BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) - A former chief anti-corruption prosecutor in Romania said Tuesday she has sued the country’s government in the European Court of Human Rights over her firing.
The government forced the dismissal of National Anti-Corruption Directorate Chief Prosecutor Laura Codruta Kovesi in July, alleging mismanagement and overstepping her authority.
Kovesi said she was sacked unfairly and had her rights violated when she was denied the right to appeal a Constitutional Court decision that ordered her firing.
Justice Minister Tudorel Toader initiated the demand for her dismissal in a 20-point report which critics said was politically motivated. President Klaus Iohannis refused, saying there were no grounds to remove Kovesi.
The court in June ordered Iohannis to fire the prosecutor, which he did. Its ruling was final and Kovesi couldn’t appeal or respond to what she insisted were unfair allegations.
Kovesi said she filed her complaint last month.
Also Tuesday, the acting chief of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate completed her six-month term in the job and said the battle against graft in Romania must continue.
Prosecutor General Augustin Lazar appointed Anca Jurma to the position after Kovesi was fired. Jurma did not seek another term.
Amid concerns the government is backsliding on its pledges to root out corruption, Jurma praised colleagues for uncovering “grave acts of corruption, regardless of the person’s rank or notoriety.”
Romania took on the rotating presidency of the European Union this month and has come under renewed scrutiny for a contentious judicial overhaul critics say is designed to protect corrupt officials.
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