The US State Department’s annual report on human rights for 2024, published after significant changes under the Trump administration, criticizes the shrinking of freedoms in Europe.
In the section on Romania, the report mentions the cancellation of the presidential elections, vulnerabilities in the free press and an increase of anti-Semitic incidents.
It said the Constitutional Court annulled the Nov. 24 election ruling that “multiple irregularities and breaches of electoral law… compromised the transparency and fairness of the electoral campaign” and raised suspicions regarding the fairness of the conduct of elections.
“The court’s ruling was criticized as political interference in an election and an undue restriction on disfavored political speech of an unprecedented nature and severity,”
the court said.
It said that citing an alleged Russian influence operation on social media was not proved. Moscow has denied meddling in the election which saw a radical outsider go from single digits to win the first round.
The State Department report appears to contradict statements from NATO, the European Union and Britain who have confirmed that Russia conducts manipulation and disinformation campaigns in several European states, including Romania.
Last month, President Nicusor Dan said “attempts to involve foreign state entities in our country’s elections in the previous months were condemned for the first time in official statements by NATO and the European Union.”
He added that “the Romanian state must come up with new evidence, as it discovers it, and should have prevented what happened in November 2024.”
Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said the 2024 electoral process saw some institutions “caught on the wrong foot”, adding the annulment was a result of foreign influence citing the Constitutional Court which found that the electoral process was flawed by an “aggressive online campaign” in favor of one of the candidates.
The report also points to deficiencies in the functioning of Romania’s free press and notes the lack of transparency regarding media ownership and funding, political control over editorial policies, and restriction of journalists’ access to public information.
It cited cases of harassment, threats and legal actions against reporters, including an ordinance against RISE Project investigative journalists, which was later annulled. It also mentioned the detention of activist Angi Șerban for a social media post.
In terms of employees’ rights, the report points to practices of avoiding union representation, difficulties in proving unfair dismissals, inconsistent application of labor legislation and lack of resources to combat undeclared work, estimated at 29% of GDP.
The document points to rising number of anti-Semitic incidents including acts of vandalism against Jewish churches, fascist messages in public spaces and anti-Semitic statements by some lawmakers.
The report also includes the case of dissident Gheorghe Ursu, noting the rejection by the Constitutional Court, in May 2024, of an extraordinary appeal against the acquittal of former Securitate officers accused of involvement in his death.
The report also said “the government took credible steps to identify and punish officials who committed human rights abuses, but in some cases government actions were insufficient and impunity was a problem.
