The International Press Institute (IPI) joins journalist and civil society organizations in writing to state and judicial authorities in Romania to raise concerns over the recent revelations about the surveillance of a journalist by a local office of the country’s National Anticorruption Directorate in 2023.

IPI joins widespread criticism of the recently revealed wiretap and questions how safeguards meant to protect members of the press from unjustified surveillance were not effective in preventing the tracking a journalist then working for one of the country’s leading investigative media outlets, RiseProject.

To the Attention of:

Minister of Justice, Mr. Radu Marinescu

Superior Council of Magistracy

Prosecutor General of Romania, Mr. Alex Florența

Chief Prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate, Mr. Marius Voineag

The undersigned organizations, newsrooms and journalists express their dismay regarding the ease with which National Anticorruption Directorate Iași (DNA) prosecutors requested, obtained and implemented several surveillance warrants targeting several journalists, starting with 2018. In our opinion, these warrants violate not only the rights of the person, but also a professional journalistic right, that of the protection of sources, which represents a violation of the right to freedom of the press.

The situation was revealed today, March 17, by journalists Victor Ilie and Luiza Vasiliu, who reported how, in 2023, they were spied on by an operative team for several days, while they were working in the RiseProject editorial office. In fact, Victor Ilie was photographed right in front of the editorial office and his phone was tapped for two months. The DNA Iași, the institution responsible for tracking Victor Ilie, continued the surveillance and requested the extension of the warrant targeting him, even after finding out beyond any doubt that he is a journalist. The situation is not unique, as Luiza Vasiliu and Victor Ilie revealed in their newsletter, Drepturi și Strâmbe, and in the publication Balkan Insight. At least three other journalists have been repeatedly targeted by such surveillance warrants. Rareș Neamțu and Tudor Leahu from 7 Iași had two such files opened at the DNA Iași, which were closed, just like the file of Victor Ilie. In one of these files, a third journalist from the editorial office, Andrei Viliche, was targeted.

In all the cases presented above, the warrants were based on complaints filed by the subjects of the journalistic investigations. These complaints cannot as such constitute grounds for surveillance practices against journalists. Therefore, although we understand the obligation of law enforcement agencies to investigate possible crimes, given the circumstances of these cases and the documents from the criminal investigation files to which the journalists had access, we consider that their prolonged surveillance, including their physical surveillance, represent abusive actions by prosecutors, carried out with the complicity or passivity of the judges.

The surveillance warrants targeting journalists do not represent just a simple violation of a person’s right to privacy, but represent a violation of a professional right, that of the protection of journalistic sources. This is part of the right to freedom of the press and is guaranteed by national legislation, the case law of the European Court of Human Rights and, more recently, by the European Media Freedom Act 2024/1083 (EMFA).

Precisely because the surveillance of journalists constitutes a violation of the right to freedom of the press, we consider that legal warrants for such actions must be based on an overriding reason of public interest and be proportionate, but also subject to very strict legal scrutiny and must be extremely well-founded.

These violations revealed today are only the latest in a long list of abuses against journalists, which are likely to affect the proper functioning of society, by intimidating journalists who try to bring facts and data of public interest to the public. From the lack of action and even the exposing of Emilia Șercan, to the DIICOT searches and hearings or the requests to reveal sources, the Romanian judiciary has undertaken a series of actions dangerous for a democratic state in recent years.

We call on the Ministry of Justice, the Superior Council of Magistracy, the Prosecutor General’s Office and the National Anti-Corruption Directorate to urgently analyse the way in which cases are opened targeting journalists and to send a signal both internally and publicly that abusive cases and actions targeting them are not tolerated. We also call on these institutions to propose, together with specialists or organizations dealing with the protection of journalists, guides that would support magistrates in addressing cases involving journalists in order to avoid possible abuses, especially in the context of guarantees brought by the new European Media Freedom Act 2024/1083 (EMFA).

Signed:



ActiveWatch

Centrul pentru Jurnalism Independent

International Press Institute (IPI)

Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT)

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Context.ro

Centrul FILIA

Emilia Șercan, jurnalistă

Centrul de Investigații Media

Redacția Scena9

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Mona Dîrțu, jurnalistă

Buletin de București

Panorama.ro

Redacția Hotnews

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Redacția PressOne

Diana Oncioiu, jurnalistă
Redacția Recorder

Misreport

Investigatoria

Mihaela Steliana Munteanu, jurnalistă

Magda Grădinaru – jurnalistă, Spotmedia/Rock FM

Facultatea de Jurnalism și Științele Comunicării, Universitatea din București
Fundația Friends For Friends

FONSS- Federația Organizațiilor Neguvernamentale pentru Servicii Sociale

Centrul pentru Inovare Publică

Miliția Spirituală

Asociația Respiro Human Rights Research Centre

ApTI – Asociația pentru Tehnologie și Internet

Teodora Munteanu, jurnalistă

Redacția Ziarul de Iași

Silviu Istrate, creator conținut

Redacția Radio HIT Iași

Mediawise Society

Raluca Radu, profesor și cercetător de media

Centrul de Resurse Juridice

Redactia Info Sud-Est

Redacția Special Arad

Anca Spânu – jurnalistă, Viaţa liberă Galaţi

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