Prosecutors, Democracy and the Rule of Law: Reflections on the Review of the Statute of Prosecutors in Romania

Report on an International Conference in Bucharest, Romania, September 28-29, 2007.

The current statute of prosecutors in Romania is an ambiguously mixed one. The Romanian Constitution and the subsequent legislation grant the prosecutor a status role that is two-fold: independent magistrate and representative of the Executive power, subject to hierarchical control. The consequences of this two-fold nature are a lack of unitary interpretation, ambiguity, and a confusion over the proper function, status and role of the prosecutors within the justice system. The abovementioned status quo of the statute of prosecutors is one of the reasons for holding an international conference - “Prosecutors, Democracy and the Rule of Law: Reflections on the Review of the Statute of Prosecutors in Romania” on September 28-29, 2007. The conference was organized by the Association of European Judges and Public Prosecutors for Democracy and Fundamental Rights (MEDEL), in partnership with the National Union of Judges from Romania, the Rule of Law Program South East Europe of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Romania, the Romanian Ministry of Justice, the General Prosecutor’s Office, and Transparency International – the Romanian Chapter.

The "Rule of Law" as a Requirement for EU Accession

Speech presented by Dr. Stefanie Ricarda Roos in the opening of an International Law Symposium in Bucharest

The contribution takes a closer at an institution which – especially in the context of Romania’s and Bulgaria’s EU-accession process - was all too often mentioned, but hardly ever explained: the concept of the ”rule of law“ or ”stat de drept”, or as the Germans call it the ”Rechtsstaat“.

Successful start of the pilot project “Training of Trainers”

Training of national legal training institutions in South East Europe

The public reputation of the judiciary in transition countries of South East Europe is still very low, reasons being manifold: if nothing else, the lack of trust by the population in jurisdiction, often caused by unclear and hardly comprehensible court decisions.

Training of Trainers of National Judicial Training Institutions in South East Europe

Welcoming Note by Dr. iur. Stefanie Ricarda Roos, Director, Rule of Law Program South East Europe, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung

New media law in Serbia

Welcome and opening speech on occasion of the round-table discussion in Belgrade (Serbia) on 25 September 2007

The fundamental right of freedom of opinion and information is a pillar of a democratic society. At the same time, it is an element of a efficient democratic state based on the rule of law. This important freedom right can be found both in the constitution of the Republic of Serbia (Art. 46 and 50) and in the Charta of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (Art. 11). In Germany, freedom of opinion is granted by the Basic Constitutional Law of Bonn. It is manifested in Art. 5 I 1 GG and closely linked to the other communication-related fundamental rights of Art 5 I GG. part of these are also freedom of information, freedom of the press and freedom of broadcasting which are essential for media law. With respect to the outstanding importance of communication-related fundamental rights for a democratic state based on the rule of law, the Rule of Law Program South East Europe of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung supports measures in its program countries, among them Serbia, which help improve the knowledge about national and European Media Law and which help implementing them effectively.

The Rights of Suspects/Accused and their Defence in Criminal Proceedings in South East Europe

A Conference Report by Professor Hajrija Sijercic-Colic, Ph.D., University of Sarajevo, Law Faculty

One of the results of the German EU Council Presidency in the justice field is the consolidation of civil rights through a debate on principles about the unification, Europe wide, of minimum standards in criminal proceedings.

Measures by the Rule of Law Program South East Europe for the support of the German Presidency of the European Council

Report about a regional experts’ conference in Romania and a round-table discussion in Bulgaria

On 30 June 2007, the German Presidency of the European Council ended. One of its results in the justice sector is the strengthening of civil rights by fundamental discussions on pan-European consistent minimum standards in criminal proceedings. The KAS-Rule of Law Program South East Europe (RLP SEE) has contributed with a large-scale regional project, consisting of a country law study, a regional experts’ conference in Bucharest (Romania) and a round-table discussion in Sofia (Bulgaria).

Lustration and Consolidation of Democracy and the Rule of Law in Central and Eastern Europe

Internationale Fachkonferenz in Zagreb, Kroatien

Vorträge und Reden, die auf der Internationalen Fachkonferenz gehalten wurden sowie ein zusammenfassender Bericht finden Sie auf dieser Seite.

Proposal of the German Presidency of the European Council for minimum standards in criminal proceedings within the EU

by Ministerialdirigent Eberhard Siegismund

In context of the Presidency, the German Federal Court of Justice (FCJ) is engaging in a pan-European decision on minimum standards in criminal proceedings. The purpose of the initiative is to reconcile the permissions for intervention by the judiciary and the police on the one hand with the right to protection by suspects/accused on the other hand. The chairman of the task force Material Criminal Law in Brussels, MDgT Eberhard Siegismund (FCJ), presented the decision on a regional conference in Bucharest on 14 May 2007.

Welcome and opening speech by Dr. Roos on the occasion of the international experts’ conference „Lustration"

"Lustration and Consolidation of Democracy and Rule of Law in Central and Eastern Europe"

Reconciliation with the past or dealing with the communist/socialist past respectively and public remembrance culture is a traditional area of work and a central issue for the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung which promotes democracy and rule of law worldwide. The Rule of Law Program South East Europe supports measures on “Coping with the past” in its seven program countries Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, and Serbia.