Romania passes key law on impeachment referendum

Romania's interim president Crin Antonescu said Monday he had approved a law on a referendum being held this month on the impeachment of suspended president Traian Basescu. "I decided to approve this law and I believe this puts an end to a burning issue," he said, referring to the European Commission's insistence that the referendum on impeaching Basescu should have a turnout exceeding 50 percent. Romania's consitutional court decided last week that the July 29 referendum on whether Basescu should be impeached could only be valid if more than 50 percent of voters took part. The centre-left Social Liberal Union (USL) ruling coalition had until now refused to explicitly commit itself to that requirement. Antonescu himself expressed his personal reservations about the measure even as he announced it. Last week, the European Commission called on Romania to respect the constitutional court's rulings on how the referendum should be run. The United States has also expressed its concern. On Friday, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland called on Romania to conduct the impeachment proceedings in "a fully fair and transparent manner, with scrupulous respect for the rule of law and democratic ideals."