Romania is an European country located on the shores of the Black Sea, sharing a border with Ukraine, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Moldova. The population of this country is approx 1,90,64,000 with 2,38,397 square kilometers area. Ethnically 89% Romanian, 6% Hungarian, 3% Roma. Religiously 84% Christian, and almost of them Romanian Orthodox.
Romania values not only physical but also mental well-being. A citizen has the right to compensation if his or her or zer rights are not respected within the time limit set by law after claiming them. If someone suffers harm due to a mistake in the judicial system, the state will pay him or her financial compensation. And if a judge makes a deliberate mistake or shows gross negligence, the judge himself or herself will be personally liable.
There is an exceptional provision in the Romanian constitution that religious marriages only can be solemnized after the marriage has been officially registered in government office.
These are positive aspects. Now let's discuss the negative aspects.
Preventive detention may be ordered for a maximum of 30 days, which may be extended for a further 30 days; the total length of detention may not exceed 180 days. The state is secular, but the oath text acknowledges the existence of God. The High Council of the Judiciary includes two persons of good moral character, but there is no definition of good moral character.
Admirable Articles of Romania's Constitution
Article 2. Sovereignty
● National sovereignty shall reside within the Romanian people which shall exercise it through its representative bodies, resulting from free, periodical and fair elections, as well as by referendum.
● No group or individual may exercise sovereignty on its own behalf.
Article 4. The Unity of the People and Equality Among Citizens
● The State is founded upon the unity of the Romanian people and the solidarity of its citizens.
● Romania is the common and indivisible homeland of all its citizens regardless of race, ethnic origin, language, religion, sex, opinion, political allegiance, wealth, or social origin.
Article 16. Equality of Rights (Part of it)
● Citizens are equal before the law and before public authorities, with no privileges and with no discrimination.
● No one is above the law.
Article 22. The Right to Life and to Physical and Mental Well-Being (Part of it)
● A person's right to life and to physical and mental well-being are guaranteed.
● No one shall be subjected to torture or to any kind of inhuman or degrading punishment or treatment.
Article 27. Inviolability of Domiciles (Part of it)
● The domicile and the residence are inviolable. No one may enter or stay in the domicile or residence of a person without the latter's consent.
● A derogation from the provisions of paragraph 1 may be made, in accordance with the law, for the following purposes:
● in order to execute an arrest warrant or a court decree;
● in order to remove a threat to a person's life, physical integrity, or property assets;
● in order to defend national security or public order;
● in order to prevent the spread of an epidemic.
● Searches may only be ordered by a judge and have to be carried out in the terms and forms established by the law.
Article 29. Freedom of Conscience
● Freedom of thought and opinion, as well as the freedom of religious belief, may not be restricted in any way. No one can be forced to adopt an opinion or to espouse a religious belief contrary to his/her convictions.
● Freedom of conscience is guaranteed; it must be expressed in a spirit of tolerance and mutual respect.
● All religions are free and organized in accordance with their own statutes, under the terms defined by the law.
● All forms, means, acts, or actions of religious enmity are prohibited in the relationship between the cults.
● The religious sects are autonomous in relation to the state and enjoy its support, which includes measures facilitating religious assistance in the Army, in hospitals, penitentiaries, asylums, and orphanages.
● Parents or guardians have the right to ensure, in accordance with their own convictions, the education of minor children for whom they are responsible.
Article 34. The Right to Health Care
● The right to health care is guaranteed.
● The state is obliged to take measures to ensure hygiene and public health.
● The organization of the medical care and social insurance systems in case of illness, accidents, childbirth, and recovery, the supervision of the exercise of the medical professions and of paramedical activities, as well as other measures for the protection of the individual's physical and mental health are established by law.
Article 42. The Prohibition of Forced Labor
● Forced labor is prohibited.
● The following do not constitute forced labor:
● activities in the military service or activities which, in accordance with the law, are carried out in lieu thereof due to religious or conscience-related reasons;
● work which is carried in normal conditions by a person which has received a sentence during detention or conditional release;
● activities necessary in order to deal with a natural disaster or some other danger, or which result from normal civil obligations established by law.
Article 47. The Standard of Living
● The state is obliged to take measures for economic development and social protection which will ensure that citizens have a decent standard of living.
● Citizens have the right to pensions, paid maternity leave, medical care in public health centers, unemployment benefits, and other forms of public or private social security, as provided by the law. Citizens have the right to social assistance in accordance with the law.
Article 48. The Family
● The family is based on a freely consented marriage by the spouses, their full equality, and the right and duty of the parents to raise, educate, and instruct their children.
● The conditions in which marriages may be contracted, dissolved, and annulled are established by law. A religious marriage ceremony can be celebrated only after the civil ceremony.
● Children born outside marriage enjoy equal rights as those born in marriage.
Article 49. Protection of Children and Youth
● Children and youth will enjoy special protection and assistance in realizing their rights.
● The state shall grant benefits for children and provide aid for the care of sick or handicapped children. Other forms of social protection for children and youth shall be determined by law.
● The exploitation of minors and their employment in activities which might be harmful to their health or morals or which might endanger their life or normal development are prohibited.
● Minors under the age of 15 cannot be hired as employees.
● Public authorities have the duty to contribute to ensuring conditions for the free participation of the youth in the political, social, economic, cultural, and sports life of the country.
