The honouring of membership obligations to the Council of Europe by Romania
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly
debate on 13 October 2022 (33rd sitting) (see Doc. 15617, report of the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations
and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring
Committee), co-rapporteurs: Ms Edite Estrela and Ms Krista Baumane). Text adopted by the Assembly on
13 October 2022 (33rd sitting).
1. Romania joined the Council of Europe
in 1993. Upon accession, it entered into a number of commitments
which were subject to monitoring by the Parliamentary Assembly until
1997 and then to post-monitoring dialogue between 2000 and 2002.
Romania is a party to a number of core Council of Europe conventions
including the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5); the
Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (ETS
No. 157); the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture
and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (ETS No. 126);
the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (ETS No. 173); the Convention
on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds
from Crime and on the Financing of Terrorism (CETS No. 198) and
the revised European Social Charter (ETS No. 163), and is subject
to monitoring mechanisms attached to these legal instruments. In
2019, Romania was selected by the Committee on the Honouring of
Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe
(Monitoring Committee) for a periodic review report on its compliance
with the obligations imposed on every Council of Europe member State
in the areas of democracy, rule of law and human rights. The Monitoring Committee
is responsible for preparing periodically monitoring reports on
the compliance of the obligations of all member States which are
not subject to specific monitoring procedures.
2. Since its accession to the Council of Europe, Romania has
made important progress with regard to the functioning of democratic
institutions and respect for human rights. The irreversibility and
sustainability of this progress were called into question by the
developments of 2017-2019, particularly in the areas of the judiciary and
the fight against corruption. However, the Assembly notes with satisfaction
that this setback has been successfully overcome and Romania has
returned to the path of reform.
3. The Assembly commends the political will and commitment shown
by the Romanian authorities to fully respect their obligation to
comply with democratic standards, as confirmed by their continued
co-operation with Council of Europe monitoring mechanisms and the
Assembly’s Monitoring Committee in the framework of the periodic
monitoring review.
4. The Assembly appreciates the ongoing structural reforms of
the Romanian judicial system aimed at addressing a number of concerns
formulated, inter alia, by
the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission)
and the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO). The Strategy
for the Development of the Judiciary for 2022-2025 adopted by the
government on 30 March 2022 sets clear objectives in this respect
and is supplemented by a monitoring mechanism.
5. In terms of judicial independence, the dismantling of the
Section for Investigating Criminal Offences within the Judiciary
on 11 March 2022 marked an important step and should be commended.
However, some issues related to the new system for investigation
and prosecution of criminal offences within the judiciary still need
to be addressed. While the competence to investigate offences committed
by magistrates has now been transferred to designated prosecutors
within the prosecutor’s offices attached to the High Court of Cassation and
Justice and the courts of appeal, it is expected that sufficient
resources will be allocated to the investigations of complex corruption
cases in order to ensure the efficiency of the new system.
6. Furthermore, safeguards must be established to ensure judicial
independence and prevent any risk of politicisation. These include
the procedure for the appointment of designated prosecutors, which
needs to ensure their integrity, competence and impartiality. At
the same time, the Assembly welcomes the efforts within the judiciary
to combat corruption and, in particular, the adoption of the Integrity
Plan by the Superior Council of Magistracy.
7. Concerning the three laws relating to justice, namely those
on the status of magistrates, the organisation of the judiciary
and the superior council of magistracy, which were submitted to
the parliament, the Assembly takes note of the setting-up by the
parliament of the Joint Parliamentary Committee for the Examination
of Laws in the Field of Justice and invites the authorities to follow
the recommendations formulated by the Venice Commission and GRECO,
in particular with regard to the civil and disciplinary liability
of magistrates, competitions for admission into the judiciary and
rules on the status as well as appointment and removal of specialised
and high-ranking prosecutors.
8. Regarding the fight against corruption, the Assembly welcomes
the adoption by the government, in December 2021, of the National
Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2021-2025 and notes with satisfaction
the increased effectiveness of the investigation and sanctioning
of medium- and high-level corruption. In particular, the National
Anti-Corruption Directorate should be commended for continuing the
positive trend in terms of the number of indictments and the reduction
in the backlog of cases despite insufficient human resources, which is
the consequence of very strict criteria for prosecutors’ appointments
and, in particular, seniority requirements. Furthermore, it should
be noted that the value of assets confiscated by the National Agency
for the Management of Seized Assets increased considerably over
the last year.
9. The Assembly notes that amendments to the Criminal Code and
Code of Criminal Procedure aimed at bringing both laws into line
with the Constitutional Court’s decisions with regard, inter alia, to corruption-related crimes,
abuse of office and supervision methods are under preparation. The
Assembly hopes that they will be submitted to the parliamentary
procedure without undue delay.
10. The Assembly notes with concern that Romania is among the
States with the largest number of unexecuted judgments by the European
Court of Human Rights (the Court); this number increased in 2021
to 409, compared to 347 in 2020. Some cases reveal the existence
of structural problems and should be addressed as a matter of priority.
11. Media freedom and pluralism need to be strengthened. In particular,
the use of public funds by political parties to finance media and
influence their content on the basis of secret contracts is of the
utmost concern. It potentially undermines the principle of free
media and the proper functioning of democratic institutions. Typical
cases of threats, instances of harassment and violence against journalists
who express criticism reveal serious problems concerning freedom
of expression.
