Tipping Point: Examining Democracy in Romania

Romania has come a long way in its democratic and economic development since the demise of the communist regime 25 years ago, but some essential transition issues are still being closed. An assessment of its progress took place in Bucharest last month at a seminar assessing Romania’s 25 years of transition to European democracy. NDI was present at the gathering, entitled Romania’s “Tipping Point: Advancing Rule of Law, Governance and Public Leadership,” which centered on a report by Corina Rebegea, an analyst for the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA).

“The 25-year anniversary of the demise of the communist regime is a turning point for Romania,” she notes. “The purpose of this analysis is to provide a framework for accelerating Romania’s realization of its enormous potential in the areas of rule of law, governance and public leadership.”

The report details progress and deficits in rule of law, governance and public leadership. NDI’s director for Central and Eastern Europe, Robert Benjamin, presented on public leadership in the context of Romania’s democratic transition. NDI went to Romania right after the 1989 revolution and stayed, supporting fair elections, civil society, political parties, and the political enfranchisement of the country’s sizable and marginalized Roma population.

Benjamin noted that Romania’s political system is characterized by three critical factors: a viable and durable system of governance, enshrining individual liberty and other fundamental political and human rights; political moderation, anchored in well-organized political parties and strong civil society, among which fundamental consensus on Romania’s geopolitical orientation exists; and interethnic cooperation that has prevented the type of devastating conflicts seen next door in the former Yugoslavia.

Still, for all of its structural soundness, Romania’s political system is not sufficiently healthy to merit the confidence among citizens that theirs is a democracy in good working order, Benjamin said. For many of the democracy ills on display—corruption, questionable judicial independence, the use of urgent procedure to pass significant legislation without substantive review—the political establishment is viewed as the primary culprit, as well as the beneficiary, since there appears little in the way of widespread public scrutiny that can make political misconduct too costly when it comes time to be re-elected.

Romania’s tipping point, then, is predicated on two scenarios, he said. In one, Romania’s formal system of democracy is eroded from within, through accretion of power by one political force with illiberal intent, as has been observed in Hungary under Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has proclaimed himself a champion of “illiberal government” of the kind practiced in China and Russia

In the other scenario, Romania finds it within itself to mount a democratic push to open the political process to new entrants by, for example, lowering requirements to form political parties and compete in elections, compel politicians to respond to the public interest by mobilizing citizens to become active advocates and voters on issues they care about, restrict practices like legislative urgent procedure, and clean up, through vigorous and independent investigation and prosecution, the mix of money and politics. Given the geopolitical volatility in Romania’s neighbors—notably Ukraine—it is clear that democratic reform along the lines of this second scenario is necessary if Romania is to preserve its political stability and build its economic vitality, Benjamin said.

The country is making some headway, he noted. New anti-corruption investigation and prosecution agencies are gaining strength and are among the most popular institutions among citizens. Many politicians are paying heed. Civic groups are figuring out new strategies to engage citizens. Still, there is a way to go. When one local councilmember whom NDI supports requested budget data from city hall to look at how expenditures affect his Roma constituents, he was cited and fined by local police for harassment.