[JURIST] The Constitutional Court of Romania [official website] declined on Thursday to rule on a controversial decree decriminalizing certain corruption offenses. The decree was introduced [JURIST report] by the government last week and then referred to the court for review, but the ruling Social Democrats withdrew the decree two days after the referral due to massive protests. The court has declined [Reuters report] review because a withdrawal of a decree has the effect that it no longer exists. However, the withdrawal must be approved by the Romanian Parliament [official website].

The controversial decree was passed [JURIST report] this week, sparking immediate demonstrations. The decree was originally drafted on January 18. The following day, the government published a draft of a plan to reduce prison overcrowding [JURIST report] that involved pardons for thousands of prisoners, which was met with protests around the country. The government insisted that a referendum [JURIST report] on the government’s plan to pardon the prisoners was needed despite protests. The decree was repealed [JURIST report] on Saturday, but protests continue in many parts of Romania. In a statement following the repeal, the government noted that it had heard the voice of the street and did not want to divide Romania. Many of the demonstrations [Al Jazeera report] are calling for the government to step down, despite the repeal of the decree. In 2015 Romania’s Superior Magistrates’ Council rejected 22 proposals that would have made it harder to fight top-level corruption [JURIST report].