2017–2019 Romanian protests

There were numerous protests against the Romanian Government between 2017 and 2019. In January 2017, days after the government of the Grindeanu Cabinet was sworn into office in Romania, protests took place throughout the country against ordinance bills that were proposed by the Romanian Ministry of Justice regarding the pardoning of certain committed crimes, and the amendment of the Penal Code of Romania (especially regarding the abuse of power).^[44] At the heart of these protests is the community Corruption Kills, founded by Florin Bădiță, who alongside other civic groups organized what proved to be the largest protests since 1989, thus realizing the "Revolution of our generation".^[45][46]

2017–2019 Romanian protests
Protesters in Bucharest, on 22 January 2017
Date	18 January – 5 March 2017 (first phase) 23 August 2017 – 10 August 2019 (second phase)
Location	Romania including Bucharest, Constanța, Ploieşti, Drobeta-Turnu Severin, Timișoara, Craiova, Iași, Cluj-Napoca, Satu Mare, Baia Mare, Bistrița, Galați, Suceava, Alba Iulia, Sibiu, Brașov, Oradea, Brăila, Târgu Mureș, Bacău, Arad, Târgoviște, Reşiţa, Zalău, Râmnicu Vâlcea, Piatra Neamț, Deva, Drăgăşani, Blaj, Slatina, Piteşti, Caracal, Tulcea, Sighetu Marmației, Focşani, Mediaş, Alexandria, Slobozia, Urziceni, Odobeşti, etc. Abroad including: Chișinău Melbourne, Perth, Sydney Vienna, Linz, Salzburg Brussels Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City Prague, Brno Copenhagen, Aarhus, Aalborg Helsinki Paris, Marseille, Bordeaux, Lyon, Montpellier, Grenoble, Toulouse Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Bonn, Munich, Heidelberg, Cologne, Freiburg, Nuremberg Tbilisi Athens, Thessaloniki Budapest Dublin Tel Aviv Rome, Milan, Turin, Verona, Bologna Luxembourg City Valletta Amsterdam Haugesund, Ålesund Kraków Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Zaragoza, Bilbao, Ibiza, Palma de Mallorca Stockholm, Gothenburg Zürich London, Birmingham, Leicester, Glasgow, Manchester, Edinburgh, Leeds, Cambridge, Oxford, Bristol, Cardiff, Newcastle Washington D.C., New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, San Diego, Dallas, Boston Antarctica^[1]
Goals	Withdrawal of the government decrees that pardon some crimes and modify criminal code provisions regarding abuse of power (first phase)^[2] Stopping the government's and parliament's measures that weaken the fight against corruption (second phase)^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6] Resignation of the government^[7]^[8]^[9] Early elections^[9]
Methods	Demonstrations Protest marches Sit-ins Occupations Picketings^[10] Online activism
Concessions	Withdrawal of the decrees that started the protests (5 February 2017) Resignation of the Minister of Justice Florin Iordache (8 February 2017) Sentencing of Liviu Dragnea, the leader of the governing party PSD, to 3 and a half years of imprisonment for corruption (27 May 2019)^[11]^[12] Dismissal of the Dăncilă Cabinet in early October. The PNL forms, shortly afterwards, a minority government with the supply and confidence of USR, PMP, ALDE, UDMR, and the parties of ethnic minorities. PSD remains in opposition until 2021. Resignation of Viorica Dăncilă as PSD party president (subsequently replaced by Marcel Ciolacu).
Parties
Anti-government protesters (no centralised leadership) #REZIST movement Corruption Kills Group Magistrates^[13] Political support: President of Romania Opposition parties: National Liberal Party Save Romania Union Together Romania Movement People's Movement Party Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania Supported by: Romanian Intelligence Service (alleged)^[14] Soros Foundation (alleged)^[15] Government of Romania Social Democratic Party Alliance of Liberals and Democrats
Lead figures
Political leaders: Klaus Iohannis Ludovic Orban Nicușor Dan Dan Barna Dacian Cioloș Traian Băsescu Eugen Tomac Hunor Kelemen Liviu Dragnea Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu Sorin Grindeanu Mihai Tudose Viorica Dăncilă
Number
18 Jan: 5,000 22 Jan: 30,000 29 Jan: 90,000 31 Jan: 37,000 1 Feb: 100,000 2 Feb: 222,000 3 Feb: 325,000 4 Feb: 366,000 5 Feb: 500,000 to 600,000 6 Feb: 53,000 7 Feb: 15,600 8 Feb: 17,000 9 Feb: 11,000 10 Feb: 14,500 11 Feb: 11,500 12 Feb: 80,000 to 102,000 19 Feb: 6,700 26 Feb: 5,000 5 Nov: 35,000 23 Nov: 5,000 26 Nov: 45,000 10 Dec: 16,000 20 Jan 2018: 100,000 12 May 2018: 20,000 30 May 2018: 4,000 10 Jun 2018: 1,000 19 Jun 2018: 10,000 20 Jun 2018: 18,000 21 Jun 2018: 15,000 23 Jun 2018: 2,500 24 Jun 2018: 30,000 27 Jun 2018: 5,000 10 Aug 2018: 80,000 – 140,000^[16]^[17]^[18]^[19]^[20] 11 Aug 2018: 45,000 – 85,000^[21]^[22]^[23] 12 Aug 2018: 16,000 – 19,000^[24]^[25]^[26] 1 Dec 2018: 2,000^[27] 24 Feb 2019: 25,000^[28]^[29]^[30]^[31]^[32] 27 Jul 2019: 2,000 – 5,000^[33]^[34] 10 Aug 2019: 20,000 – 24,000^[35]^[36] Counter-protests supporting the government: 5 Feb: up to 2,500 6 Feb: 14,000^[37] 7 Feb: 1,000 8 Feb: 400 9 Feb: 500 10 Feb: 500 11 Feb: 500 12 Feb: 6,000 9 Jun 2018: 100,000+^[38]
Casualties
Injuries	452 – 455 (10 August 2018)^[39]^[40]^[41]^[42] 12 (11 August 2018)^[43]

Despite the negative reactions from both the judicial institutions and the public, the newly sworn-in government secretly approved an ordinance modifying the Penal Code and Penal Procedure Code during the night of 31 January.^[47][48]

Opponents raised accusations that the ordinance was intended for decriminalisation of government corruption, and to help hundreds of current and former politicians to escape ongoing criminal investigations or prison sentences.^[49]

Immediately after it was announced that the ordinance was passed, more than 37,000 people protested that night. The next day, on 1 February, the protests swelled to over 300,000 people throughout the country, continuing then daily and peaking on 5 February, when over 500,000 Romanians protested throughout the country, making the protests the largest since the Romanian Revolution of December 1989 and the overthrowing of Nicolae Ceaușescu.^[50][51][52] Since the main grievance of the protesters (the government interfering with the fight against corruption) was not addressed, but rather gradually joined by the attempts of the parliament to relax the anti-corruption laws,^{[53][54][55][56]} the protests continued on an almost daily basis throughout the country,^[57] with more and more protesters demanding early elections in addition to the resignation of the government.^[58] After the winter of 2017, the next mass protest was on 20 January 2018, when 50,000 – 100,000 Romanians went to the streets to protest against proposed changes to the penal code and to the justice system laws.^[59][60] While protests on a smaller scale continued to happen almost daily, mass protests then erupted again on 10 August 2018, when an anti-government protest with the "Diaspora at Home" motto was held in Bucharest.^[61][58][62] The 10 August 2018 protest was marked by unprecedented levels of violence in comparison to the other 2017–2018 protests, and lead to an ongoing resurgence of mass protests in Romania.^[63][64][65]

