Foreign press on Liviu Dragnea’s conviction: A “bitter blow” to the most powerful man in the country

The news that PSD leader Liviu Dragnea received a 3.5-year jail sentence last night also made it to other countries, and many international press outlets covered the story.  

Deutsche Welle writes that “the court’s decision will likely weaken his ability to influence national politics” and that this wasn’t the first time Dragnea has been convicted.

The Guardian writes that Dragnea, “regarded as the most powerful man in the country, was convicted of abuse of power” and that he is expected to appeal. “The news was greeted with delight by flag-waving crowds in Bucharest, where pro- and anti-government demonstrations have brought tens of thousands of protestors to the streets in recent weeks.”

Reuters recalls that earlier in the week “parliament approved legal changes that critics said could encourage criminals to act with impunity, the latest twist in a regional drama that has exposed the fragility of eastern Europe’s post-communist democracies.”

The New York Times says that this was a “bitter blow to Mr Dragnea, who many consider to be the most powerful politician in the country,” and that “the verdict came in the face of escalating attacks by Mr Dragnea and his supporters on the justice system and claims that he was the victim of a “parallel state” cabal.”

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Al Jazeera writes about the pressures the PSD has been putting on magistrates since they returned to power since 2016: “In the weeks leading up to Thursday’s sentence, judges and prosecutors denounced increasing pressure on them and reacted sharply after Liviu Dragnea compared prosecutors with the communist-era secret police during a TV interview.”