ROMANIAS CHANCES OF BEING A EUROPEAN DEMOCRACY

IS JUSTICE
Romania has come a long way in the last years. Through revolution,
economic transformation and years of reform, Romanians have overcome a legacy
of repression and backwardness to become a stable European democracy and freemarket economy, with membership in NATO and the European Union (EU).
Never before has Romania been as prosperous, secure or free as it is now.
But significant obstacles remain to realizing its full political and economic
potential. In fundamental areas of governancefrom how Romanians choose their
leaders and govern their corporations to how they fight corruption and honor
contracts - the country continues to lag behind many of its Central European
neighbors.
Romania has made great strides in the fight against corruption, but greater
efforts are needed, especially in eliminating political interference in the judiciary
and bolstering the governments ability to recoup the proceeds of criminal activity.
Romanias system of public management, while improved in recent years,
continues to lack the efficiency needed to adequately serve its citizens and support
the nations economic growth potential. In particular, state-owned enterprises
(SOEs) remain in need of increased transparency and exposure to the open market.
Generational change is bringing new Romanian leaders to the fore, but
change to political structures has been slow. Reforms to party financing and
decision-making processes are needed to improve how the government represents
its citizens.
In all areas, Romania has reached a tipping point in its post -1989
transition a moment of latent potential that, if seized with energetic and persistent
policies, could lead to measurable improvements in national economic

performance, the well-being of Romanias citizens and the resiliency and durability
of its political institutions. As examples from across Romanias neighborhood
show, these changes are achievable.
If its leaders remain committed to the transformation path, Romania could become
a happier and wealthier country with lasting benefits to itself, its region and the
broader transatlantic community.
The Romanian government should bolster the ability of public institutions to
fight corruption from within their own ranks by aggressively implementing the
National Anticorruption Strategy (SNA), extending its mandate and fortifying its
technical secretariat.
The Romanian government should broaden its increasingly successful fight
against corruption by ensuring a competitive and objective selection process for the
leaders and agents of the institutions charged with this task.
Romanias leaders should introduce a unified and transparent performance
appraisal system for prosecutors at the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA).
Doing so would increase the capacity of local branches, whose performance in
many instances lags behind that of the national headquarters.
Romanian government asset recovery policies lack coherency and
coordination. By improving the collection, management and valuation of
confiscated goods, state officials could enhance their ability to confiscate the spoils
of corruption, sending a powerful message about the countrys ability to act
effectively on its stated commitment to anticorruption.
Adequate staffing and improved interagency cooperation for the National
Integrity Agency (ANI) would assist in uncovering conflicts of interest while
improving data management and fostering preventive assessments of public
procurement processes.

In their ongoing quest to improve the effectiveness of the justice system,

Romanias leaders should consider simplifying court proceedings, strengthening
training for judges (especially on complex commercial cases) and improving
access to the collection of full-text court decisions.
Public and private firms with state contracts should be required to
implement integrity checklistsitemized lists enumerating ethical standards that
must be
met. This change should be made enforceable by the courts in an effort to
strengthen regulatory oversight and prevent conflict of interest lawsuits in state
contracting.
Most parliamentary activities should be open to the public, especially when
votes are cast. Likewise, legislators should prohibit the addition of last minute
amendments that bypass consultation and debate. They should allow at least three
days for public feedback on emergency ordinances. These steps would build
confidence that public opinion is valued and hidden agendas are not speeding
legislation through Parliament.
Romanias chances of being a European Democracy is indeed Justice.