So far, protestors have succeeded in compelling the government in 2017 to withdraw the contested ordinance and Florin Iordache,^[66][67] who as justice minister was formally responsible for putting forward the ordinance, resigned shortly thereafter over the scandal that ensued.^[68]

Background

Although the government of Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu repeatedly denied that there were government ordinance bills regarding the pardoning and amnesty of committed crimes, there were strong rumours in the media that the government intended to pass such bills on 18 January 2017, mere days after the government was sworn in.^[69] Since the government did not publish the government meeting's agenda for that day, the President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, took it upon himself to attend and preside over the meeting, as envisioned by Article 87 of the Constitution of Romania.^[70] After a private meeting between the president, the prime minister and the justice minister, the government meeting was convened and presided over by the president together with the prime minister.^[70] Despite the prime minister's initial attempt to block the press' attendance and subsequent avoidance of the subject, the president announced to the media that there were two bills regarding the pardoning of crimes and the amendment of the Penal Code of Romania.^[71] He further announced that the prime minister assured him that these ordinances would not be passed without a transparent process, which included consulting with the relevant judicial institutions, as well as the public.^[70]

Soon after the government meeting, the Ministry of Justice published the bills on its website and sent them to the relevant judicial institutions for consultations. The government's main stated reason for these bills was that prisons were overcrowded and in order to avoid paying a fine to the European Court of Human Rights, such measures were needed to improve the conditions in prisons.^[72]

After analysing the provisions in the bills, the judicial institutions (including the High Court of Cassation and Justice, the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Superior Council of the Magistracy and the National Anticorruption Directorate) issued negative opinions on the proposed bills, generally stating that the laws would not achieve their stated goals and would rather undermine both the criminal justice system and the fight against corruption.^[73]

Civil society and certain media outlets also took a similar stance against the bills, and claimed that the government's reasoning for these bills conceals an intent to pardon convicted politicians and cease ongoing cases against accused politicians.^[72]

Protests

January 2017

Several thousand Romanians began protests against the reported plans to grant prison pardons and decriminalise certain offences.^[74][75] On 18 January, protests in a few cities were organised on social media against the proposed bills.^[76] Around 5,000 people protested throughout Romania, with nearly 4,000 protesters in Bucharest marching from University Square to the government's seat in Victory Square.^[77] Smaller protests were held in the cities of Cluj, Sibiu, Iași and Craiova.^[75]

 

Protesters in front of the Triumphal Arch, Kiseleff Road, Bucharest, on 22 January 2017

Following a mobilisation on social media after the initial protest, over 30,000 people protested on 22 January in Bucharest.^[78] President Klaus Iohannis participated in the event in order to show his solidarity with the protesters and announced to reporters that "a gang of politicians who have problems with the law want to change the legislation and weaken the state of law, and this is inadmissible ... Romanians are rightly indignant."^[72] Liviu Dragnea, the leader of Romania's Social Democratic Party (PSD), reacted by accusing Iohannis of leading a Mineriad and labelling the protests as the beginning of a coup.^[44] The leader of the party Save Romania Union (USR), Nicușor Dan, and interim leader of the National Liberal Party (PNL), Raluca Turcan, were also present at the protest in support of the protesters.^[79] Over 5,000 people also participated at the protests in Cluj-Napoca, and another 4,000 protesters in Timișoara (together with the city's mayor).^[80][81] There were also notable protests in Sibiu, Iasi, Brasov, Bacau and Constanta, as well as solidarity meeting in Copenhagen, Paris, London and Haugesund.^[82]

In what was described as "the largest protest after the Revolution",^[83] tens of thousands of people again took to the streets in Romania's main cities on 29 January. Over 50,000 people were attending the protest in Bucharest, while several tens of thousands of protesters were registered across the rest of the country. For instance, some 10,000 people took to the streets in Cluj-Napoca.^[84] In total, over 90,000 people attended the protests, according to an estimate by Digi24 TV station.^[83] In Bucharest, the crowd of protesters gathered in the centre of the city, at University Square, and went on a peaceful march that included planned stops at the media watchdog CNA, the Ministry of Justice, the HQ of the Ombudsman and the government.^[85] Solidarity marches took place in several countries abroad, with the largest reported in Brussels, Paris, London, Rome and Copenhagen.^[86][87]

 

Protesters in University Square, Bucharest, 29 January 2017

After the Grindeanu Cabinet approved the aforementioned emergency ordinances on Tuesday evening, 31 January, thus turning them into laws, an impromptu protest took place at Piața Victoriei in front of Victoria Palace, the government seat. Although the government meeting's agenda only included the approval of the proposed 2017 budget, the cabinet secretly introduced and approved the ordinance bills during the meeting that evening. Once the Justice Minister of Romania, Florin Iordache, announced to the press that evening that the bills had been approved, a protest started taking place 30 minutes afterwards.^[88] Within two hours, the protest swelled to 15,000 people despite the late hours and cold weather.^[88] Due to the small initial presence of the gendarmes, the Victoria Palace was surrounded by the protesters and the main entrances blocked (although the people inside managed to leave through other entrances).^[88] The protest only subsided by 2 am.^[88] Unlike the previous protests, the people participating were visibly more riled up considering the lack of transparency and the lack of consideration of the Romanian society's reactions by the government and PSD. As a result, the protesters were calling for the government's resignation.^[88]

Thousands of people also came out to protest in other cities throughout Romania against the ordinances adopted by the government: Cluj-Napoca (5,000), Timișoara (1,500), Sibiu (2,000), Brașov (1,500), Iași (500), Ploiești (100) and Constanța (100).^[89]

February 2017

As a result of the government refusing to repeal the ordinances, the protests continued on 1 February with 230,000 to 300,000 people participating throughout the country.^[90] So far, these were the largest protests in Romania since the fall of the communist regime. The calls for the repeal of the ordinances, as well as for the resignation of the government, continued.^[90] Around 150,000 people peacefully protested in Bucharest.

The rest of the protests throughout the country were started and ended peacefully, with the participation being as follows: Cluj-Napoca: 35,000, Timișoara: 20,000, Sibiu: 20,000, Iași: 10,000, Brașov: 8,000, Târgu-Mureș: 6,000, Constanța: 5,000, Bacău: 6,000, Alba Iulia: 5,000, Craiova: 4,000, Galați: 3,500, Arad: 2,500, Mediaș: 2,000, and Brăila: 1,000.^[52] There were also protests in cities throughout Europe with large Romanian immigrant communities, mostly in London, Paris, Munich, Brussels, Dublin, Turin, Copenhagen and Stockholm.^[91]

On 2 February, over 200,000 people protested, with 80,000 in Bucharest.^[92] On each of the next two days, more than 300,000 people participated in protests with more than 150,000 in Bucharest alone.^[93][94][95]

 

Protesters on Victory Square, Bucharest, 5 February. The text is a reference to the Romanian Mineriad and roughly translates to "The miners 'has' arrived".

