The growing shortage of magistrates is a serious concern, but “Romania continued to have a positive evolution in the fight against corruption”, according to the European Commission’s report on the rule of law published on Wednesday. The EC reports the biggest problems in the section on press independence.

Until November 2022, Romania’s justice and anti-corruption reforms were monitored by the European Commission through the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (MCV). Since then, they have been controlled exclusively through the rule of law mechanism, which is applied in all EU member states.

A report on the rule of law published on Wednesday said there had been “significant progress in strengthening the independence of the judiciary” through revisions to three justice laws that brought important changes.

• PROGRAM HERE THE CHAPTER FROM THE REPORT ON THE RULE OF LAW ABOUT ROMANIA

“Serious Concerns”

“Despite continuous efforts to improve the situation, the shortage of magistrates is increasing, which is a serious concern as it may over time affect the quality and efficiency of justice,” the European Commission said, referring to situations where certain magistrates have been subject to disciplinary action. sanctions.

The commission also shows in its annual report that Romania continued to make positive progress in the fight against corruption, particularly in high-profile cases, and made significant progress in addressing operational issues related to anti-corruption prosecutions within the National Anti-Corruption Service. Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA), although recruitment remains a challenge.

Corruption cases were closed due to the statute of limitations

In a report on the state of emergency, the European Commission shows that the government adopted an emergency regulation to clarify the statute of limitations, but the delay in the legislative response led to some corruption cases being closed and some convictions being overturned.

No progress in several chapters

• In the chapter on freedom of the press, the EC shows that no measures have been taken to improve the independence of public media. Transparency of media funding has not improved significantly, and threats, harassment and violence against journalists remain a problem.
• Conclusions of the European Commission:
• According to the report on the rule of law published on Wednesday by the European Commission, in general, in relation to the recommendations of the previous report, Romania has done:
• Significant progress by revising justice laws to strengthen safeguards for the independence of the judiciary,
• Some progress has been made in taking measures to address the remaining challenges to criminal prosecution, taking into account the standards and opinions of the Venice Commission.
• There is no progress on the introduction of lobbying rules in Parliament.
• Significant progress in solving the operational tasks of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate.
• There is no progress in strengthening the rules and mechanisms for increasing media independence, taking into account European standards regarding the role of public media.
• There is no progress in creating a national human rights institution taking into account the UN Principles.

This is the fourth report of the European Commission on the rule of law in each of the EU member states, which examines the general situation in the European Union, with a section for each member state.

The report covers the following areas: the justice system, the fight against corruption, media pluralism and other institutional mechanisms of verification and control.

• “While there are still concerns about the rule of law in some EU member states, the report has been a key driver of positive change and reform.
• In fact, 65% of last year’s recommendations have been fully or partially implemented. This shows that member states are making significant efforts to implement the previous year’s recommendations.
• Given that reforms to improve the rule of law take time, significant progress has been made in just one year. At the same time, systemic concerns persist in some member states,” says the European Commission’s fourth report on the rule of law. (PHOTO: Dreamstime.com)