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Tag: deaths

Number and severity of car accidents in Romania, on the rise

Romania ranks first in terms of road accident fatalities in the EU, a Eurostat report has found. According to the European report, the lowest rate of road traffic fatalities caused in 2019 was reported in Sweden (22 deaths per million inhabitants), Ireland (29) and Malta (32), whereas the highest number of cases was in Romania (96) and Bulgaria (90), followed by Poland (77) and Croatia (73).

With the EU aiming to completely eliminate road traffic accidents by 2050 and to halve their number by 2030, the total number of people killed in car accidents in the Union as a whole was 51 in 2019. However, in Romania, in the first 7 months of this year alone, over 900 people have died.

The main 3 causes are the failure to adjust the speed to particular traffic conditions, jaywalking and pedestrians using the carriageways. Inspections found countless road infrastructure and signalling issues, such as absent or deteriorated road signs, damages in carriageways, including potholes and road bumps, inadequate signalling in crossroads, the presence of obstacles or vegetation affecting road sign visibility. A major problem is also the absence of separators on 4-lane roads to prevent vehicle crossovers and therefore collision.

This is a tragedy and there is no doubt that an important element is the lack of roads, president Klaus Iohannis said. People are extremely impatient all the time, and this is another factor causing all kinds of incidents, the head of state added. Iohannis concluded that legislation must be tougher, and drivers need to be more disciplined.

In a move to address the situation, the interior ministry plans to amend the Road Traffic Code and introduce tougher penalties. “Aggressive driving will thus entail a fine and a 120-day license suspension. Moreover, U-turns or driving backwards on a motorway, and crossing into opposing lanes will also be fined. A 90-day driving license suspension and a fine will also be introduced for the unjustified use of motorway emergency lanes.

The interior ministry is also considering revising the legal framework regulating driving license tests, so as to improve the theoretical education and practical training of future drivers. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

5 August 2021
Controversial reports regarding Covid 19-related fatalities

The conclusions of an investigation
into the different reports on the Covid-related deaths released by the two
information platforms the authorities rely on will be used to improve
procedures, so that such errors may no longer appear. The statement belongs to the incumbent Health
Minister Ioana Mihaila who went to Parliament on Monday to explain the
situation upon a request from the opposition PSD.

According to a report published
earlier, there was a 13% difference between the two platforms, which gives a
series of explanations concerning some technical or human errors. The Health
Ministry, which drew up the document considers the situation is justified to a
certain extent, partially acceptable and unavoidable and was caused by the
aggravated epidemiological situation at the end of 2020.

Another cause included in the document
is referring to hospital structures, which either failed to report all
Covid-related fatalities to the ministry or have included them among other
types of deaths. The document concludes that this sort of double reporting
entails confusion, additional efforts to validate the data as well as wasted resources.

According to the Ministry, heard by
Parliament on Monday, the difference between the two reports is due to human
error and misunderstood methodologies, which have been amended several times
since the beginning of the pandemic.

Minister Mihaila, who was not in
office at that time, has admitted the system’s failures pledging that measures
will be taken to ensure the reform. The official has blamed the error on a
committee appointed in a previous mandate pledging that sanctions are to be
slapped shortly on those responsible.

We are not on a witch hunt, but we
have the right information to take the measures required, Minister Mihaila went
on to say. The Social Democratic MPs were not satisfied with the answers
provided pointing to the centre-to-right government’s lack of professionalism
in handling the pandemic.

MP Alexandru Rafila says that constantly
doubting the figures concerning the tests conducted, the number of patients,
the vaccinated persons and the fatalities registered through contradictory
statements and distorted figures provided by the authorities has enraged the
population. He recollected that the PSD
has called for the setting up of a Parliament Committee able to investigate
this unprecedented situation to hear the representatives of the institutions in
charge and publish the conclusion. However, the Parliament majority has vetoed
the project.

The ruling alliance’s way to handle
the pandemic has also attracted heat from another opposition party AUR and during
the debates the National Liberal Party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic
Hungarians in Romania have called for unequivocal data release. The ruling
USR-PLUS has underlined that the people’s trust in the measures taken by the
authorities hinges on the restoration of truth concerning the pandemic-related
data. Prime Minister Florin Citu last week explained that such errors were
present in all EU countries.