Although the Grindeanu Cabinet adopted a new ordinance bill repealing the original bill, on 5 February, between 500,000 and 600,000 people participated in the largest protests in Romania's history.^[96][97] The uncertain constitutionality of the new ordinance as well as the refusal of the government to meet any other demands, including the resignation of the entire cabinet, especially the justice minister, and new elections, led the protesters to question the government's determination and the finality of the matter. Furthermore, Prime Minister Grindeanu stated that the government would try instead to pass the majority of the content from the original ordinance in a new bill through Parliament (where PSD and ALDE have a comfortable majority), angering protesters further. According to estimates by Digi24, 300,000 people were present at the protest in Bucharest, followed by Cluj-Napoca (50,000), Sibiu (45,000), Timișoara (40,000), Iași (30,000), Ploiești (15,000), Brașov (10,000), Craiova (10,000), Baia Mare (8,000), Constanța (7,000), Oradea (5,000) and Bacău (5,000).^[96] Hotnews.ro provided a lower estimate for Bucharest, of 250,000.^[97]

An estimated 50,000 people continued to protest on 6 February demanding the resignation of Grindeanu Cabinet, with between 20,000 and 25,000 protesting in front of the Government's building in Bucharest, and some other 25,000 protesters around the country.^[98][99] As many as 15,000 people protested throughout the country with 8,000 in Bucharest on 7 February, and on 8 February, over 9,000 protesters in Bucharest and 8,000 in the rest of the country.^[100]

For the 13th consecutive day of protests on 12 February, 50,000 to 70,000 people participated in protests in front of the Victoria Palace, and 30,000 to 33,000 were elsewhere throughout the country, of which 10,000 to 14,000 protested in Cluj-Napoca, 7,000 to 10,000 in Sibiu, 3,000 to 5,000 in Timișoara, 3,000 in Iași, 1,500 in Brașov, 500 in Constanța, 400 in Craiova, 300 in Galați, and 300 in Oradea.^{[101][102][103]}

The protest continues

 

Protest against corruption in Bucharest, on 20 January 2018

A few protesters have been present in Victory Square, Bucharest almost every day since February 2017.^[57] After only six months in power, Sorin Grindeanu was removed from the office of Prime Minister by his own party (PSD), after an internal power struggle.^[104] Afterwards, Mihai Tudose, a vice-president of PSD, became on 26 June 2017 the new Prime Minister of Romania.^[105] Protests continued in Bucharest during the Tudose Cabinet, which continued to try to implement in various ways many of the controversial measures that started the protests in January 2017.^[54][56] Mihai Tudose later, after an internal power struggle, resigned on 15 January 2018 from his office.^[106] On 20 January 2018, somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000 people joined an anti-corruption march in Bucharest.^[3][4][5][6] After Tudose, Viorica Dăncilă, a PSD member of the European Parliament, was nominated to be the new Prime Minister of Romania.^[107][108] Viorica Dăncilă took office on 29 January 2018.^[109] During her time as Prime Minister, the protests against the government and parliament have continued, and since February 2018 have gradually grown in size and intensity.^[110][65]

August 2018

 

Protests on 10 August at Victoria Square

Fresh anti-government protests took place on August 10, 2018. The event, entitled "Diaspora at Home",^[111][112] was organized and promoted by Romanians living abroad^[113] (the Romanian diaspora), who returned home in large numbers for the protest.^[114] Up to 100,000 protesters^[115][116] gathered in front of the Victoria Palace, the government headquarters located in the centre of Bucharest. Over 40,000 people^{[20][117][61]} protested in other major cities across the country, including 15,000 in Cluj-Napoca, 10,000 in Iași, 10,000 in Sibiu, 6,000 in Timișoara, 5,000 in Brașov, 3,500 in Baia Mare, 1,500 in Constanța, 1,500 in Galați, 1,000 in Bistrița, 1,000 in Craiova and others.^[111] Protesters asked for the resignation of the Dăncilă Cabinet (the 129th Romanian government, led by prime-minister Viorica Dăncilă), unhappy with the governing of the ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD).^[9] This included the governmental decision-making on judicial legislation and the attempted modification of the criminal (or penal) code,^[113] the dismissal of the Prosecutor General of the National Anticorruption Directorate, Laura Codruța Kövesi,^{[118][119][120][121]} the gaffes of the prime minister^[122][123] and the fact that the leader of the Social Democratic Party, Liviu Dragnea, is head of the Chamber of Deputies despite having been sentenced to prison.^[124]

The protest in Bucharest started out peacefully, but was marked by the violent attack of the police force in response to some of the protesters who attempted to force their way into a government building (the gendarmes).^[16] The gendarmes use tear-gas, pepper spray, a water cannon and gas grenades, at the orders of the prefect of Bucharest, Speranța Cliseru, on the civilian population, indiscriminately.^[125] Reportedly, some of the attendees, presumably protesters, were violent themselves, but the majority of the people gathered in Victoria Square were peaceful protesters. Many people were badly beaten by the police (men or women), some were hit until they fainted.^[126] At least one person underwent surgery for the removal of explosives used by the police on the civilians. Images posted on social media showed unarmed protesters being beaten by the gendarmes.^[113] The Austrian national public broadcaster ORF reported that one of their cameramen covering the protest in Bucharest was beaten up by gendarmes.^{[127][128][129]} The Romanian news website Hotnews.ro reported as well that one of their journalists was beaten by riot police while "live broadcasting on Facebook an intervention of the riot police on Victoriei Avenue, close to Victoriei Square where most of the protest took place".^[130] The Israeli embassy released a statement that according to the evidence they had at the time (13 August), it seemed that four Israeli tourists who were in the area of the protests were dragged out of their taxi and beaten up by the law enforcement forces.^{[131][132][133]} In total during the protests on 10 August and in the clashes the followed that night, 452 people were injured and 70 were hospitalized, including 3 gendarmes.^{[134][135][136][137]}

 

Protests on 10 August at Victoria Square

In the aftermath of the violence, the Save Romania Union, one of the opposition parties, requested the resignation of the Minister of Internal Affairs, Carmen Dan, and the head of the Romanian Gendarmerie, Sebastian Cucoș.^[138] The Romanian president, Klaus Iohannis, also condemned the "brutal intervention of the gendarmerie, vastly disproportionate relative to the actions of the majority of those in Victoria Square".^[139] In response, Liviu Dragnea, the leader of the Social Democratic Party, said that "the declaration of president Iohannis is practically an act of subversion of the authority of the state" and that "through this attitude, president Iohannis proves once again that he is the political sponsor of violence and extremist activities".^[140]

The events on 10 August also lead to international reactions. Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz strongly condemned the "violent confrontations in Bucharest, at which numerous protesters and journalists were injured" and wished a "speedy recovery to the injured ORF cameraman".^[141] Amnesty International called for "prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigations by civilian authorities into the allegations of unnecessary and excessive use of force by the gendarmerie against participants of a protest in Bucharest on 10 August".^[142] The European Commission stated through its spokesperson that it is "closely following the events in Romania" and that "The protesters critiqued the decline of the progress in the domains of judicial reforms and in the fight against corruption. In the context of the Mechanism for Cooperation and Verification, the European Commission follows the events with worry and gives an increased importance to the independence of the judiciary system and of the fight against corruption. Peaceful protests ended in violence. Violence can never be a solution in politics".^[143]

