Senat

IPU Seminar

Law and Justice: The case for parliamentary scrutiny

- Geneva, 25-27 September 2006-

Doina DREŢCANU

Romanian IPU Group

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear colleagues,

The topic of this seminar is of the highest relevance for the Romanian delegation, and we approach it in close connection with the European integration process, taking into account the role of our parliament in meeting the EU standards in the field of justice and internal affairs.

Tomorrow in Strasbourg, the European Commission will present to the European Parliament the latest progress report on Bulgaria and Romania's accession to the EU. We are fully confident that the document will confirm Romania’s continuous progress - including on the reform of the Judiciary - and its preparedness for EU membership starting with 1st January 2007.

I would like to take this opportunity to share with you some information on a series of legislative steps that were taken during the last months by Romania concerning the detention regime.

The Romanian Parliament adopted in June and July 2006 a series of amendments to the Criminal Code, as well as a new Law on the enforcement of penalties. They aim at a radical reform of the penalties enforcement system and the general approach focuses on educational rather than on repressive measures.

The new Law on the enforcement of penalties explicitly recognizes a series of rights for the persons convicted, regarding: the expression of their opinions and religious beliefs, their access to information and documents of personal interest, as well as petitioning, correspondence, phone calls, receipt of visits and of goods, medical assistance, diplomatic assistance for foreign citizens, and marriage. At the same time, the law establishes guarantees for the free exercise of these rights, and correlates them with obligations incumbent upon the administration of the detention place.

The general rules applicable to imprisonment penalties were changed, as follows:

- four detention regimes are established - maximum security, closed, semi-open and open. They are based on a progressive system and the detainees may pass from one regime to another, depending on their behavior during detention;

- the detainees have the right to remunerated work, only with their consent, and not as an obligation;

- the terms for the suspension of the penalty enforcement were revised in the sense that such suspension is no longer conditioned by the nature of the criminal offence committed, nor by the maximum limit of the criminal penalty according to the law; it is based on the evaluation of the detainee’s conduct, the seriousness of the crime and its circumstances.

Also, specific norms were set up for the persons in pre-trial detention, for the different categories of offenders, and for the minors.

Dear colleagues,

The current reform of Romania’s penitentiary system is based on two fundamental principles: the respect of human dignity, and the equal, non-discriminatory treatment, irrespective of nationality, citizenship, race, economic and social status, political opinions or religious beliefs.

Parliamentary scrutiny in this field is exercised in various ways. For instance, our parliamentary committees dealing with abuses and with human rights issues have organized field missions in various penitentiaries, as response to complaints received from detainees, regarding the detention regime and the medical services. The findings and recommendations were sent to the relevant governmental authority, which in our case is the National Administration of Penitentiaries, entity subordinated to the Ministry of Justice.

Another form of parliamentary oversight is closely related to the activities of the Advocate of the People - the Romanian Ombudsman - an institution which monitors, among others, the observance of human rights in prisons and detention centers, and which submits regular reports to the Parliament, as stipulated in the Constitution.

Thank you.



	IPU Seminar on Law and Justice: The case for parliamentary scrutiny - Geneva, 25-27 September 2006- Doina DREŢCANU Romanian IPU Group Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear colleagues, The topic of this seminar is of the highest relevance for the Romanian delegation, and we approach it in close connection with the European integration process, taking into account the role of our parliament in meeting the EU standards in the field of justice and internal affairs. Tomorrow in Strasbourg, the European Commission will present to the European Parliament the latest progress report on Bulgaria and Romania's accession to the EU. We are fully confident that the document will confirm Romania’s continuous progress - including on the reform of the Judiciary - and its preparedness for EU membership starting with 1st January 2007. I would like to take this opportunity to share with you some information on a series of legislative steps that were taken during the last months by Romania concerning the detention regime. The Romanian Parliament adopted in June and July 2006 a series of amendments to the Criminal Code, as well as a new Law on the enforcement of penalties. They aim at a radical reform of the penalties enforcement system and the general approach focuses on educational rather than on repressive measures. The new Law on the enforcement of penalties explicitly recognizes a series of rights for the persons convicted, regarding: the expression of their opinions and religious beliefs, their access to information and documents of personal interest, as well as petitioning, correspondence, phone calls, receipt of visits and of goods, medical assistance, diplomatic assistance for foreign citizens, and marriage. At the same time, the law establishes guarantees for the free exercise of these rights, and correlates them with obligations incumbent upon the administration of the detention place. The general rules applicable to imprisonment penalties were changed, as follows: - four detention regimes are established - maximum security, closed, semi-open and open. They are based on a progressive system and the detainees may pass from one regime to another, depending on their behavior during detention; - the detainees have the right to remunerated work, only with their consent, and not as an obligation; - the terms for the suspension of the penalty enforcement were revised in the sense that such suspension is no longer conditioned by the nature of the criminal offence committed, nor by the maximum limit of the criminal penalty according to the law; it is based on the evaluation of the detainee’s conduct, the seriousness of the crime and its circumstances. Also, specific norms were set up for the persons in pre-trial detention, for the different categories of offenders, and for the minors. Dear colleagues, The current reform of Romania’s penitentiary system is based on two fundamental principles: the respect of human dignity, and the equal, non-discriminatory treatment, irrespective of nationality, citizenship, race, economic and social status, political opinions or religious beliefs. Parliamentary scrutiny in this field is exercised in various ways. For instance, our parliamentary committees dealing with abuses and with human rights issues have organized field missions in various penitentiaries, as response to complaints received from detainees, regarding the detention regime and the medical services. The findings and recommendations were sent to the relevant governmental authority, which in our case is the National Administration of Penitentiaries, entity subordinated to the Ministry of Justice. Another form of parliamentary oversight is closely related to the activities of the Advocate of the People - the Romanian Ombudsman - an institution which monitors, among others, the observance of human rights in prisons and detention centers, and which submits regular reports to the Parliament, as stipulated in the Constitution. Thank you.