(bill)

18 May 2021
October 8, 2020

PANDEMIC According to worldometers.info,
36 million people have so far tested positive for the novel Covid-19 virus
while one million people died worldwide. The United States seems to be the most
affected country with 7.7 million infections and over 216 thousand deaths.
India has reported over 6.8 million cases and over 105 thousand fatalities. In
Italy, authorities have also called on the military to get involved in checking
the observance of safety rules; the state of emergency in this country has been
extended to another three months and people must wear masks everywhere. Italy
is seeing a rising number of Covid infections, which has reached 37 hundred new
cases with 31 fatalities reported. France has also reported roughly 19 thousand
infections in the past 24 hours.

FOOTBALL Romania’s national football side tonight plays Iceland in an away game counting
towards the semis of the qualification playoffs for the European Championship
next year. If they qualify, on November 12th, the Romanians will be
up against the winner of the match pitching Hungary against Bulgaria. Romania
tops the 1B group of the Nations League after a one-all draw against Northern
Ireland and a 3-2 win against Austria. The group also includes Norway, which
the Romanians will be playing on Sunday in an away game. On Friday, Romania’s
under 21 side plays Ukraine in a match counting towards the Euro Under 21
preliminaries. Denmark tops the table with 19 points followed by Romania with
16.

COVID – 19 In the past 24 hours Romania has reported a record
number in Covid infections, 3130 cases with a death toll of 44, in a single
day. Intensive care units have reported 607 patients. Since the beginning of
the pandemic in late February over 145 thousand Romanians have been infected
with the novel coronavirus out of which over 113 thousand have been cured and
over 52 hundred died. At present roughly 83 hundred confirmed Covid patients
are being treated in hospitals and over 20 thousand are in home isolation. Authorities
have made fresh appeals for the observance of prevention and safety measures.
In Bucharest and in other areas where the infection rate has exceeded 1.5 cases
per thousand certain activities have been suspended. Restaurants have been
closed down and some indoor activities have ceased. People must wear mask close
to schools and other education facilities.

TALKS Two Romanian ministers are in the USA for talks with
the local authorities. Romania’s defence minister Nicolae Ciuca will be having
talks with the US secretary of Defence Mark Esper about the latest developments
in the Black Sea region as well as the need for coherent and consistent defence
and deterrence measures in the NATO eastern flank. The Romanian Minister of the
Economy, Energy and Business Environment, Virgil Popescu will be meeting the US
Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette for talks on the development of the energy
dimension of the strategic partnership between Bucharest and Washington and a
higher US involvement in Romania’s energy sector.

(bill)

8 October 2020
September 24, 2020

Corona Ro — Following tests conducted at national level, 1,639 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection have been reported in Romania as against the latest reporting. 41 people have died taking the death toll to 4,591. 506 persons infected with the new coronavirus are in ICUs. The health minister Nelu Tataru announced that 103 million face masks have been distributed across the country for the disadvantaged. He added that he did not expect a new state of emergency to be declared, which would force people to isolate themselves in their homes, and urged people to observe the rules for preventing the spread of the new coronavirus. Minister Tataru warned that if people failed to observe the rules the number of cases of infection would definitely grow.

Corona world — There are more than 32 million cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection around the world, with 980 thousand people having been killed by the virus, shows worldometers.info. In France, the daily rise in the number of infections has brought restrictions back. The health minister Olivier Véran says the situation has worsened in the past two weeks, the spread of the virus being more intense in big urban agglomerations. Marseille and its metropolitan area are currently on high alert and as of Monday firm restrictions have been implemented for at least 2 weeks: bars, restaurants and cafes were closed as well as other public areas, with several exceptions, and most people returned to working from home. In Spain, the Spanish doctors are preparing for protests after asking the government for many months, but to no avail though, to adopt further measures and allot more resources to avoid the collapse of the public health system extremely pressured by the coronavirus pandemic. In Israel the coronavirus ministerial committee considers necessary a total lockdown starting on Friday, due to the big number of infections.

Meeting — The Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu is participating today in the e-meeting of the foreign ministers of the Central European Initiative hosted by Montenegro, which is the incumbent president of the organization. The participants are looking into the preliminary results of the efforts made at national, regional and European levels to manage the COVID-19 pandemic and into the prospects for social and economic recovery for the 17 member states. The Central European Initiative is a political platform that contributes to connecting the countries neighboring the EU to the Union’s values and standards. Romania joined the Central European Initiative on June 1, 1996.