On 11 August, around 30,000 to 65,000 people continued to protest in front of the Victoria Palace in Bucharest, with an extra 15,000 to 20,000 protesting in other major cities across the country. The protest, titled "We won't leave until you leave" (with reference to the Dăncilă Cabinet) had no violent incidents, although 12 people were treated for panic attacks, hypertension and fainting.^{[144][145][146][147][148][149]}

Counterprotests

 

Protest in front of Cotroceni Palace on 7 February

Starting with the afternoon of 5 February 2017, a much smaller crowd of people rallied in support of the Grindeanu government at Cotroceni Palace. Between 1,500 and 2,500 people rallied, demanded the resignation of President Klaus Iohannis.^[150] The following day, around 4,000 counter-protesters also met in front of Cotroceni Palace,^[151] and afterwards approximately 2,000 people on 7 February 2017.^[152]

As snowy weather swept Bucharest of 8 February 2017, President Iohannis went out to meet the 100 people protesting in front of the Cotroceni Palace against his presidency, in order to speak with them and give them tea. He told the protesters that "we are all Romanians", as a response to many protesters claiming he is against the Romanian population due to his German ethnicity. The dialogue quickly broke down as protesters were shouting against him, uninterested in establishing a discussion, and he left soon after. The anti-Iohannis protest attracted 400 people that day.^[153]

On 12 February 2017, the pro-government/anti-Iohannis protest continued for its 9th day with 400 protesters.^[154]

On 9 June 2018, the ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) organised a pro-government rally in Bucharest, which had over 100,000 attendants.^[155][156]

Reactions

Klaus Iohannis

After receiving negative opinions from the judicial institutions regarding the government ordinance bills, President of Romania Klaus Iohannis stated on 20 January 2017 that the presidency requested the government to withdraw the government proposals.^[157]

Following the protests on 22 January 2017, Klaus Iohannis announced that he would call for a referendum in order for the public opinion to have a say on these controversial issues.^[158] He rebutted Dragnea's claims of a coup by declaring that PSD was attempting a coup d'état against the rule of law in the country, and that Romanians had the right to vote on these issues, especially since they were not part of PSD's electoral programme upon which they won the 2016 parliamentary elections.^[158]

Liviu Dragnea

Liviu Dragnea stated on 23 January 2017 that the President's attendance at the government meeting on 18 January 2017 was unconstitutional, and that he was attempting a coup against a democratically elected government by participating (and "leading") the protest on 22 January 2017.^[159] Furthermore, he stated that the President has been insistent in blocking the implementation of PSD's electoral programme, and that the president's actions risked the possibility of his suspension by the Parliament.^[159]

Romanian government

Despite the negative reactions from the relevant judicial institutions, as well as the massive protests that took place throughout the country, the Grindeanu Cabinet, especially Florin Iordache (Justice Minister), repeatedly restated their position in favour of the bills.^[160][161] However, before 1 February 2017, Florin Iordache was seemingly backing down by leaning towards the option of the laws not being passed as Emergency Government Ordinances, but rather being sent to Parliament after the public consultations and modifications have been made.^[162]

On 31 January 2017, the Grindeanu Cabinet had a meeting during the evening and the published agenda announced that the 2017 Budget will be discussed and passed.^[47][163] However, the emergency ordinance bill regarding the modification of the Penal Code and Penal Procedure Code was introduced during the meeting, even though it was not listed in the agenda, nor the supplementary agenda list.^[47] During the meeting, the emergency government ordinance was passed by the government.^[47] A mere five hours after its approval, the ordinance was published in the Monitorul Oficial (the government gazette), thus turning the bill into law.^[164] The law were barely modified since the initial draft, and in fact certain aspects of crimes were decriminalised, such as limiting the crime of "favouring the offender", which were not included the initial draft during public consultations.^[165] The lack of transparency in passing the bill, as well as the final form of the law, has been interpreted as a lack of consideration of the reactions received by the government and PSD from various parts of Romanian society.^[166]

On 5 February 2017, due to the pressure of the ongoing protests, the Grindeanu Cabinet adopted a new ordinance (OUG 14/2017) repealing the original bill (OUG 13/2017) that modified the Penal Code and Penal Procedure Code. However, questions surrounding the new ordinance's constitutionality arose, which were affirmed by Justice Minister Iordache the following day when he stated that the intent was to bring the two Codes back to their prior form (including the resulting unconstitutionality).^[67] Furthermore, Prime Minister Grindeanu stated that the government will instead try to pass the content from the original ordinance in a new bill through Parliament (where PSD and ALDE have a comfortable majority).^[167] Other than that, the government refused to meet any other demands that day, such as the resignation of the cabinet.^[168]

On 6 February 2017, the Ministry of Justice announced that the intended bill for modifying the two Codes would not be drafted and sent to Parliament for the time being.^[169]

On 8 February 2017, the Minister of Justice, Florian Iordache, announced his resignation with immediate effect due to the scandal that ensued from the controversial ordinance that modified the two penal codes.^[68]

Constitutional Court

The Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM), as well as the Presidency, notified the Constitutional Court on 1 and 2 February 2017 respectively that there was a constitutional conflict between the relevant institutions (government, parliament and CSM) with regards to the procedure chosen by the government to pass the controversial ordinance.^[170]

On 8 February 2017, the Constitutional Court ruled the following: "A constitutional conflict did not exist between the Executive Power (Government) and the Legislative (Parliament), because the Government decision to adopt the Government ordinance bills regarding the modification of the Penal Code and the Penal Procedural Code cannot be qualified as an act of arrogation of legislative powers that otherwise belongs to the Parliament. By adopting the Government ordinance bills, the Government acted in accordance with its own competences, as expressly provided in Art. 117 of the Constitution. ... A constitutional conflict did not exist between the Executive Power and the Supreme Council of the Magistracy (CSM), because the Government does not have legal obligation to request approval from the CSM for such ordinances."^[170]

Embassies

The embassies of Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Netherlands and the United States released a strong-worded statement against the passing of the ordinances, both in terms of how it was passed, as well as their content.^[171] The statement explained that these actions have undermined the rule of law and stifled the fight against corruption.^[171] They further explained that the government's actions risk damaging Romania's partnership with the European Union and NATO.^[171]

American Chamber of Commerce

The American Chamber of Commerce in Romania (AmCham) issued a statement which said that "[i]t is extremely worrying for the business community and society as a whole, that legislative pieces with such moral, societal and economic implications with immediate and long term effects are adopted by the government without observing the minimum requirements of transparency in decision-making".^[172]

United States Department of State

On 27 November 2017 the United States Department of State issued a statement noting concern that the Parliament of Romania is considering legislation that could undermine the fight against corruption and weaken judicial independence in Romania. They consider the legislation which was originally proposed by the Ministry of Justice to threaten the progress Romania has made in recent years to build strong judicial institutions shielded from political interference. The United States Department of State has urged the Parliament of Romania to reject proposals that weaken the rule of law and endanger the fight against corruption.^[173]

See also

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 2017 Romanian protests.

