Over 3,000 people protested last night in front of the Government building in Bucharest against the planned changes to Justice Laws in Romania, reports local Hotnews.ro.

Similar protests took places in other cities in Romania, such as Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca, Iasi, Brasov and Craiova. Protests were also announced for the Romanian diaspora in Milan, Munich and Zurich.

At 9 PM, protesters in Bucharest’s Victoriei Square turned on their phone’s lanterns and kept a minute of silence. The peaceful protest in Bucharest ended at about 10 PM.

Meanwhile, Liviu Dragnea, the president of the ruling party the Social Democratic Party (PSD) said on TV that protesters should wait for the debate on these laws. The proposals justice minister Tudorel Toader recently announced are the “mere start of a process,” added Dragnea.

Toader announced the Romanian President would no longer be able to propose the heads of General Prosecutor Office, the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) and the Anti-Organized Crime Directorate (DIICOT). He also wants the Judicial Inspection, an institution that verifies the conduct of judges and prosecutors under the Justice Ministry’s control.

President Klaus Iohannis criticized the proposed changes and said they would have a negative impact on Romania’s justice reforms and fight against corruption.

At the beginning of this year, a Government emergency ordinance aimed at changing the Criminal Law sparked the biggest protests Romania has seen in two decades. The Government repealed the ordinance under street pressure.

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editor@romania-insider.com

(photo source: Coruptia Ucide on Facebook)