Football — Romania’s football champions CFR Cluj (northwest) are playing today away from home against the Swedish team Djurgaarden fighting for a place in the Europa League play-offs. Also Cup holders FCSB from Bucharest are trying to reach the playoffs for the groups of the second continental competition, but their mission seems impossible. Most of the FCSB footballers are sick with the new coronavirus and the team will be improvised for the match on home turf to be played against Slovan Liberec.

Tennis — 5 tennis players from Romania, who won on Tuesday and Wednesday in the first qualifying round for the main table of the singles competition of the grand slam tournament in Roland Garros, are today playing in the second round. Elena Ruse (178 WTA) will be up against the American Francesca Di Lorenzo (134 WTA), and Irina Bara (163 WTA) will play against the British Harriet Dart (150 WTA). Monica Niculescu (141 WTA), 14th seeded will play the Bulgarian Eliţa Kostova (212 WTA). Jaqueline Cristian (166 WTA) faces Nadia Podoroska (130 WTA), while Laura Ioana Paar (199 WTA) will play against the Ukrainian Marta Kostiuk 2nd seed (119 WTA). 5 Romanian players have entered the main table directly Simona Halep (top seed), Patricia Ţig, Irina Begu, Sorana Cîrstea and Ana Bogdan.

Belarus — The US does not consider Aleksandr Lukashenko as the legitimate president of Belarus, said Wednesday the US State Department representative after Lukashenko was secretly sworn in for a 6^th consecutive term in office as president of the state, France Press reports. The election of August 9 was neither free nor fair and the announced results were rigged and do not give any legitimacy to the winner, said a spokesperson for the American diplomacy as quoted by FP. The EU does not recognize the result of the presidential election in Belarus either. (tr. L. Simion)

24 September 2020
More than 1,000 people killed by COVID-19 in Romania

The number of people killed by the new coronavirus in Romania has exceeded the threshold of 1,000 persons. According to the Strategic Communication Group, which publishes the official figures reported by the authorities on a daily basis, around 16,000 people have been contaminated across Romania since the confirmation of the first case of coronavirus infection in the country, at the end of February. The good news is that about half of the infected people have recovered from the infection.

For more than two weeks now, the active cases of coronavirus infection in Romania have stabilized at around 7,300-7,500. Moreover, the average number of people who have recovered started to get closer or even exceed, in some days, the number of new contaminations announced daily. But, the number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care units has remained constant in this period, at about 250 cases each day. So far, about 270 thousand tests have been processed across Romania.

Statistics show that Romania is the country with the highest number of deaths from Central and Eastern Europe. As regards the Romanian citizens in the Diaspora, the information provided by Romania’s diplomatic missions and consular offices abroad shows that around 3,000 Romanian citizens have been infected with the new coronavirus. More than half of these cases were reported in Italy, but many cases have equally been registered in Spain and Germany. Since the start of the pandemic, over 100 Romanian citizens from abroad have died, most of them in Great Britain, Italy and France — official data show.

Some experts say that the rate of infection with COVID-19 is the same for men, women and children, but their response to the infection is very different. The most vulnerable persons in the face of the new coronavirus are the old people and the people with chronic diseases, although gender is equally important. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the most vulnerable people are the elderly suffering from cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, high blood pressure, respiratory system diseases and cancer. The pulmonary complications caused by the new coronavirus have killed more men, the WHO shows. As for children, they are not in the vulnerable category.

We recall that after two months of state of emergency in Romania, there will follow a ‘state of alert’ period which means that severe restrictions will be relaxed, but there will be new obligations. The authorities have announced that measures to combat the spread of COVID-19 are still needed. Therefore, as of Friday, May 15, face masks must be worn in public spaces and in public transportation means. During the ‘state of alert’ period, Romanians will no longer need a self-declaration to leave their homes, but they will need one to leave the city. (translation by L. Simion)

