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Romanian Justice Minister Confirms EC Report Delay

Romanian Justice minister Catalin Predoiu said Tuesday on RFI that the European Commission’s report on the justice system will be delayed due to elections in Bulgaria, adding that Romania must take advantage of the extra time to speed up reforms.
Romanian Justice Minister Confirms EC Report Delay
23 iun. 2009, 13:35, English

Predoiu said the Ministry, the High Council of Magistrates and anticorruption departments must use the time to take steps towards achieving the objectives outlined in the Mechanism for Cooperation and Verification.

Previous unofficial information said the report has been delayed until September. The main reason was connected to negotiations on the presidency of the European Commission, whereby Romania was to support Jose Durao Barroso for a new term, in exchange for a postponement.

The justice minister hopes that Parliament will authorize the criminal investigation of former prime minister Adrian Nastase in the Zambaccian 1 case. Predoiu believes this point is paramount if Romania is to receive a favorable report.

European Commission experts will begin on Tuesday a new mission to evaluate Romania’s justice system and fight against corruption, in preparation for the report which will most likely be made public in September, official sources told MEDIAFAX.

Between June 23 and 25, European experts will meet with Romanian general prosecutor Codruta Kovesi, chief Anticorruption Department prosecutor Daniel Morar, the management of the High Council of Magistrates, the National Integrity Agency, the High Court of Justice, the Justice Ministry, the Chamber of Deputies’ legal commission and the minister for liaison with the Parliament.