Romania: CFWIJ condemns the unlawful legal action against Diana Oncioiu

June 4, 2021 - Writer and investigative journalist Diana Oncioiu, associated with Sa Fie Lumina, is facing legal prosecution as per a petition filed by a former bishop of Varatec Monastery. The Bishop has sued Diana, two of her fellow reporters, Center for Investigative Media (CIM), and Dela0.ro over the series of articles published against him on the website. The bishop was accused of sexually abusing a number of minors during his tenure at Orthodox Christian high school. Sa Fie Lumina was jointly designed by CIM and Dela0.ro. CFWIJ demands Romanian law enforcement authorities drop the prosecution against Diana and other journalists as they only did their job in the best interest of the public.

Articles written by Diana and fellow journalists Ovidiu Vanghele and Vlad Stoicescu from August 2019 to February 2021 gave detailed accounts of sexual assaults committed by the former bishop. These claims led the prosecutors to re-open the criminal proceedings against him. The bishop is now facing a trial for the rape assault- a claim filed by an 18 years old boy against him. 

Sa Fie Lumina shared the details on their Facebook page stating that they are being pushed into a judicial fight which is long and expensive- both financially and in terms of time. 

As per Facebook post by the website, the defamation lawsuit has not been communicated to the parties yet. In addition to this lawsuit, the former bishop has also requested a ruling against CIM, to seek orders for removing 13 news stories from the platform. The lawsuit and request for interim ruling were submitted before the Bucharest Tribunal on March 2. 

Diana has faced grave threats to her life via unknown calls from random people. She was warned to stop contacting priests and if she continues to write about the church, her head will be broken once she leaves the home. She went to the police and registered her complaint demanding apprehension of the perpetrators behind these threats. 

The Coalition For Women In Journalism stands in solidarity with Diana Oncioiu and demands Romanian judicial authorities to not cater to a dubious request filed by a possible rapist. We hope that Diana and her colleagues remain safe and keep working without facing any intimidation.