13 May 2020
March 22, 2020 UPDATE 23

COVID-19 Romania As of Sunday night Bucharest introduced new restrictions to contain the spreading of COVID-19, including a 10p.m to 6a.m. curfew. People will be allowed to leave their homes at night only for work-related purposes, or to buy food or other essential items. The authorities urge people to also limit daytime outdoor activities as much as possible. Retail will be temporarily suspended, except for foodstuffs, veterinary products and pharmaceuticals. Dentists offices will also be closed, except for emergency interventions. Romania has also closed borders for foreign citizens and stateless persons, except for transit corridors agreed on with neighbouring states. Exceptions to this rule include foreign family members of Romanian citizens, family members of other EU citizens or citizens of the European Economic Area or the Swiss Confederation residing in Romania, people traveling for work-related purposes, diplomatic and consular personnel, staff of international organisations, military and humanitarian personnel, passengers transiting Romania or passengers travelling for strict medical or family-related emergencies, people in need of international protection or people traveling for humanitarian reasons.

UPDATE Romania has reported three deaths caused by COVID-19 in the country. According to the Strategic Communication Group, so far 433 cases have been confirmed in Romania, with 64 of them recovered and discharged. The average age of the patients is 41. According to the Foreign Ministry, 8 Romanian citizens have died abroad because of the COVID-19, 7 in Italy and 1 in France.

EU The Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu will take part on Monday in an informal meeting of the EU foreign ministers, held via conference call. The agenda focuses on the international response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The EU officials will also discuss current affairs, such as the latest developments in Syria and Turkey.

TRIBUTE The well-known Romanian anthropologist Vintilă Mihăilescu died, aged 68. In 1990, he established the Romanian Cultural Anthropology Society, and between 2005 and 2010 he was the director of the Romanian Peasant Museum. Vintilă Mihăilescu was a visiting professor in many universities and advanced research centres in Canada, France, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Bulgaria and Hungary. In 2006 the President of Romania made him a Knight of the National Order Faithful Service and in 2007 a Grand Officer of the Cultural Merit Order.

COVID-19 world The president of Italy Sergio Mattarella sent a letter to his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier, expressing hope that other countries will be able to learn from his countrys battle against the novel coronavirus pandemic, DPA reports. Mattarella also thanked Steinmeier for the solidarity and aid provided by Germany, which has sent healthcare products to Italy. Italy is the worst-hit country in Europe, with nearly 5,000 deaths reported by Sunday. Europe reported over 150,000 COVID-19 cases, more than 53,000 in Italy alone, according to a report worked out by AFP based on official sources. With at least 152,000 cases and 7,800 deaths, Europe is the most affected continent, ahead of Asia, where 97,000 people got sick and nearly 3,500 died. According to France Presse, the official number of cases is only part of the actual number of coronavirus infections, given that in many countries only hospitalised patients are being tested. Around the world, 320,000 COVID-19 cases have been reported since the epidemic started. The death toll reached 13,700 and 96,000 patients have recovered.

WATER The UN calls for better use of water to help fight climate change. In a report issued on World Water Day, the organisation emphasised that better management of water resources may contain global warming. The UN says treating larger quantities of used water should be one of the priorities. Up to 90% of the used water is not treated at present, although it is an important source of methane, which is a greenhouse gas. The UN also asks for the protection and reconstruction of wetlands, which store twice as much carbon as forests, while also preventing floods and providing a habitat for wildlife. The report criticises the lack of cooperation between governments in the field of global warming and water management.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

22 March 2020
March 20, 2020

COVID-19 Romania In about 10 days we will be able to predict the peak of the coronavirus epidemic in Romania, the health minister Victor Costache told a private TV station on Thursday night. He added that the authorities are unable to make this estimate at present because it depends on the number of Romanians returning from abroad. Costache explained that if the number of cases reaches 4,000, which is the maximum that the Romanian healthcare system can handle, the patients with mild forms of the disease will be treated at home. The authorities will announce new restrictions in the coming days, Victor Costache also said. Meanwhile, the government has announced tougher penalties for thwarting efforts to combat the epidemic and for false representations in relation to the COVID-19. The decision comes after fines and scores of criminal investigations have been initiated against people who disregarded self-isolation rules or lied about coming from red zones in order to avoid the quarantine. The new penalties go as far as to 15 years in prison. So far 308 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Romania, with 2 patients in critical condition.

