Consultations with parliamentary parties on judicial laws: President Iohannis wants judicial laws to re-enter the legislative process

President Klaus Iohannis’s consultations with parliamentary parties, on the topic of the judicial laws, started on Wednesday, at the Cotroceni Palace. The Social Democratic Party (PSD) was the first to discuss with the head of state, being represented by its leader, Liviu Dragnea, and MPs Robert Cazanciuc, Florin Iordache, Serban Nicolae and Eugen Nicolicea. When asked on Wednesday, at the end of the National Standing Bureau meeting of the party if the PSD will sign a “peace deal” related to the justice laws if the President offers one, Liviu Dragnea said: “I prefer not to comment and to discuss this after the meeting, so that I won’t ruin his surprise.” President Iohannis called the parliamentary parties to consultations on Wednesday, starting at 3 pm, to discuss the justice laws. According to the Presidential Administration, the programme of the consultations was  the following: starting at 3 pm – the Social Democratic Party, at 3.30 pm – the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE), at 4 pm – the National Liberal Party (PNL), at 4.30 – the Save Romania Union (USR), at 5.00 pm – the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR), at 5.30 pm – the People’s Movement Party (PMP), at 6 pm – the Parliamentary Group of National Minorities. Participating alongside the head of the state are also presidential advisers Mihaela Ciochina, Laurentiu Mihai Stefan and Andrei Muraru and state adviser Daniela Barsan. Before starting his consultations with the parliamentary parties, President Klaus Iohannis stated that he wants a political agreement reached on the judicial laws re-entering the legislative process, with responsibility and transparency, leading to their modernisation. Iohannis emphasised that he wants to be a mediator, not to enter a pact with the parties.   President Iohannis says he does not want to enter pact with ruling coalition or other parties   President Klaus Iohannis said on Wednesday that he does not want a pact with any political party that attended consultations with him at the Cotroceni Presidential Palace, as he just wants to be a mediator for the justice legislation. “I do not want a pact with the Social Democratic Party (PSD) [major at rule]. I’m not talking about that. I do not know how the idea came about, but I think it has been wrongly understood what is happening here. I want in these consultations to be seen as a mediator, a mediator between parliamentary political parties. I do not want a pact with PSD, or ALDE or with others. I want them to understand each other, to resume the discussions on the justice laws in a considerably improved form, to finally have laws that really help the Romanian justice system. I think what I could get and hope to get is a political understanding among political parties,” said Iohannis. According to the president, the justice system must be independent and stable, and “sooner or later” consensus will be required in Parliament. “I want to explain these things to them. Consensus is needed because otherwise these laws will always be altered, will generate instability and will eventually generate a system that does not work optimally. So what we have now are laws that do not function properly. You have noticed that after promulgation, the government has already issued an emergency ordinance,” Iohannis said   PSD team tells President Iohannis of 10 principles for real judicial independence, rule of law   The negotiating team of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) that on Wednesday attended negotiations with President Klaus Iohannis offered the head of state  a list of 10 principles “for real judicial independence and respect for the rule of law,” PSD national leader Liviu Dragnea said at the end of the talks. Among the principles passed on to the Iohannis are those regarding respect for the Constitution of Romania in its letter and spirit, including the provisions regarding the statutes of prosecutors and judges; halting the abuse of justice against citizens and removing the effects it has generated; respect for the fundamental human rights guaranteed by the Constitution of Romania and international treaties, such as the right to defence and the right to a fair trial, the presumption of innocence, the right to privacy and the inviolability of the secret of correspondence; guaranteeing the independence of judges who dispense justice both from the political environment and from any other form of pressure exerted by prosecutor’s offices or intelligence services. Other principles aim to secure the independence of prosecutors in building cases, in accordance with the constitutional principle of hierarchical subordination; the accountability of magistrates for bad faith and serious negligence in fulfilling their duties; ousting the magistrates who have collaborated with intelligence services and implemented secret protocols by violating the constitution and laws in force; guaranteeing judicial independence from any interference by the intelligence agencies; the principle of celerity in building and solving criminal and civil cases; the principle of meritocracy and moral and professional probity in the promotion of magistrates to higher offices of the judiciary.   Dragnea: It was a relatively sensible discussion   PSD President Liviu Dragnea stated that the discussion with President Klaus Iohannis was relatively sensible, but that in PSD’s opinion there is no need to redo the legislative process because Government Emergency Ordinance no.92 will enter the legislative process. ALDE President Calin Popescu Tariceanu stated that there is the need for consensus among parliamentary parties on the changes brought to the judicial laws, but it must start from the definition of the rule of law. Tariceanu added that a technocratic Justice Minister must be accepted. “It was a relatively sensible discussion I may say, in which the President presented us his point of view on the judicial laws, [for them] to re-enter the legislative process. There’s no need for that, in our opinion, because in Parliament there is Ordinance 92, which enters parliamentary procedure, and which contains a great part of the Venice Commission’s recommendations,” Dragnea stated after the PSD delegation met President Iohannis. “We never rejected a discussion on the Romanian...

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