Romania's government was meeting today to repeal an emergency decree that decriminalizes official misconduct, a law that has prompted massive protests at home and widespread condemnation from abroad.
In an abrupt about-face, Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu said he would implement the measure at an emergency meeting because he didn't want to "divide Romania ... Romania in this moment seems broken in two."
Protesters were angry that the measure waters down the country's fight against corrupt officials, including the ruling Social Democrats' party leader, and that it was passed in the middle of the night Wednesday by emergency decree with no input from parliament.
Tens of thousands took to the streets for the fifth consecutive day yesterday and another huge rally is expected today.
Protesters began gathering today morning outside government offices in Bucharest, the capital, and some expressed doubt that the government would actually withdraw the measure.
Ina Dumitriu, a 30-year-old architect on bicycle, said the prime minister's announcement "seemed a little vague to me, it's not very clear to me what exactly they want to do. " But another protester, Ioana Molnar, 34, said she was hopeful for change.
"The bottom line is that our expectations are simply common decency. We want politicians to treat us with common decency," she said. "I think that things will change and the more of us that gather means they won't be able to ignore us."
The Constitutional Court is still scheduled to rule on the legality of the decree this week.
Liviu Dragnea, head of the ruling Social Democrats, is one of those who would have benefited from the new decree. He is banned by law from serving as prime minister because he was handed a two-year prison sentence in April 2016 for vote-rigging.
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