Romania justice minister quits over anti-graft law protests

BUCHAREST — Romania's justice minister resigned yesterday following mass protests over a law that eases criminal penalties for government officials engaged in corruption.

Minister Florin Iordache defended his tenure and the emergency decree that reduced penalties for corruption, saying all his initiatives were "legal and constitutional" but had failed to placate "public opinion."

Romania's two-month-old Social Democrat-led coalition government withdrew the contentious decree this week to decriminalize some forms of official misconduct after hundreds of thousands protested for days in cities around Romania.

Protesters said the measure dilutes the anti-corruption fight that has targeted Romania's rich and powerful.

European Affairs Minister Ana Birchall was named interim justice minister later yesterday.

Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu, meanwhile, insisted the government remained committed to fighting graft while also respecting the rights of suspects facing charges.

"The fight against corruption ...will continue to be one of the priories of the Romanian government," he told reporters. "We respect all the (judicial) institutions ... in Romania, provided they also resect the separation of powers in a democratic society."

The ordinance would have decriminalized abuse in office by officials if the amount involved was less than $48,500. Melescanu said the government plans to introduce another version of the law in parliament with input from Romanian and European experts.

The government survived a no-confidence vote Wednesday in parliament, where it has a solid majority.

In a related development, the Constitutional Court said it wouldn't rule on whether the ordinance was constitutional as requested by the ombudsman because the decree had been withdrawn.