12. The Assembly notes with satisfaction the overall progress
accomplished by Romania with regard to protection and respect for
human rights. In particular, it welcomes the recent adoption of
the amendment to Article 369 of the Criminal Code, extending the
grounds for hate speech and hate crimes in line with Council of
Europe standards. The Assembly also commends the Romanian Parliament
for having revised its rules of procedure in June 2022, allowing
for more efficient prosecution of hate speech among politicians.
13. The Assembly commends Romania for its commitment to protect
the rights of persons belonging to national minorities. According
to the reports of the monitoring mechanism of the Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities, Romania can be considered
as an example of good European practice in this area. There are
clear improvements, as provided by Article 195 of the Administrative
Code adopted in 2019, especially in the localities where more than
20% of the population belong to a national minority, with regard
to the right to use their mother tongue in dealings with the local
authorities, and the obligation of the respective authorities to
provide citizens with, inter alia,
bilingual forms, public information and procedures. Some difficulties
still exist, particularly with regard to the financial and administrative
obstacles to the implementation of these provisions of the Administrative
Code. There are also concerns that some amendments introduced into
the Administrative Code may limit minority language rights in small
communities.
14. However, regarding the Roma minority, the Assembly notes with
concern that a number of programmes, strategies and action plans
have not had the expected impact on the inclusion of Romanian citizens
belonging to this minority and that Roma continue to occupy the
most disadvantaged position in the labour market; despite sustained
efforts by governmental and non-governmental stakeholders meant
to improve their living standards, the material situation of Roma
is well below the average in the country; they are also affected
by shortages in social housing.
15. Since the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation on
24 February 2022, Romania has faced large flows of refugees from
Ukraine. Over 2.25 million Ukrainians have fled to Romania to date.
While the majority transited the country, about 81 000 decided to
stay. Romania is to be commended on its swift reaction and the help
it has given to a large number of people in need of international
protection.
16. In consequence, the Assembly calls on the Romanian authorities:
16.1 in the field of the judiciary,
to:
16.1.1 continue the ongoing reform while respecting
the deadlines established by the Strategy for the Development of
the Judiciary for 2022-2025;
16.1.2 take into account the recommendations and address the
concerns formulated by the Venice Commission and GRECO in the preparation
of draft justice laws;
16.1.3 ensure inclusiveness in the legislative process; carry
out meaningful consultations with all stakeholders and try to accommodate
different opinions;
16.1.4 ensure that proper safeguards are included in the new
system of investigation and prosecution of criminal offences in
the judiciary, following the dismantling of the Section for Investigating
Criminal Offences within the Judiciary, with a view to guaranteeing
judicial independence;
16.1.5 continue the implementation of measures already adopted
which are aimed at increasing the efficiency and quality of the
justice system, including increasing the recruitment of magistrates,
redistributing the courts’ workload and increasing the digitalisation
of the justice system;
16.2 in the fight against corruption, to:
16.2.1 pursue
implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2021-2025
and ensure determined political support for its effectiveness;
16.2.2 amend the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure
in line with the decisions of the Constitutional Court and the recommendations
of the Venice Commission in respect of deadlines established by
the National Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2021-2025;
16.2.3 address effectively the issue of human resources shortages
within the National Anti-Corruption Directorate;
16.3 in the execution of judgments of the European Court of
Human Rights, to:
16.3.1 step up efforts to implement the
Court’s judgments, in particular those concerning nine principal
cases subject to the Committee of Ministers’ enhanced supervision
procedure and over 300 repetitive cases;
16.3.2 consider exploring the feasibility of organising training
sessions in co-operation with the Council of Europe on the implementation
of the Court’s rulings;
16.3.3 consider exploring the feasibility of organising training
sessions in co-operation with the Parliamentary Assembly Co-operation
Unit on legislative follow-up to the Court’s decisions;
16.4 in the field of media, to:
16.4.1 ensure proper
implementation of the existing legislation on access to information;
16.4.2 ensure full independence of the National Audiovisual Council
by establishing clear professional criteria for the selection of
its members and ensure adequate budgetary resources;
16.4.3 ensure full transparency of media ownership;
16.4.4 ensure specific safeguards for editorial independence
and introduce legal requirements to disclose secret contracts between
political parties and the media that involve the transfer of public
funds to the latter;
16.4.5 ensure proper investigation and punishment of perpetrators
in cases of harassment or intimidation of journalists;
16.5 in the field of the protection of minorities and vulnerable
groups, to:
16.5.1 condemn without reservation, investigate
and prosecute any discriminatory remarks and behaviour, and eliminate
hate speech from public discourse;
16.5.2 continue efforts aimed at better integration of Romanian
citizens belonging to the Roma minority.
17. In conclusion, the Assembly recognises that Romania has made
substantial progress towards its compliance with Council of Europe
standards in areas crucial for the functioning of democratic institutions,
in particular the judiciary and the fight against corruption. However,
the question of the sustainability and irreversibility of the reforms,
as well as of their effectiveness, will have to be confirmed by
the proper implementation of legislation.
18. Against this background, the Assembly invites its Monitoring
Committee to continue following developments in the country in the
framework of a future periodic review and to report back to the
Assembly if developments so warrant.
