Romanian president Nicușor Dan announced on July 18 that he will return recent amendments to the country’s law against extremist organisations to Parliament, despite the Constitutional Court rejecting his objections. The announcement was made during a press conference at the Romanian Embassy in Berlin.
The contested legislation, commonly referred to as the Vexler Law, amends Law 217/2015, originally drafted by MP Silviu Vexler. The law bans the use of extremist symbols and the glorification of individuals responsible for crimes against humanity. The recent amendments were passed by lawmakers earlier this year.
President Dan stated that he had submitted the amendments to the Constitutional Court, arguing that around half of the articles in the revised law were unconstitutional. While the Court has rejected the president’s challenge, Dan reaffirmed his concerns.
“Regarding the law initiated by Mr. Vexler […] I challenged it at the Constitutional Court, asking the Court to find that approximately half of the articles in the amendments are unconstitutional, an opinion that I still hold, even though the CCR said otherwise. I still believe that leaving ambiguity in several articles of this law is harmful to society and causes the tension between the two groups, which I have seen in society for a year, to increase and not decrease,” president Dan said, as quoted by Agerpres.
He further confirmed that, after receiving the Constitutional Court’s official reasoning, he will send the law back to Parliament, specifically focusing on the articles he initially contested.
In his submission to the Court, president Dan cited the need for the Romanian state to combat incitement to hatred and discrimination in a manner that aligns with constitutional guarantees. He criticised the amendments for their lack of legal clarity, particularly around the definitions of “legionnaire” and “fascist,” terms historically tied to Romania’s far-right past.
The president’s intervention follows months of public debate over the scope and application of the amended legislation. The original law was enacted in 2015 to prohibit fascist, legionnaire, racist, and xenophobic organisations, as well as the promotion of their ideologies.
“The effect will be the opposite if the state does not act in a balanced manner,” Dan warned during his address in Berlin.
iulian@romania-insider.com
(Photo source: Inquam Photos/George Calin)
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