• 2012–2015 unrest in Romania
• Colectiv nightclub fire
• 2017 Albanian opposition protest
• 2017 Belarusian protests
• 2017 Russian protests
• Romanian Revolution

References

1. "Protest la Polul Sud: Cum a protestat un marinar roman aflat in Antarctica". 2 February 2017.
2. "Hundreds of thousands join protests as Romania decriminalises corruption". Independent.co.uk. 2 February 2017. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
3. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Mass protests in Romania: Stop corruption! – DW – 21.01.2018". DW.COM. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
4. "Romanians stage anti-corruption protests in Bucharest". 20 January 2018. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
5. "Tens of thousands protest against corruption in Romania". The Guardian. Associated Press; Reuters. 21 January 2018. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
6. Times, The New York (20 January 2018). "Anti-Corruption Protest Draws Tens of Thousands Across Snowy Romania". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
7. Bucharest, Agence France-Press in (6 February 2017). "Romania protests continue despite repeal of corruption decree". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
8. Elizabeth Roberts; Cosmin Stan (6 February 2017). "Romania protests continue over plans to revive corruption bill". CNN. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
9. . Washington Post. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
10. "Reacția PSD Sibiu, după protestul-maraton: "Nu ne simțim în siguranță"". Digi24 (in Romanian). 12 December 2017.
11. Marinas, Luiza Ilie (27 May 2019). "Romania's ruling party chief jailed for corruption". Reuters – via www.reuters.com.
12. "Romania's most powerful politician jailed". BBC News. 27 May 2019.
13. "FOTO VIDEO Protest al magistraţilor în faţa Palatului de Justiţie din Bucureşti". 16 September 2018.
14. "Dragnea: Atac la adresa SRI și a lui Eduard Hellvig pentru implicare în protestele anti-PSD din țară/ Despre Liviu Alexa: "Nu s-a aliniat la bătăuși. Nu s-a aliniat să-l pupe în fund pe Iohannis, mă scuzați"". 13 May 2019.
15. Fati, Sabina (17 July 2017). "Soros și golanii". Radio Europa Liberă.
16. "Romania protests: Hundreds injured in anti-government rally". BBC. 11 August 2018.
17. "Gezielte Provokation vermutet". ORF (in German). 10 August 2018.
18. "Romanian expats return home for major anti-government protest, clash with police". DW. 10 August 2018.
19. "Violence Erupts as Tens of Thousands Protest Corruption in Romania". The New York Times. 10 August 2018.
20. "Zeci de mii de români au protestat în mai multe orașe din țară. VIDEO".
21. Marinas, Radu-Sorin (12 August 2018). "Romanians rally again in anti-corruption, anti-government protests". Reuters.
22. "Romanians protest govt corruption for 2nd straight day". AP. 11 August 2018.
23. "Proteste în Piața Victoriei, ziua 2. 30.000 de oameni au manifestat pașnic și le-au dăruit trandafiri albi jandarmilor. VIDEO". Stirile ProTV (in Romanian).
24. "Thousands rally to demand Romanian government resignation". Reuters. 12 August 2018 – via www.reuters.com.
25. "VIDEO Peste 12.000 de manifestanți au fost în Piața Victoriei, pentru a treia seară de protest – "M**e, m**e PSD!", "Demisia!", "Analfabeta!" / Prezența jandarmilor, mult redusă față de serile precedente – Esential – HotNews.ro". www.hotnews.ro. 12 August 2018.
26. "VIDEO A treia zi de proteste și în marile orașe din țară. La Cluj oamenii au cântat 'Imnul golanilor', la Sibiu s-a scandat 'Hai români, hai cu toți, să scăpăm țara de hoți' – Esential – HotNews.ro". www.hotnews.ro. 12 August 2018.
27. "Protest în Piața Victoriei, de Ziua Națională. 2.000 de oameni în fața Guvernului". www.digi24.ro. December 2018.
28. "VIDEO Zeci de mii de oameni au protestat în București și în marile orașe din țară împotriva OUG pe justiție: 'Abrogați și apoi plecați!' / 'Asta este țara noastră, nu este moșia voastră'". G4Media. 24 February 2019.
29. "Protest amplu în Piața Victoriei: 10.000 de persoane au scandat împotriva Guvernului. FOTO". Stirileprotv.ro.
30. "Mii de persoane au protestat în marile orașe. Oamenii au cerut alegeri anticipate". Stirileprotv.ro.
31. "Thousands of Romanians protest against judicial changes". Reuters. 24 February 2019 – via www.reuters.com.
32. "Romania: Protests against judicial changes | DW | 24.02.2019". DW.COM.
33. "Thousands protest in Romania over kidnapped 15-year-old girl". Reuters. 27 July 2019 – via www.reuters.com.
34. "Marș pentru Alexandra. Revolta și mânia scot oamenii în stradă: 'Alo, 112, sunt România, salvați-mă!'". www.digi24.ro. 28 July 2019.
35. "Thousands rally in Romania on anniversary of violent protest". Reuters. 10 August 2019 – via www.reuters.com.
36. "VIDEO Peste 24 mii de persoane au protestat pașnic în Piața Victoriei / Oamenii au cerut demisia guvernului și au aprins lumânări în memoria tinerelor ucise la Caracal și a celor care au murit la Colectiv". G4Media. 10 August 2019.
37. "VIDEO Circa 4.000 de persoane au protestat la Palatul Cotroceni, cerand demisia presedintelui Iohannis: DNA fara cucuveaua". HotNews.ro. 6 February 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
38. "VIDEO. Cum a decurs marele miting PSD-ALDE organizat la București. Principalele momente". Digi24 (in Romanian). 9 June 2018.
39. "Bilanţul violenţelor de la protestul diasporei din Piaţa Victoriei: 452 de persoane au avut nevoie de îngrijiri medicale". adevarul.ro. 11 August 2018.
40. "Un nou bilanţ după proteste: 452 de persoane au avut nevoie de ajutor medical. Trei oameni au arsuri pe 15% din corp". mediafax.ro.
41. "Romanians protest govt corruption for 2nd straight day". apnews.com. 11 August 2018.
42. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Romania: Tens of thousands protest for second night running – DW – 12.08.2018". DW.COM.
43. "Peste 100.000 de oameni au protestat sâmbătă, pentru a doua zi consecutiv, în București și în marile orașe / În afară de câteva incidente minore, manifestația din Piața Victoriei s-a desfășurat pașnic". G4Media. 12 August 2018.
44. Carmen Paun (22 January 2017). "Romanians protest government plan to commute sentences". Politico.
45. Ilie, Luiza (10 February 2017). "'We see you' - Romanian activists become potent political force". Reuters.
46. "New anti-corruption protest announced for January 20 in Bucharest". 18 January 2018.
47. de Costin Ionescu (31 January 2017). "Romanian government secretly adopts emergency ordinances critics say undermine fight against corruption". HotNews.ro.
48. "New anti-corruption protest announced for January 20 in Bucharest". 22 January 2017.
