Pierre MOSCOVICI (PES, FR)
Report
on Romania's progress towards accession
Doc.: A6-0061/2004
Procedure
: Own-initiative
Debate : 15.12.2004
Parliament will debate an own-initiative report on
Romania's progress towards EU membership, drawn up by Pierre
MOSCOVICI (PES, FR) for the Foreign Affairs Committee. The
rapporteur describes the report as "encouraging but demanding;
demanding, but friendly." MEPs in the committee welcome the important
steps taken by Romania but they stress that much still needs to be done,
particularly on reform of the administration, the judicial system, the
fight against corruption and the protection of minorities and children.
Swift completion to negotiations urged
The
report calls for negotiations to be concluded rapidly - "by the end of
2004" - while nevertheless emphasising that "artificially early
chapter closure will harm rather than help Romania and her people". It
hopes Romania will be in a position to sign the accession treaty in 2005,
so it can enter into force on 1 January 2007. The committee points out
that Romania "will be subject to the same provisions as Bulgaria and
the new Member States and therefore will be made subject to specific
safeguard clauses in the event of serious shortcomings".
MEPs in the committee draw Romania's attention to the
fact that, like Bulgaria, it could be made subject to a specific safeguard
mechanism if the Commission believes there is a "serious risk that
Romania is not in a position to meet the commitments that accession
entails". The Commission could then recommend that the Council decide
to "delay its accession by one year". This would require a
unanimous vote by the Council. They add, in this connection, that
"Romania's accession must be based on merit and performance".
Justice, corruption, discrimination: "could do
better"
The report acknowledges, as the Commission did in its
report in October, that Romania meets the Copenhagen political criteria
and has strengthened the stability of its institutions, thereby
guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law and human rights. However it
points to the need "for further reforms in the spheres of justice and
public administration and greater efforts to combat corruption".
MEPs in the committee congratulate Romania on the
progress it has made on administrative and judicial reform and on the
launch of a strategy to reform its public administration. They urge
Romania to press ahead swiftly with these reforms "as a priority",
with specific emphasis on adequate remuneration for civil servants,
promotion on the basis of merit and improved management and training. On
the judicial front, they voice disquiet at recent official surveys showing
that the executive continues to influence the outcome of judicial
proceedings and it renews their call "for the judicial system to be
made more independent and professional".
The report also notes that corruption is still "a
major source of concern". In this connection, the committee members
say they "are alarmed" at the fact that very few corruption trials
in Romania are successful. In addition they underline the importance of
reforming the national police force, improving border controls, laying
down national rules on the protection of children and combating
discrimination against the Roma minority, which they say is still "very
widespread". On this point, they urge the Romanian Government to
expand its action in this area and give priority to education.
On the subject of bringing national laws into line with
Community legislation, the report states that Romania has "achieved a
satisfactory degree of alignment in the vast majority of areas" and
that, if it continues to advance at the current rate, it will have
"every prospect of completing the requisite legislative transposition
before the scheduled accession date". However, it stresses that
"improvements in the field of legislation and the adoption of action
plans are not enough". Mechanisms for the implementation and
monitoring of the enforcement of legislation are needed, to enable
progress to be
assessed. |
