An outstanding judge Romania He was suspended for posting a video on TikTok, a move that caused widespread criticism and condemnation from the U.S. Embassy.
Cristi Danileţ, a judge in the northern Romanian city of Cluj, was suspended by the Supreme Council of Magistrates on Monday for two videos he posted on TikTok. A panel considered this to be equivalent to “an act that affects the image of the judicial system”.
Danileţ told the Associated Press (AP) on Tuesday that in one video, he appeared in trimming garden hedges and in another video cleaning his home swimming pool, neither of which had anything to do with his profession. The decision can be appealed.
Danileţ has accumulated a large number of social media fans, has criticized the Romanian judiciary and called for reforms for many years, and has organized protests against reformers in the past. He also offers legal education courses for children.
“I think this is a return,” Danileţ told the Associated Press. “I have been involved in reforms for many years [Romania’s] The judiciary… this attitude has many enemies. In Romania, it is difficult to carry out judicial reform, and it is also difficult to reform the mentality. “
The US Embassy in Bucharest said in a statement on Tuesday that it expressed “deep concern” about Danileţ’s suspension.
“An independent judiciary that respects the rule of law is essential to any prosperous democracy,” The statement says, And added that Joe Biden recently stated at the two-day “Democracy Summit” that “democracy does not happen by accident.”
Dacian Cioloș, who served as prime minister in the caretaker cabinet from 2015 to 2017, condemned the suspension and accused the recently sworn-in coalition government of “undermining justice.”
“[The suspension] No matter how we look at things, it looks terrible,” Cioloș said. “Even if this decision is overturned by the High Court, the signal has been sent. The judge needs to be very careful. “
Cholos He added that he “received information” in recent months, saying that several judges and prosecutors were “fearful and are at different stages of disciplinary action.”
