of what is in these three laws constitute the proposals coming from magistrates’ associations.” Two weeks ago, prosecutors and judges in Bucharest and other cities in Romania protested