RSS
French Prosecutor-general Jean-Claude Marin was on a working visit to Romania
French Prosecutor-general Jean-Claude Marin, who was on a working visit to Romania Thursday through Saturday at the invitation of his Romanian counterpart Augustin Lazar, met in Bucharest with the heads of the National Anticorruption Directorate - DNA, the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism - DIICOT and the Supreme Council of Magistrates - CSM.
Jean-Claude Marin attended on Thursday a round-table meeting at the Prosecutor's Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice, with Prosecutor-general Augustin Lazar, First Deputy Prosecutor-general Laura Oprean, CSM president Mariana Ghena, members of the CSM Prosecutors' Section, DNA chief prosecutor Laura Codruta Kovesi, DIICOT chief prosecutor Daniel Horodniceanu, advisors to Romania's Prosecutor-general, prosecutors in managing or executive positions with the Public Prosecution Office.
According to a release of the General Prosecution Office, the subjects discussed at the meeting included the organization and functioning of prosecutor's offices and the French Superior Council of Magistracy, as well as the career, statutes, independence and professional training of the magistrates.
Talks also envisaged the need to continue cooperation between the Romanian and French judicial authorities, highlighting the excellent cooperation so far in matters such as the trafficking of cultural heritage assets, human trafficking - of minors in particular, and the fight against cross-border crime, organized crime and terrorism.
Jean-Claude Marin delivered on Friday a lecture on "Le Parquet européen" at the Law Faculty of the University of Bucharest. The event was attended by Ambassador of France in Bucharest Michele Ramis, Presidential Administration advisor Simina Tanasescu, Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law Andra Trandafir, Romania's Prosecutor-general Augustin Lazar, First Deputy Prosecutor-general Laura Oprean, members of the CSM Prosecutors' Section, chief prosecutors of the specialized structures of the Public Prosecution Office, prosecutors in managing or executive positions with the Supreme Court of Justice and Cassation, DNA and DIICOT, as well as under the competence of the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Bucharest Court of Appeal.
The conference drew a numerous attendance of students from the Faculty of Law, as well as from the Romanian-American University.
Jean-Claude Marin delivered a detailed presentation of the European Public Prosecutor's Office in terms of organization, functioning and competence of this European judicial institution whose main purpose is to combat the defrauding of European funds and protect the European Union's financial interests.
In an interview for Agerpres, Jean-Claude Marin said that Romanian and French prosecutors have had joint actions to combat trafficking in cultural goods, given that the patrimony of the two states "is plundered by transnational criminal rings".
Among the successes of this Romanian-French cooperation, J-C Marin recalls: We have done together with the General Prosecutor's Office common actions in the field of trafficking in cultural goods. The patrimony of our countries is plundered by transnational criminal rings, so there is a need for fluid, bilateral cooperation to combat them and cooperate in this area with the Romanian General Prosecutor's Office, Prosecutor General Lazar, but also with other countries.
Another common topic we cooperate in is human trafficking and the two countries have reached a genuine judicial pact to prevent exploitation of minors through begging on major boulevards in our cities, the French official added.
"There are also other issues that we cannot deal with separately. That is why we need a European structure to fight organized crime and when I speak about it, I am thinking about what is known as the European Prosecutor's Office, provided for by a regulation published in 2017. With regard to the European Prosecutor's Office, I would like to say that this is a new chance, an additional factor of homogenization of justice in the member countries. And the fundamental condition of the treaty regarding the European Prosecutor's Office is that it must be completely independent from the European executive and the same standard of absolute independence will have to be respected by all European prosecutors who will second prosecutors to the European Prosecutor's Office," said the French dignitary.