What the newspapers say: May 14, 2009

The July EC report on Romania’s reform of the justice system stirs up controversy between the two governing coalition parties, the Social Democrats and Democrat Liberals, one newspaper reads on Thursday. Elsewhere in the news, for the first time since the collapse of Communism, a priest is being investigated for bribe taking. On a lighter tone, Depeche Mode’s concert, initially scheduled for May 16 has every chance of being canceled.

The pressure of the imminent European Commission report scheduled for July, on Romania’s reform of the justice system stirs up controversy among Romania’s governing coalition. The new clash of opinions centered on the new Civil and Penal Codes that were submitted as legislative initiatives in the Senate on Thursday, Gandul reads.

The newspaper reads that, previously, President Basescu urged the Democrat Liberals – PD-L (the main party to support the President) which forms a governmental coalition with the Social Democrats -PSD, to take direct responsibility for the codes in order to avoid a lengthy adoption procedure in the Parliament.

Social Democratic informal leader, Victor Hrebenciuc, the newspaper reads, took up the issue for negotiation directly to Basescu on behalf of his party. However, PSD leader Mircea Geoana declared that the codes need to be publicly debated before anything else, suggesting that it will take a while until their adoption.

Nonetheless, once submitted as legislative initiatives, the codes will either be officially assumed by the Government in order to shorten lengthy procedures or submitted to debate in the Parliament. House of Deputies Speaker Roberta Anastase declared for the newspaper that it seems that the governing coalition has reached a consensus.

At the moment political declarations point to contradicting conclusions: Democrat Liberals assure that there is consensus on the codes while Social Democrats declare that their leader, Mircea Geoana did not agree.

Elsewhere in the news, Cotidianul reads about the first priest in Romania to be investigated for bribe taking after 1990s. The paper quotes another Romanian national newspapers, Romania libera and a video they shot portraying IPS Teodosie, from Constanta, South East Romania accepting to help an undercover journalist to become a priest.

It seems that IPS Teodosie requested, through intermediaries, money and gifts to help one of the undercovere reporters of Romania libera to become a priest even if he did not have the necessary credentials and did not even finish a Theological faculty.

However, IPS Teodosie declared for Romania Libera that he did not see the tape and refused to make any other commentaries on the issue. The file investigating the case already reached the High Court of Justice.

Cotidianul reads about the possible cancellation of the Depeche Mode concert in Bucharest, scheduled for May 16. The newspaper reads that sponsors have already been notified of the decision to cancel the show after member Gavan Dave was hospitalized in Athens, Greece.

Depeche Mode canceled all concerts in Athens and Istanbul as well.