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February 22, 2019

PROTEST About 200 judges and prosecutors have today protested in front of
the Court of Appeal in Cluj, north-western Romania, calling for the
independence of the judiciary. A judge has announced that as of Monday, legal
activity will be suspended in city courts and trials postponed with the
exception of the urgent ones. Judges in Cluj have called on their colleagues to
join the protest as negotiations with the central authorities have failed. The
protest comes after the latest emergency ordinance of the PSD-ALDE government
in Bucharest, which is amending justice laws. Among other things, the new
amendments also address the appointment of high-ranking prosecutors and even
the prerogatives of the head of investigation teams. The ordinance has
attracted a lot of flak from Brussels and from magistrates associations in
Romania as well as from the right-wing opposition in this country.

Newsroom, 22.02.2019, 14:54

MINISTERS Romania’s new ministers of Regional Development and Transport,
Daniel Suciu and Razvan Cuc respectively, have today been sworn in. Daniel
Suciu, who has been a PSD MP since 2002 is also leader of the Social Democrats’
Parliament group in the Chamber of Deputies. Alexandru-Razvan Cuc was elected a
PSD MP in 2016. He used to be transport minister in the PSD-ALDE governments
headed by Sorin Grindeanu and Mihai Tudose. The first nominees, Olguta
Vasilescu and Mircea Draghici have withdrawn their candidacies after having
been rejected by president Klaus Iohannis a couple of times.

BUDGET Romania’s president
Klaus Iohannis has today announced he will notify the Constitutional Court
about the state budget on 2019, the budget it was submitted for his promulgation.
Iohannis has said the budget is ‘unrealistic and overestimated’, and described
it as one of ‘national shame’. There are unconstitutional issues in the present
budget – it fails to meet Romania’s EU obligations while some fundamental
rights are violated – the Romanian president explains. Iohannis has lashed out
at the Social-Democrats, Romania’s main ruling party (PSD), which he described
as unable to rule for the country and which is only trying to push the agenda
of its leader, Liviu Dragnea. Iohannis has also added that political parties
are getting more money whereas the country’s education system is underfunded
and Romania remains confused particularly after the ordinance issued at the end
of last year on amending justice laws. In his opinion the PSD ruling was an
onslaught against the rule of law in Romania. In turn, Senate speaker Calin
Popescu Tariceanu from the ruling ALDE, has described the president’s move to
notify the court over the budget as inopportune and unjustified, adding that
the head of state is hindering the activity of the government trying to block
it.

MEETING Trade ministers from EU countries are today tackling in Bucharest
several major issues, such as the process of modernizing the World Trade
Organization and the EU’s relations with the USA. The ongoing EU’s trade
negotiations are also high on the agenda. The event, which is being chaired by
Stefan-Radu Oprea, Romania’s Minister for Business, Trade and Entrepreneurship,
also involves the participation of Cecilia Malmstrom, the EU Commissioner for
Trade. The EU official on Thursday opened the informal meeting of the trade
ministers, an event taking place during the Romanian presidency of the EU. Also
on Thursday Malmstrom and Oprea participated in a round of talks with the
citizens.

TENNIS Romanian tennis player Irina Begu (WTA 72nd) today
takes on Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals of the
WTA tournament in Budapest, a competition with 250 thousand dollars in prize
money. Begu defeated Russian Evgeniya Rodina on Thursday in two sets, 6-2, 6-3.
Also in Budapest, Romanian Sorana Cirstea is playing Russian Anastasia Potapova
in the quarters after a 6-3, 6-3 win on Wednesday against fourth-seeded
Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia.

(translated by bill)