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ECHR: Romania violated Kovesi's rights by dismissing her from DNA leadership before end of term
Romania violated the rights of the chief prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate, Laura-Codruta Kovesi, by revoking her from office before the end of her term, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) said on Tuesday, stressing that it decided unanimously that the right to a fair trial (Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights) and the right to free speech (Article 10 of the Convention) was violated.
Laura-Codruta Kovesi won on Tuesday at the ECHR the process by which she challenged the revocation decision from the position of chief prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA), according to a press release of the institution based in Strasbourg.
The case concerns the decision by which Laura-Codruta Kovesi was dismissed from the position of chief prosecutor of DNA before the end of her second term following some criticisms she voiced in connection with the legislative reforms in respect to corruption, states the court, adding that the claimant maintained that she could not challenge the decision in court.
The Court also held that the applicant's right to freedom of expression had been violated on the ground that she had been revoked because of the criticisms she brought while carrying out her duties in a matter of public interest. One of her tasks as chief anti-corruption prosecutor was to express her views on legislative reforms that could have consequences for the judiciary and its independence, as well as the fight against corruption.
According to the ECHR, the claimant's early dismissal was contrary to the very purpose of maintaining judicial independence and should have had a discouraging effect on her and on the other prosecutors and judges in their participation in public debates on legislative reforms concerning the judiciary and judicial independence.