Romania’s government has carried out its intention of passing a decree that decriminalizes the abuse of power and corruption by public officials. Reports that the government was preparing such a decree sparked mass demonstrations across Romania in recent weeks. If the government had hoped to avoid new demonstrations by announcing the move late Tuesday night, it was not successful as people once again took to the streets. However, as of now, Romanian officials found to have embezzled less than €44,000 will not face criminal charges. There’s suspicion that the prime minister is trying to free the head of the PSD party from legal proceedings on charges of corruption. However, pardons would be issued to people now serving less than five years, while prisoners over the age of 60 would see their sentences reduced. In all, 2,500 people are expected to be released as a result of the decree.
