Romanian President Says Law On High Council Of Magistrates Must Be Amended

The head of state said reports released since 2007 have shown the High Council of Magistrates is not a structure to speed up the development of Romania's justice system. Basescu said this situation should have determined politicians to amend the law on CSM and transfer key powers back to the Justice Ministry, so the country can meet its obligations towards foreign partners and towards Romanians.

Basescu suggested Tuesday that some of the members of the High Council of Magistrates who think they are above everyone else are responsible for "the harm done to Romania." He harshly criticized the Romanian justice system and especially the High Council of Magistrates which, he said, harmed Romania and destroyed its credibility.

"There is no other justice system in the EU that has ever done so much harm to a country than the Romanian justice system has done to Romania and its citizens," Basescu told a news conference Tuesday.

The head of state's criticism comes at a time when Romania lags behind with justice reform and some EU countries may use this as a pretext to block the country's accession to the Schengen Area.

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