COVID-19 world The total death toll of the coronavirus pandemic has gone over 10,000 today, according to the latest data made public by the John Hopkins Center for Systems Science and Engineering in the US. A total of 10,030 people out of 244,517 confirmed cases died from the novel coronavirus disease. Italy reports the largest number of deaths, over 3,400. Other countries with significant death figures include China, Iran, Spain, France, the US and Britain. Whereas China reports no new locally transmitted cases, and the new cases are citizens coming from abroad, in Europe the situation continues to worsen. The EU has closed its borders for foreign citizens and banned all non-essential travel in the Schengen area, to slow down the spreading of the disease. EU leaders will hold a new conference call on March 26 to discuss the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic. On the same day, the European Parliament intends to increase the aid package planned by the Union for the business environment. The European Central Bank has already announced 750 billion euros in emergency funds will be channelled into government and private debt, in an attempt to contain the economic effects of the pandemic. Estimates point to a possible 5% drop of the Eurozone GDP this year.

RADIO Radio Romania News and Current affairs and all public radio stations in Europe broadcast the song Youll Never Walk Alone as a show of unity amid the COVID-19 pandemic. European broadcasters aired today the Gerry and The Pacemakers piece simultaneously, urging people to stay at home in order to help contain the pandemic. Known as an anthem of Liverpool football club, among others, the song You’ll Never Walk Alone was written in 1945 and has been covered by many artists over the years.

PRAYER Catholics around the world Thursday night joined Pope Francis in prayer for an end to the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more people in Italy then in any other part of the world, Reuters reports. Italian bishops urged Catholics in the country to light candles in the windows and pray at home, as a sign of unity and solidarity. The initiative was announced early this week and was disseminated by social media around the world. The Pope is self-isolating at the Vatican. Last Sunday he walked on Romes empty streets to pray in 2 churches for an end to the pandemic. The Vatican announced that for the first time, the Easter mass will be held without public participation.

FILM The Cannes Film Festival will most likely be postponed to June or July over COVID-19 concerns, the organisers have announced. The 73rd Cannes Festival was scheduled to take place between May 12 and 23. Hollywood will no longer make public box office figures, after theatres have been closed down in many countries, making last weekend the worst in 2 decades in this respect. Over the past few days the US, Canada, UK, Italy, France, South Korea closed down cinema halls due to restrictions concerning indoor events, while theatres in China, Hollywoods biggest foreign market, have been closed for weeks because of the pandemic.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

20 March 2020
March 17, 2020

COVID-19 Romania President Klaus Iohannis is today chairing a meeting held by conference call with PM Ludovic Orban and the ministers involved in the management of the COVID-19 outbreak. Also today, Klaus Iohannis is taking part in a European Council conference call focusing on measures to manage the crisis. The head of the Romanian state Monday signed an order introducing a 30-day state of emergency in Romania. The document is to be voted on in Parliament on Thursday. According to official data, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Romania has reached 184, with 16 people already recovered. Around 3,300 people are in quarantine facilities and nearly 16,600 are self-isolating at home under medical supervision. Scores of criminal investigations have been initiated with respect to thwarting efforts to combat diseases. All asymptomatic persons entering Romania from countries with more than 500 infections, such as Spain, France, or Germany, will enter mandatory self-isolation at home for a period of 14 days. The measure applies to people entering by air and road. Safety measures have been strengthened, with all indoor cultural, scientific, artistic, religious, sports and entertainment activities involving more than 50 people now banned. Parliament has amended its regulations to the effect that in exceptional situations meetings and votes may be held by electronic means.

COVID-19 World The number of deaths caused around the world by the new coronavirus has exceeded 7000, after Italy Monday announced 349 deaths in 24 hours. A total of over 175,000 cases have been reported so far in 145 countries. Italy, with 2,158 deaths out of 28,000 cases, is the second-worst hit country in the world, after China, which reported 3,213 deaths. France ordered a 15-day lockdown as of today. With over 9,000 cases, Spain has closed borders for non-residents and foreign workers. Hungary, too, has closed borders for foreigners. The European Commission may decide today to close the EU external borders and is considering a ban on non-essential travel. Several European countries have made the unilateral decision to close their borders, fully or partially. In many European countries, schools are closed down, public gatherings have been cancelled and business operations suspended. In the US, president Donald Trump announced strict quarantine measures and believes the epidemic may be followed by a recession. The World Health Organisation director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said governments must do more to fight the coronavirus pandemic. He also emphasised the importance of large-scale testing and screening.