49. "Nucleara din justitie. Lista potentialilor beneficiari ai dezincriminarii mascate a abuzului in serviciu". HotNewsRo (in Romanian). Retrieved 2 February 2017.
50. Elizabeth Roberts & Cosmin Stan (6 February 2017). "Romania protests continue over plans to revive corruption bill". cnn.com.
51. "Huge Romania rally despite decree repeal". BBC News. 6 February 2017.
52. Digi24 (1 February 2017). "Cel mai amplu protest din ultimii 25 de ani. Peste 300.000 de oameni au fost în stradă". Digi24 (in Romanian).{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
53. "Romanian senators cancel plan to pardon corruption offences after..." reuters.com. 4 May 2017.
54. Boffey, Daniel (27 November 2017). "Romanians protest against weakening of anti-corruption powers". The Guardian.
55. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Romania: Parliament approves laws to hamper anti-corruption efforts – DW – 19.06.2018". DW.COM.
56. "Romanian ruling lawmakers propose looser anti-graft rules". reuters.com. 27 December 2017.
57. Skurtu, Tara (17 December 2017). "We See You: A Silent Anti-Corruption Movement Erupts in Romania". huffingtonpost.com.
58. "Romanian expats stage huge anti-govt protest in Bucharest". apnews.com. 10 August 2018.
59. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Mass protests in Romania: Stop corruption! – DW – 21.01.2018". DW.COM.
60. "Tens of thousands protest against corruption in Romania". The Guardian. Associated Press; Reuters. 21 January 2018.
61. Gillet, Kit (10 August 2018). "Violence Erupts as Tens of Thousands Protest Corruption in Romania". The New York Times.
62. Jennifer Hauser; Laura Smith-Spark (11 August 2018). "Anti-government protesters and police clash in Romania". cnn.com.
63. "Anti-government protest in Romania turns violent". reuters.com. 11 August 2018.
64. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Romanian expats return home for major anti-government protest, clash with police – DW – 10.08.2018". DW.COM.
65. "Romanians in fresh protests after clashes". BBC News. 11 August 2018.
66. Marinas, Radu-Sorin (5 February 2017). "Romania scraps decree decriminalizing graft as mass protests persist". reuters.com.
67. Digi24 (6 February 2017). "Ministrul Justiției, despre "scăparea" din OUG 14, care ar anula OUG 13". Digi24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
68. George Sîrbu (8 February 2017). "Iordache si-a dat demisia din functia de ministru al Justitiei: Toate initiativele asumate sunt legale si constitutionale / Pentru opinia publica nu a fost suficient". HotNews.
69. Dan Tapalaga (17 January 2017). "ALERTA SURSE Guvernul va adopta miercuri Ordonanta de Urgenta cu modificari importante in legislatia penala/ Vor fi gratiate o serie de pedepse si dezincriminate fapte (amnistie mascata)". HotNews.
70. "Miscare – surpriza a lui Iohannis: a venit pe nepregatite si a condus sedinta de Guvern in care urma sa se adopte gratierea si dezincriminarea unor infractiuni. Iohannis a anuntat ca Guvernul nu adopta azi ordonantele de urgenta". HotNews. 18 January 2017.
71. "Moment inedit la sedinta de guvern: Klaus Iohannis nu a lasat presa sa iasa din sala pana nu a vorbit despre "cei doi elefanti de care nu vrea sa vorbeasca nimeni"". HotNews. 18 January 2017.
72. "Thousands march against prison pardons in Romania". Guardian. Associated Press. 22 January 2017.
73. "Guvernul Grindeanu, izolat. Cum a reacţionat până acum sistemul judiciar". Digi24. 20 January 2017.
74. "Romania: Protests against proposal to pardon prisoners". Al Jazeera. 18 January 2017.
75. "Protests erupt over Romanian govt's plan to pardon thousands". Associated Press. 18 January 2017.
76. "Mai multe proteste anuntate in Bucuresti si in tara: "NU legii gratierii"". HotNews (in Romanian). 18 January 2017.
77. Victor Cozmei, V. M. (18 January 2017). "Protest in Capitala impotriva amnistiei si gratierii. Mii de manifestanti au scandat "PSD, ciuma rosie", "DNA sa vina sa va ia" sau "Fara amnistie, va vrem la puscarie"". HotNews.
78. Victor Cozmei (22 January 2017). "Protest masiv anti-amnistie si gratiere in Bucuresti. Circa 30.000 de persoane au parcurs traseul Piata Universitatii – Guvern – PSD – ALDE. Protestul a fost pasnic, dar RTV si Antena 3 vorbesc despre "lovitura de stat"". HotNews.
79. Mediafax (22 January 2017). "Robert Turcescu: Dragnea, ai curaj să vii şi tu la miting? Raluca Turcan şi Nicuşor Dan, prezenţi în Piaţa Universităţii". MediaFax.
80. "Proteste de amploare impotriva amnistiei si gratierii si in numeroase orase din tara: Peste 5.000 de manifestanti la Cluj, 3.000 la Timișoara si Sibiu, 2.000 la Iasi – "Dragnea, sa ajungi imbracat in dungi"". HotNews. 22 January 2017.
81. Ștefan Both (22 January 2017). "UPDATE Aproximativ 5.000 de oameni au mărşăluit pe străzile Timişoarei: "Dragnea, nu uita, asta nu e ţara ta"". Adevărul.
82. "Proteste anti-amnistie si gratiere in mai multe capitale europene. Zeci de oameni au iesit in strada la Londra, Paris, Milano, Haugesund si Copenhaga". HotNews. 22 January 2017.
83. "Cel mai mare protest de după Revoluție: peste 90.000 de oameni se opun grațierii". Digi24 (in Romanian). 29 January 2017.
84. . Ziua de Cluj (in Romanian). 29 January 2017. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
85. "Massive protests in Romania over draft pardon bill, changes to Penal Code for second Sunday in a row". Business Review. 29 January 2017.
86. "Protestele românilor din străinătate". Digi24 (in Romanian). 29 January 2017.
87. "Diaspora se REVOLTĂ: Sute de oameni au protestat la Bruxelles şi Paris (VIDEO)". B1.ro (in Romanian). 29 January 2017.
88. Victor Cozmei (31 January 2017). "Protest spontan in Piata Victoriei, in miez de noapte: Circa 15.000 de oameni au iesit in strada. Situatia a fost foarte tensionata. Jandarmii au dat cu spray lacrimogen la una dintre intrari. Cele 2 ordonante, publicate in Monitorul Oficial". HotNews.
89. I. Baias; A. Lazurca (31 January 2017). "Proteste in tara: Mii de oameni au iesit in strada in Cluj, Sibiu, Timișoara, Brasov, Iasi, Constanta, Ploiesti, Craiova, Orade". HotNews.
90. Radu-Sorin Marinas; Luiza Ilie (1 February 2017). "Romanians rally in biggest anti-corruption protest in decades". Reuters.
91. Digi24 (1 February 2017). "Sute de români au protestat și în Diaspora față de situația din țară". Digi24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
92. "PROTEST BUCURESTI 2 FEBRUARIE. UPDATE ZECI de MII de oameni protesteaza in Piata Victoriei LIVE | B365". B365 (in Romanian). Retrieved 4 February 2017.
93. "A patra zi de proteste. Peste 300.000 de oameni au ieșit în stradă". 4 February 2017.
94. "FOTO VIDEO. #Ro-mânia, a cincea zi de proteste: 330.000 de oameni au fost în stradă". 5 February 2017.
95. "A cincea zi de protest în București. 170.000 de oameni, în stradă. Au strigat: "Anulaţi şi plecaţi"". 4 February 2017.
