PG replies to IntMin Dan: Documents must be declassified for parties and lawyers to check them

The Prosecutor General's Office maintains that the declassification of the documents in the case file regarding the violent incidents recorded during the August 10 protests was needed in order for the parties and their lawyers to be able to check them.

The Public Prosecution Service published on its Facebook page a reaction to Interior Minister Carmen Dan's statements that prosecutors have unrestricted access to all documents that are classified as work secret or state secret.

"Given the statements launched in the public space that there is no need to declassify certain documents for, according to Law no. 182/2002 on protection of classified information, prosecutors have unrestricted access to all the documents falling under this category, the information and public relations office specifies the following: the declassification of certain documents is needed in order to ensure the equitable nature of criminal prosecution, as well as for the rights of the parties and the concerned main litigants to be observed. In this respect, the documents must be declassified, in order to be included with the rest of the file and checked by the parties, concerned main litigants and their lawyers, for only like this the principle of equality of arms can be observed and the truth can be discovered," mentions the the press release of the Prosecutor General's Office.

The Prosecutor's Office also brought to mind a decision of the Constitutional Court in this respect.

"Regarding the need of finding the truth in the criminal trial, the Constitutional Court's resolution no. 21 of January 18 2018 says that "any information that could be useful in finding the truth must be used in the criminal trial." Moreover, the Constitutional Court appreciates that "the protection of classified information shall not be considered a priority against the right to information of the defendant and the guarantee of an equitable trial for all parties," specifies the Prosecutor General's Office.

On Monday, the Minister of Interior, Carmen Dan, stated that the prosecutors working on the case file regarding the intervention of the gendarmes during August 10 protests do have access to the classified information from the report made after the protests.

"Not long ago, the prosecutor general launched another statement in the public space regarding the fact that the prosecutors have slow access to the documents that they need to analyze, for these documents are classified. I believe that he wouldn't make such statement if he had done the minimum effort to read the Law no. 182/2002 regarding the protection of classified information, which says it very clearly, in the article 7 paragraph 4 that the prosecutors must have free access to all the documents that are classified as work secret or state secret, as long as they are validly appointed and sworn into office," said Carmen Dan.