http://www.transparency.org/news_room/latest_news/press_releases_nc/2009/200 9_07_22_ti_romania_report Romania report on anti-corruption contains expected and unavoidable conclusions Bucharest, 22 July 2009
Transparency International Romania takes due notice of the state of complacency that Romania has consistently shown in reaction to the stream of negative reports coming from the European Union, without taking a substantive stance on improving the situation. Authorities in Bucharest, regardless of their political affiliation, have ignored all of the criticism received by Romania during the years of monitoring, as if they knew that in spite of the negative tone of the Report, the safeguard clause would not be activated. The current situation, as created by the perpetual provisional nature of the fight against corruption, has lead to an excessive weakening of all of the integrity pillars, which in turn has affected the credibility of reforms undertaken in Romania. The situation is even more worrisome as the new integrity pillars created under the threat of the safeguard clause are already proving to be inefficient. All these faults weaken Romania's competitiveness for EU funds that could help the country overcome some of the effects of the financial crisis, sustain the regularisation efforts and fulfil its obligations. In this context, TI-Romania believes that maintaining the mechanisms for verification and cooperation are justified due to Romania's poor monitoring results. However, they are not sufficient in reducing the vulnerabilities affecting the national integrity system so long as they are not bolstered by tangible actions. Therefore, Transparency International Romania asks the European Commission and authorities in Bucharest to establish a mechanism that will evaluate the impact of the adopted measures and the results obtained over time so that future reports will focus more on the real progress, or regression, experienced by the country and less on the formal fulfilment of its obligations. Transparency International Romania recommends that all Romanian decision-makers tackle the criticisms of the Report with utmost responsibility and to make the national interest the priority by promptly establishing concrete measures to correct them. Consistent to its mission, TI-Romania has been devising a series of recommendations since December 2008 meant to ensure the minimum required standards for good governance. These recommendations could then become the basis for a coherent public policy. Only by taking such appropriate measures can Romania prove that the rule of law and the fight against corruption are national priorities, independent of international monitoring. Transparency International e.V. copyright C 1994-2009 ---------------------------- Vali "Noble blood is an accident of fortune; noble actions are the chief mark of greatness." "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." Aboneaza-te la <mailto:[email protected]> ngo_list: o alternativa moderata (un pic) la [ngolist] Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this email?
