Romania’s Social-Democratic leader withdraws support for ordinance on justice after four days of protests

Liviu Dragnea, the leader of Romania’s Social Democratic Party (PSD), said on Saturday that the emergency ordinance that changes the Criminal Code may be revoked, if the Government also agrees, to defuse a massive street conflict. This is Dragnea’s first step back after four days of massive but peaceful protests in Bucharest and all over Romania against the Government’s intention to weaken the fight against corruption. However, the PSD leader says he is willing to do this in order to prevent potential confrontations in Bucharest between the anti-Government protesters and his party’s supporters. “I can say that the PSD members and sympathizers can no longer be held in check, they want to go to the streets and express their profound disapproval to the Soros-inspired movement that we are now witnessing. The party is organizing on its own and I feel that I can no longer hold in check, from the center, the pressure of the organizations all over the country, which can bring almost a million people on Bucharest’s streets,” Dragnea said for local publication DCNews.ro. He added that, being a responsible person, he could not stand and watch how Romania is broken because of "President Iohannis' irresponsibility" and that he would propose to the Prime Minister and the Government coalition partners from ALDE to find a solution for ending this situation. “I will propose a solution to end the conflict related to the emergency ordinance that I hope the Prime Minister will accept. We can even speak about revoking the ordinance, if the Prime Minister accepts. We hope that this will also convince our members and sympathizers not to go to the streets and escalate the tension. I don’t want a conflict to pit Romanians against Romanians and break Romania in two,” he added. The PSD leader, who is also the leader of the parliamentary majority made of PSD and ALDE (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats), and has a firm grip on the Government led by Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu, has tried to distance himself from the emergency ordinance on justice letting justice minister Florin Iordache and PM Sorin Grindeanu take responsibility for it. The Government unexpectedly adopted the ordinance on Tuesday evening, in a cabinet meeting that had only one thing on the agenda: the budget for 2017. After the justice minister announced that the ordinance was adopted, some 15,000 people gathered in Bucharest for a spontaneous protests in front of the Government’s headquarters in Victoriei Square