Parliamentary immunity – limit of democracy in postcommunist Romania

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate one of the most debatable aspects of the post-communist parliamentary life in Romania: the parliamentary immunity. Initially developed as an instrument of maintaining the Legislative (the Parliament)’s independence, autonomy and integrity against the Executive (the Monarch)’s influence, the present statute of the parliamentary immunity in Romania has been facing different stages of decrease concerning its role and meaning. Who is responsible for bending the limits of this institution? In which way does the parliamentary immunity affect the democratic life in Romania? These are essential questions that this study seeks to answer.

Keywords

• Parliamentary immunity
• elites
• constitution
• parliament
• representative democracy