Thousands of people gathered in Piata Victoriei, in front of the Government offices on Sunday evening, at 18.00h, to protest against the draft law to amend of the laws of justice. At 19.00h, the protesters have headed on a march to the Parliament Palace, and at around 20.30h they arrived at the Parliament. “We don’t want to be a nation of thieves!” they chanted, no corruption,” Down with the Government!”
PNL Deputy Raluca Turcan, as well as former PM Dacian Ciolos, Raluca Pruna and Vlad Voiculescu, members of the Platform 100, were among the protesters. The protests were attended also by the new Save Romania Union (USR) chairman, Dan Barna.
Protesters in Bucharest passed on Sunday evening near the University Square in Bucharest, and headed for the Palace of Parliament.
According to sources in the Gendarmerie, there are over 12,000 people on the streets.
In the University Square there is a moment of silence in the memory of those who died at the Revolution and the national anthem was sung. Previously, in the area of Piata Romana, they stopped briefly and have paid homage to the victims of the 1989 Revolution.
The crowd chanted: “Come with us, they are stealing from all of us”, “Justice, not corruption!”’,’ “We do not want to be guided by thieves!”, “PSD, the red plague!”, “Go out, traitors of the country!”, “You lied the people by the TV!”, “Down with Tăriceanu, Dragnea, Toader and all their people!”, “The Constitutional Court, the, PSD servant!”, “May DNA take you away!”, “Olguţa, resign!”, “PSD, the same shit!”.
The protesters have also demanded the resignation of Justice Minister Tudorel Toader and of the Interior Minister Carmen Dan.
They have also chanted that “democracy is under siege”, justice, no corruption”, “Dragnea, don’t forget, Romania is not yours!”
Protests to change the laws of justice have taken place on Sunday evening in Sibiu, Timisoara and Iasi. In Sibiu, the participants have blocked the traffic on the national road 1, in Iasi protesters demand early elections, and in Cluj the traffic in the centre was temporarily paralyzed.
In Sibiu, more than 1,500 people gathered in the Grand Square and started on a march.
Likewise, the protesters in Sibiu shouted “In democracy, thieves are in jail”.
Protests have also taken place in Brasov, Sibiu, Iasi, Cluj, Constanta, Timisoara and other cities.
Huge protests were expected Sunday evening against the amendments to the justice laws, in Piata Victoriei in Bucharest and in more than 25 cities throughout the country and in 10 European cities.
In Europe, protests against the justice laws amendments were expected in Zurich, Paris, Berlin, Munich, Birmingham, Milan, Rome, London, as well as in Toronto, Canada.
The organisers announced on Tuesday the intention to stage protests.
“We may picket the Government, but the reality is that the Government is only a puppet, the justice laws are now at the parliament. On Sunday we gather at the Government and we will leave at 19.00h marching to the Parliament,” the organisers informed about the protest on Sunday, November 5.
The organisers called on the participants to avoid an aggressive behaviour and slogans, no violence, to record by phone any such inappropriate developments, request calm and solidarity. In the event of violence, everyone should lay down so that any attempt of violence is seen from the distance.
The organisers blame the fact that the Judicial Inspectorate “would become a political tool in the hands of the Justice Ministry”, whereas the appointment of the chief prosecutors by the minister, without any control from the President, means that the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) will become again PNA and the Public Ministry will be subordinated to political interests.”
“If this law package is adopted by the Parliament, it would be a disaster for Romania and its citizens. We may say farewell to an independent justice,” the post reads.
We remind our readers that on Monday the senators with the legal committee have rejected a draft bill requesting that the persons with final sentences cannot run for presidency.
The draft bill had been filed by several PNL and USR senators to amend Law no. 370/2004 on electing the President of Romania. The draft reads that persons not meeting the conditions under article 37 of the Constitution cannot run for president as well as the persons who were criminally convicted by final sentences.
The PSD, ALDE and UDMR senators voted against and the draft bill was rejected by seven votes to four.
The vote in the Senate plenum is next, followed by the vote in the Chamber of Deputies.