​Romanian MPs repel disputed compensatory appeal law blamed for release of thousands of criminals from jails

A draft bill to repel a law on compensatory appeal, which has allowed for the release of thousands of inmates before time, was voted by Romanian deputies on Wednesday.

The Liberal-supported bill to repel the compensatory appeal had been discussed in fast procedure and had received approval from the judicial commission after the Liberal government announced he would take responsibility before the parliament for the bill.

The piece of legislation now has to receive a final approval from President Klaus Iohannis before it takes effect.

• It essentially annuls rules introduced by the previous Social Democratic-led majority, which invoked international pressure over conditions in Romanian prisons to allow the early release of convicted people. Some 21,000 inmates were released in this way between October 2017-September 2019, according to the Justice Ministry. Over 500 of these became involved in new criminal acts after their release.

During parliamentary debates on Wednesday, Liberal MP Florin Roman called the compensatory appeal the most harmful legal provision of the past 30 years.