Article 50. Protection of Disabled Persons
Disabled persons shall enjoy special protection. The State shall ensure the implementation of a national policy of equal opportunities, disability prevention and treatment, so that disabled persons can take part effectively in community life, while respecting the rights and obligations of their parents or legal guardians.
Article 52. The Rights of Persons Suffering Damage at the Hands of Public Authority
● Any person whose rights or legitimate interests have been infringed by a public authority, through an administrative act or as a result of the failure to have a request resolved within the period prescribed by law, is entitled to have the right in question or the legitimate interest recognized and the act annulled and to receive compensation for the damages.
● The conditions and limitations for the exercise of this right will be determined by statutory law.
● The State is financially liable for any damages caused by judicial errors. The State liability is established under the terms defined by the law and does not exclude the liability of those judges who have acted in bad faith or were grossly negligent.
Article 55. The Defense of the Country
● Citizens have the right and obligation to defend Romania.
● The terms for the fulfillment of the military duties are established by organic law.
● Citizens may be conscripted from the age of 20 and up to the age of 35, except for volunteers, under the terms established by the organic law.
Article 68. Public Nature of the Sessions
● The sessions of the two Chambers are public.
● The Chambers can decide to hold certain sessions in camera.
Article 113. Censure Motion
● The Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, in joint session, can withdraw the confidence given to the Government by passing a censure motion by the vote of a majority of the deputies and senators.
● The censure motion can be initiated by at least one-fourth of the total number of deputies and senators and is communicated to the Government on the date that it is tabled.
● The censure motion is discussed three days after it is tabled in the joint session of the two houses.
● If the censure motion is rejected, the deputies and senators who signed it cannot initiate another censure motion in the same session, with the exception of the case in which the Government assumes responsibility in accordance with Article 114.
Article 136. Property
● Property may be public or private.
● Public property is guaranteed and protected by the law and belongs to the State or the territorial-administrative units.
● The mineral resources which are of public interest, the airspace, water resources that can be used for power production in the public interest, beaches, the territorial sea, the natural resources of the economic zone and the continental shelf as well as other assets defined by law constitute exclusive public property.
● Public property is non-transferable. Under the terms of the organic law, public property can be managed by autonomous entities or public institutions, or can be licensed or leased; it can also be transferred to public utility institutions for free use.
● Private property is inviolable in accordance with the organic law.
Facts of Romania's Constitution
Article 6. The Right To Identity
● The state recognizes and guarantees for members of the national minorities the right to preserve, develop, and express their ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and religious identity.
● The protective measures taken by the state to preserve, develop, and express the identity of the members of the national minorities shall be in accordance with the principles of equality and nondiscrimination in relation to the other Romanian citizens.
Article 23. Individual Freedom (Part of it)
● The period of detention may not exceed 24 hours.
● Preventive custody shall be ordered by a judge and only in the course of criminal proceedings.
● In the course of criminal proceedings, preventive custody may be ordered for a maximum period of 30 days, which may be extended for further periods of up to 30 days each; the overall length of the custody shall not exceed a reasonable term, and not last longer than 180 days.
● After the lawsuit has begun, the court is obliged, in accordance with the law, to check, on a regular basis and no later than 60 days, the lawfulness and grounds of the preventive custody, and to order at once the release of the defendant if the grounds for the preventive custody no longer exist and if the court finds no new grounds which could justify the extension of the custody.
● The decisions by a court of law on preventive custody are subject to the legal proceedings provided for by law.
Article 32. The Right to Education
● The right to education is ensured through compulsory general education, high school and vocational education, higher education, and other forms of instruction and advanced training.
● The language of instruction, on all levels, is the Romania language. Under the conditions of the law, an international language can also be the language of instruction.
Article 82. Validation of Presidential Election and Presidential Oath
● The results of the elections for the office of President of Romania are validated by the Constitutional Court.
● The candidate whose election has been validated will take the following oath before the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, in joint session: "I solemnly swear that I will dedicate all my strength and the best of my ability to the spiritual and material welfare of the Romanian people, that I will respect the Constitution and the laws of the country, and that I will defend democracy, the fundamental rights and freedoms of the citizens, and the sovereignty, independence, unity, and territorial integrity of Romania. So help me God!"
Article 109. Accountability of Government Members
● The Government is politically accountable only to Parliament for its entire activity. Each member of the Government is politically accountable, jointly with the other members, for the Government's activities and measures.
● Only the Chamber of Deputies, the Senate, and the President of Romania have the right to call for the prosecution of members of the Government for actions carried out in the exercise of their functions. If prosecution is requested, the President of Romania can order that the Government members be suspended from their positions. Any Government member on trial is suspended from his/her position. The Supreme Court of Justice has the competence to rule on the case.
● The grounds for accountability and the punishments applicable to members of the Government are regulated by a law on ministerial accountability.
Section 3. The High Council of the Judiciary
Article 133. Role and Structure (Part of it)
● The High Council of the Judiciary guarantees the independence of the judiciary.
● The High Council of the Judiciary is composed of 19 members, of whom:
● 14 are elected by the general meeting of the Council and confirmed by the Senate; they are divided into two sections, one for the judges and the other for the public prosecutors; the first section is composed of 9 judges, and the second of 5 public prosecutors;
● 2 representatives of civil society, experts in law, who enjoy a high professional and moral reputation, to be elected by the Senate; they shall only participate in plenary proceedings of the Council;
● the Minister of Justice, the President of the
High Court of Cassation and Justice, and the Attorney General of the
Public Prosecutor's Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and
Justice.
