PRESS RELEASE
Data: 20.10.2023
The statements were made during the debate organised by The Foundation For The Defense Of Citizens Against State Abuses (FACIAS) and the Committee for the Investigation of Abuses, Corruption and Petitions of the Chamber of Deputies on "Rule of law means no conviction without evidence", which took place on 19 October at the Palace of Parliament.
Former Justice Minister Tudorel Toader has brought to public attention an outrageous situation of a law, under which convictions have been handed down for 14 years, which was subsequently declared unconstitutional. "During my time as Minister, there was a decision declaring a law to be unconstitutional, after 14 years it had been in force. 14 years of injustice for Romanians. Who knows how many Romanians have suffered, judged under an unconstitutional law."
Moreover, the former minister draws attention to the quality of justice, given the very high number of unconstitutional laws. "From 1992 to this day, the Constitutional Court has declared more than 900 legislative solutions to be unconstitutional. Far too many. This must make us think as a state governed by the rule of law, this is the most sensitive subject when we talk about the quality of the law", he pointed out.
The balance between human rights and state power, essential for a healthy democracy
The debate highlighted the need for a much more stringent and transparent approach to the criminal justice process, the way evidence is handled and the impact of decisions on people's lives and the credibility of the justice system. The event, moderated by Victor Alistar, lawyer and university lecturer, brought together leading figures from the Romanian legal and political scene.
Among the guests invited at the event were Tudorel Toader, former Minister of Justice and former judge at the Constitutional Court, Steluța Cătăniciu, member of the Romanian Parliament, lawyer Gheorghe Piperea.
The FACIAS report, presented during the debate, reveals that between 2013 and 2022, more than 11,000 people were ultimately acquitted, with years in which the percentage of acquittals was higher than that of convictions. Beyond the huge expenditure of the state in these cases, we can talk about a whole series of human tragedies, caused by elements in a shadowy area of justice or elements that are completely unconstitutional that have governed this process, such as the secret protocols.
The main conclusion of the discussions was that today's reality, despite significant improvements compared to the past, needs fundamental changes to solve systemic problems, and FACIAS together with its partners and collaborators will develop a series of concrete proposals to increase the quality of justice, so that it is fully in line with the notion of "rule of law".
FACIAS expresses its gratitude for the active participation and valuable contributions of the guests to the debate and reaffirms its commitment to campaign for a fair, efficient and, above all, citizen-friendly justice, given that, as this debate has shown, the balance between human rights and state power is essential for a healthy democracy.
FACIAS Press Office