96. "#Ro-mânia, ziua a şasea – Protest istoric: 600.000 de oameni au fost în stradă". www.digi24.ro. 6 February 2017.
97. "VIDEO FOTO Jumatate de milion de oameni au iesit in strada la Bucuresti si in tara. 500.000 de romani au cerut demisia guvernului Grindeanu, dar premierul i-a sfidat in direct la Antena 3. Momente inaltatoare in inima Capitalei". hotnews.ro. 5 February 2017.
98. Digi24 (6 February 2017). "A șaptea seară de proteste. 25.000 de oameni în Piața Victoriei". Digi24 (in Romanian).{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
99. "LIVE VIDEO A saptea zi de proteste – Circa 20.000 de persoane s-au adunat in Piata Victoriei: Demisia, Jos Iordache, Jos Dragnea". Hotnews.ro (in Romanian). 6 February 2017. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
100. Digi24 (8 February 2017). "Proteste sub ninsoare. Mii de oameni au fost în stradă". Digi24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
101. "Protest tricolor în fața Guvernului. 70.000 de oameni au ieșit în stradă". www.digi24.ro. 13 February 2017. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
102. "VIDEO Noi proteste impotriva Guvernului in orasele tarii: 10.000 de manifestanti la Cluj, 7.000 la Sibiu, 5.000 la Timișoara, 3.000 la Iasi. Nu stati la caldura, si pe voi va fura!". Hotnews.ro (in Romanian). 12 February 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
103. "VIDEO Protest in inima Bucurestiului cu peste 50.000 de oameni care au format tricolorul: "Vrem sa muncim, nu sa va pazim!"". Hotnews.ro (in Romanian). 12 February 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
104. Marinas, Radu-Sorin (14 June 2017). "Romanian ruling party's pulls backing for cabinet, PM refuses to go". reuters.com.
105. Ilie, Luiza (26 June 2017). "Romania names new prime minister to defuse crisis". reuters.com.
106. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Tudose resigns – DW – 15.01.2018". DW.COM.
107. Ilie, Luiza (17 January 2018). "Romanian president picks Dancila as new PM, graft in spotlight". reuters.com.
108. "Viorica DĂNCILĂ – History of parliamentary service – MEPs – European Parliament". www.europarl.europa.eu.
109. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Romania: Viorica Dancila voted in as first female prime minister – DW – 29.01.2018". DW.COM.
110. Marinas, Radu-Sorin (27 June 2018). "Romanian government defeats no-confidence vote as thousands protest". reuters.com.
111. Jennifer Hauser; Laura Smith-Spark (11 August 2018). "Anti-government protesters and police clash in Romania". CNN. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
112. AGERPRES. "Romanians from abroad to gather in Bucharest; rally in Piata Victoriei announced on social." www.agerpres.ro. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
113. "Anti-government protest in Romania turns violent". U.S. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
114. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Romanian expats return home for major anti-government protest, clash with police – DW – 10.08.2018". DW.COM. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
115. Gillet, Kit (10 August 2018). "Violence Erupts as Tens of Thousands Protest Corruption in Romania". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
116. (http://www.dw.com), Deutsche Welle. "Mitingul Diasporei: 100.000 de protestatari și incidente violente serioase – DW – 11.08.2018". DW.COM. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
117. "Hundreds hurt as riot police fire tear gas into crowds and beat protesters in Bucharest". Independent.co.uk. 11 August 2018. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022.
118. Marinas, Radu-Sorin (9 July 2018). "Romania's president removes chief anti-corruption prosecutor". Reuters – via uk.reuters.com.
119. "Proteste pentru sustinerea DNA si a Laurei Codruta Kovesi, anuntate in Bucuresti si in mai multe orase, sub sloganul "Tudorele, pleaca tu, cu hotii tai" – Esential – HotNews.ro". www.hotnews.ro. 25 February 2018.
120. "VIDEO FOTO Peste 2.000 de oameni au protestat în Piața Victoriei după decizia CCR privind revocarea șefei DNA / Îmbrânceli între jandarmi și protestatari – Esential – HotNews.ro". www.hotnews.ro. 30 May 2018.
121. "2.000 de oameni au protestat în Piața Victoriei. Incidente cu jandarmii, după ce au vrut să intre în curtea Guvernului. VIDEO". Stirileprotv.ro.
122. "Celebrele gafe ale premierului Viorica Dăncilă – de la 'imunoglobină', la 'douăzeci-douăzeci' și 'privelegiați'". www.digi24.ro. 27 April 2018.
123. "VIDEO FOTO Aproximativ 3000 de persoane au protestat în Piața Victoriei: Analfabeta! Justiție, nu corupție! Noaptea hoți, ziua mafioți!". G4Media. 10 June 2018.
124. Marinas, Radu-Sorin (21 June 2018). "Romanian ruling party leader sentenced, thousands rally". Reuters – via www.reuters.com.
125. "Ordinul de intervenție în forță a Jandarmeriei în Piața Victoriei a fost dat de Prefectul Capitalei, Speranța Cliseru, fostă consilieră a Gabrielei Firea – Esential – HotNews.ro". www.hotnews.ro. 11 August 2018.
126. "Ziua in care, in Romania, s-a incercat uciderea libertatii – cum s-a transformat un protest pasnic intr-un teatru de razboi (Foto si Video)". Ziare.com.
127. "Über 450 Verletzte: Rumänische Polizei prügelt Protest nieder". news.ORF.at. 11 August 2018.
128. . www.nytimes.com. Archived from the original on 15 August 2018.
129. "Jurnaliști ai televiziunii austriece de stat, bătuți de jandarmi în timpul protestului de vineri, de la București – Esential – HotNews.ro". www.hotnews.ro. 11 August 2018.
130. "VIDEO HotNews.ro journalist beaten by riot police during Bucharest anti-govt protests. "I yelled I am a journalist and lifted my hands above my head. One punched me, another kicked me in the back" – Top News – HotNews.ro". english.hotnews.ro. 11 August 2018.
131. "Ambasada Israelului: Patru israelieni bătuţi de forţele de ordine vineri seară; vor face." www.agerpres.ro.
132. "Turiști israelieni coborâți din taxi și bătuți de jandarmi în timpul protestului. Reacția Ambasadei". www.digi24.ro. 14 August 2018.
133. "Israel protests to Romania after tourists beaten by police". AP NEWS. 13 August 2018.
134. "Explicațiile Jandarmeriei după violențele de la miting: Am acționat defensiv". www.digi24.ro. 11 August 2018. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
135. "Jandarmii raniti la protestele din Piata Victoriei se recupereaza. Doi din trei vor fi externati astazi". Retrieved 11 August 2018.
136. "Romania: Tens of thousands protest for second night running | DW | 12.08.2018". DW.COM.
137. "Hundreds injured in Romania protest". BBC News. 11 August 2018. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
