One out of four prosecutors says that he was a subject to political pressures during 2007, according to a study that states the general attorneys opinion toward the Minister of Justice.
Over 73% of the prosecutors still believe that Romania’s Justice is independent, while 80% of them believed so in 2006, says the research developed by Transparency International.
Thus, the number of prosecutors who think that their decisions are pressured by politicians last year, is now up to 22%, and has more than doubled during 2007, compared to the previous year.
The study also shows that prosecutors might have felt pressure because of the intense covering provided by the mass media, a fact which lead to changing the public image of certain institutions.
86% of the general attorneys say that the judicial system is instable, characterized by often changes that influences their independence.
41% of the prosecutors state that the media has a bad influence when it interferes with certain cases and places verdicts sometimes even before the inquiries are over.
Among institutions that place pressure upon justice, especially indirectly, through mass media, the prosecutors name: the secret services (42,1%), the Presidency (14,8%), Government members (9,3%), officials of international institutions (20%), the Minister of Justice (10,3%) and Parliament members (under 10%).