Romania Protests: Trade Minister Resigns, Rejecting Govt Stance

Florin Jianu has submitted his resignation as Romania's Justice Minister, following massive protests against controversial criminal law changes by the government.

On Facebook, he has said his consciousness tells him "this is not negotiable."

"I have my consciousness clean, but for my child, for how I am going to look him into the eyes and what I am going to tell him after several years. Will I tell him that his father was a coward and backed actions that he is not sharing or that he chose to come out his head up from a story that is not his?,” the Romania Journal quotes him as saying.

Jianu was in charge of business environment, trade and entrepreneurship.

The government is being subjected to increasing pressure from its own nationals and from abroad after decriminalizing abuse of office when it involves sums lower than EUR 44 000.

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is set to make a press statement at 11:00 local time (EET), state-run AGERPRES agency says. So far Iohannis has spoken critically of the amendments. 

Six Western countries' embassies meanwhile voiced their "deep concern" at the bill.

In a letter published on the website of the US Embassy in Romania, they argued the move “undermined Romania’s progress on rule of law and the fight against corruption over the past ten years.”

“We hope the Government of Romania will reverse this unhelpful course,” the diplomatic missions of the US, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Canada, say in their joint statement.

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