138. "USR cere demisia ministrului de Interne şi a şefului Jandarmeriei Române". www.digi24.ro. 10 August 2018.
139. "Prima reacţie a lui Klaus Iohannis după incidentele din Piaţa Victoriei: Condamn ferm intervenţia brutală a Jandarmeriei/ Ministrul de Interne să dea explicaţii". Mediafax.ro (in Romanian). Retrieved 13 August 2018.
140. "Dragnea, prima reacție despre proteste: "Cel mai grav este mesajul iresponsabil al președintelui Iohannis"". Stirileprotv.ro. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
141. Kurz, Sebastian (11 August 2018). "Die gewaltsamen Zusammenstöße in #Bukarest, bei denen zahlreiche Demonstranten und Journalisten verletzt wurden, verurteilen wir scharf. Hier erwarten wir volle Aufklärung. Dem verletzten Kameramann des #ORF wünsche ich eine schnelle Genesung. 2/2".
142. "Document". www.amnesty.org.
143. "Comentariul Comisiei Europene pentru Știrile Protv despre protestele de vineri". Stirileprotv.ro.
144. Marinas, Radu-Sorin (12 August 2018). "Romanians rally again in anti-corruption, anti-government protests". reuters.com.
145. "Romanians protest govt corruption for 2nd straight day". apnews.com. 11 August 2018.
146. "VIDEO FOTO Peste 50.000 de oameni au protestat din nou în Piața Victoriei. Ei au scandat "Demisia!" și "Hoții!" / Manifestația – fără violențe". hotnews.ro. 11 August 2018.
147. "FILMUL protestului din 11 august. "Scenariul Puterii, dejucat": 65.000 de români în Piața Victoriei". realitatea.net. 11 August 2018.
148. "Proteste în Piața Victoriei, ziua 2. 30.000 de oameni au manifestat pașnic și le-au dăruit trandafiri albi jandarmilor. VIDEO". stirileprotv.ro.
149. "Peste 100.000 de oameni au protestat sâmbătă, pentru a doua zi consecutiv, în București și în marile orașe / În afară de câteva incidente minore, manifestația din Piața Victoriei s-a desfășurat pașnic". G4Media (in Romanian). 12 August 2018. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
150. "Protestul de la Cotroceni, la care au participat 2.500 de oameni, majoritatea persoane in varsta, s-a incheiat dupa 7 ore". Retrieved 7 February 2017.
151. R.M. (6 February 2017). "Circa 4.000 de persoane au protestat la Palatul Cotroceni, cerand demisia presedintelui Iohannis: DNA fara cucuvea / Oamenii au inceput sa plece". HotNews.
152. "VIDEO A treia zi de proteste in fata Palatului Cotroceni. Aproximativ 2.000 de oameni au cerut demisia presedintelui Iohannis / O parte dintre protestatari au fost adusi cu microbuze de Dolj/ Mircea Badea a fost la protest". hotnews.ro. 7 February 2017.
153. I.C. (8 February 2017). "Circa 100 de persoane protesteaza, pentru a patra zi consecutiv, in fata Palatului Cotroceni / Klaus Iohannis a mers in mijlocul protestatarilor: Suntem cu totii romani". HotNews.
154. "Ro-mânia – Proteste sub ninsoare. Mii de oameni au fost în stradă". www.digi24.ro. 9 February 2017.
155. "Romania: Pro-govt rally protests anti-corruption 'abuses'". apnews.com. 9 June 2018.
156. "Romania's ruling coalition stages rally against alleged abuses by..." reuters.com. 9 June 2018.
157. "Romanian president urges cabinet to scrap 'decriminalization' decree". Business Insider. Reuters. 20 January 2017.
158. "Romania's President calls for referendum on justice laws". Business Insider. Reuters. 20 January 2017.
159. Alina Neagu (23 January 2017). "Liviu Dragnea despre Klaus Iohannis: A dat buzna in sedinta de Guvern in afara Constitutiei. Isi cere suspendarea. Vrea sa se victimizeze. Nu suntem interesati de asta, nu cred ca trebuie pentru Romania asa ceva". HotNews.
160. Camelia Badea (30 January 2017). "Florin Iordache despre Ordonantele privind gratierea si modificarea Codurilor Penale: Le-am scris eu si consiliera mea. Le-am sustinut ca deputat, mi le-am asumat ca ministru". Ziare.com.
161. Cristian Citre (30 January 2017). "Iordache: Actele normative nu se fac pentru politicieni, se fac pentru a rezolva politica penală a statului". News.ro.
162. Digi24 (24 January 2017). "Florin Iordache vrea asumarea răspunderii Guvernului pentru graţiere". Digi24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
163. Digi24 (31 January 2017). "Şedinţă de Guvern supravegheată de protestatari". Digi24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
164. Ionuț Băiaș (31 January 2017). "Ordonanta de Urgenta a fost publicata in Monitorul Oficial/ PSD face istorie: Publicare in timp record/ Cum mai poate fi blocata ordonanta". HotNews.
165. Mona Scarisoreanu (31 January 2017). "Decizie fulger în guvernul Dragnea/Grindeanu: A fost adoptat proiectul de lege privind graţierea şi OUG privind modificarea Codurilor. Mii de oameni au ieşit să protesteze în faţa Guvernului. Reacţia preşedintelui Iohannis: Astăzi este o zi de doliu pentru statul de drept". Ziarul Financiar.
166. Ionuț Băiaș (1 February 2017). "Sefa CSM despre OUG:Consider periculos si nedemocratic acest demers lipsit de respect fata de transparenta decizionala". HotNews.
167. Dan Tapalaga (5 February 2017). "SURSE Guvernul Grindeanu a inregistrat la Secretariatul General al Guvernului un proiect de lege cu prevederile controversate din ordonanta 13". HotNews.
168. Corina Ionel (5 February 2017). "Premierul Grindeanu: Demisia guvernului nu intra in calculele noastre. Situatia lui Iordache se va lamuri dupa ce-si sustine bugetul in Parlament. Modificarile la Coduri sunt absolut necesare". HotNews.
169. Digi24 (6 February 2017). "Răsturnare de situație: Guvernul renunță la modificarea Codului Penal". Digi24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
170. . www.ccr.ro (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 2 July 2018. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
171. "Major Partner Countries Call on the Government of Romania not to Reverse its Fight Against Corruption | U.S. Embassy in Romania". U.S. Embassy in Romania. 1 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
172. "AmCham Romania: The lack of transparency in adopting legislative changes sends a strong negative wave of mistrust and uncertainty, internally and externally – AmCham". 1 February 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
173. "Romania: Proposals Affecting the Independence of the Judiciary" (Press release). 27 November 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017. The United States notes with concern that the Parliament of Romania is considering legislation that could undermine the fight against corruption and weaken judicial independence in Romania. This legislation, which was originally proposed by the Ministry of Justice, threatens the progress Romania has made in recent years to build strong judicial institutions shielded from political interference. We urge the Parliament of Romania to reject proposals that weaken the rule of law and endanger the fight against corruption.