The American Ambassador in Bucharest, Nicholas Taubman, made a series of extremely rough statements on Thursday, accusing the Parliament's attempt to reduce the independence of prosecutors.

Participating in the "Civil Society Consolidation" program closing ceremony, Taubman attacked the project tabled in the House of Deputies for the modification of the Penal Code and the Penal Procedure Code.

According to Taubman, it is a matter of common sense the fact that a law which makes almost impossible the application of search warrants - unless the suspect is warned before the search - is a bad law in cases like the ones dealing with drug trafficking.

The American diplomat expressed his concern on the recent Parliamentarian initiatives designed to weaken the power of prosecutors and law enforcement authorities.

Taubman says he was informed, while meeting Romanian officials, on the "negative impact" the recent Parliamentarian amendments to the criminal laws may have on the way investigations are conducted and the way prosecutors may efficiently prove their accusations.

According to the Ambassador, the instruments and techniques the Romanian parliamentarians try to eliminate are the same instruments and techniques widely used in Europe and the United States.

After discussing the fact that the amendments were approved almost without any debate, Taubman said he was surprised to see that a TV station which presented an alleged corruption case (Agriculture Minister Remes accepting bribe, our note) made politicians attack the media institution and the journalists, instead of focusing on the accusations.