Amid the unrest, Bucharest police used tear gas against protesters, who threw firecrackers and smoke bombs at officers. Three policemen and two protesters were reported to have been injured in clashes.
Return of the Social Democrats
The protests began shortly after the parliamentary elections which saw the victory of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) Sorin Grindeanu candidate becoming Romanian Prime Minister.
The PSD's return came after the Social Democrats' government had to resign following a horrendous fire in a Bucharest nightclub in which 58 people died in November 2015. Investigators found out that PSD members had turned a blind eye to safety violations made by the club's owners.
Taking power in Romania at the time was the opposition National Liberal Party (PNL), who finally yielded to the PSD due to their unpopular austerity measures and permanent coordination of their actions with the European bureaucracy.
Pardon for corrupt officials
Fueling the protests was the Romanian government's recent decision to adopt a controversial emergency law decriminalizing abuse of power and corruption offenses by public officials.
The country's new government, elected in December, explained that the law was necessary to help align the criminal code with rulings by the Constitutional Court.
But opposition activists insisted that PSD ministers simply want to "forgive" their own party members accused of corruption crimes.
One official who was expected to benefit directly from the new law was Liviu Dragnea, the leader of the Social Democratic Party and President of the Chamber of Deputies, Romania's lower house of parliament.
Creative ENG #protest banners. Favs: "Live long &…" "No country…" #romanianprotests #Romania #corruption pic.twitter.com/qSBa74GiQ8
— Valentina Dimulescu (@ValDimulescu) 4 февраля 2017 г.
Dragnea was caught defrauding the state to the equivalent of about $25,880, and the decree would have freed him from criminal charges.
Romania split in two
On Saturday evening, Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu told local media that "Romania seems broken in two" and that the government "will have an emergency meeting to revoke this ordinance."
"I do not want to divide Romania. Romania can't be split into two. Right now Romania seems broken in two. My last desire is to witness this," Grindeanu said.
Last week, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said that he was going to challenge the new government decree at the Constitutional Court, while Romania's major opposition parties, including Save Romania Union and the National Liberal Party, promised to file a no-confidence motion against the government later this week.
Meanwhile, Florin Jianu, Minister of Business, Trade and Entrepreneurship, announced his resignation in what he said was an "ethical" decision.
On Sunday, Romanian television network Digi24 reported that the government had moved forward and repealed the law amid the opposition's demands that the government should step down and early elections should be held.
Witty/sad #protest banner #anticorruption #romanianprotests 3d day #romania pic.twitter.com/zhd6vGmhAR
— Valentina Dimulescu (@ValDimulescu) 2 февраля 2017 г.
The PSD insists that all this indicates the opposition's push for seizing power in Romania.
"The scope, organization and funding of the demonstrations show that the protests are coordinated by professionals," Grindeanu said.
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