STOCK MARKET The Bucharest Stock Exchange opened on the rise for all trading indices on Tuesday. Both the BET, which covers the 16 most traded companies, and the BET-Plus, which reflects the stocks of the 37 most traded companies in the Bucharest Stock Exchange, had gone up nearly 1.8%. European stock markets also recovered slightly on Tuesday, after plummeting to a 2012 low on Monday over coronavirus concerns and fears of global recession. Also on Monday, the Wall Street saw the worst decline since the 1987 Black Monday, after president Donald Trump said the coronavirus pandemic may last for months and the American economy might head towards recession. Investors are worried that the authorities will not be able to take efficient measures to address the economic damage caused by the outbreak. Meanwhile, the Philippines stock market Tuesday shut down indefinitely, the first move of this kind in the world caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

RAILWAY The Romanian Railway Corporation suspended, as of today, some international passenger services, including to and from neighbouring Bulgaria, the Republic of Moldova and Hungary, because of the coronavirus pandemic. Passenger trains to Ruse, in Bulgaria, to Chisinau, in Moldova, and local cross-border railway transport on the Hungarian border have been suspended. Passengers may request fill refunds.

2020 OLYMPICS The president of the International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach is today reviewing the situation of this summers scheduled Olympic Games, due to take place in Tokyo, Japan. In a conference call meeting with the chiefs of international federations, he may announce the postponement of the Games, over the coronavirus pandemic. Also today UEFA is to decide whether to postpone the 2020 European Championship, scheduled to take place in Romania and another 11 countries between June 12 and July 12. Bucharest is supposed to host 4 matches in the final tournament. Romania failed to qualify into the Euro 2020 preliminaries, but may still gain access to the competition if they win the Nations League playoffs scheduled this month. According to the initial calendar, on March 26 Romania should play against Iceland away from home, and if it wins it should play against the winner of the match pitting Hungary against Bulgaria, on March 31.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

17 March 2020
Colectiv, three years on

On October 30th, Bucharesters commemorate three years since the devastating blaze that destroyed the Colectiv night club in Bucharest killing 64 and wounding over 100. A young man wounded in the blaze killed himself two years after the tragedy. Eugen Iancu, president of the Colectiv GTG 3010 Association and father of a young man who lost his life in the blaze told the journalists, quote: “Three years have passed since the blaze, and this entire time people who suffered injuries have been desperately trying to recover as much as possible, for they will never recover 100%. They are tired of surgeries, anesthetics, doctor appointments and pain.”

After the tragedy, Romania’s healthcare system hasn’t changed very much, being still plagued by the shortage of personnel and lack of proper equipment. Adina Apostol, one of the survivors, said that most of those who survived the tragedy and hospital infections are now running the gauntlet of the recovery procedures. Rescue teams may be quick to respond in such cases but the shortage of hospital beds and the proper equipment is taking its toll on the survivors.

According to health minister Sorina Pintea, Romania can offer proper treatment for only 11 severely burnt patients and is likely to resort to foreign support in case of a similar tragedy. In fact, no country in Europe can offer proper treatment to such a large number of victims as in the Colectiv case, Pintea went on to say. Three years on from the Colectiv tragedy, parents and survivors alike are still angry with the Romanian justice, which has failed to find and punish the culprits. Legal procedures in the Colectiv file have resumed this month, after the magistrate in charge of the casehas retired. November 9th was set as the date for submitting the evidence and for starting the hearing of the witnesses.

The situation hasn’t improved in terms of safety measures either. The latest data released by the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations show that there are still problems when it comes to granting fire safety certificates to certain night clubs, bars and restaurants. Three years since the tragedy, 6% of the pubs are still functioning without such a certificate.

A show inspired by the Colectiv tragedy was mounted on the stage of the National Dance Center in Bucharest under the title ‘153 seconds’ with a screenplay based on a survivor’s story. The project has been coordinated by director Ioana Paun who talked to survivors, sociologists and psychologists and staged a show on accepting one’s destiny. The title, ‘153 seconds’ has been inspired by the duration of the fire that ripped through the building.

30 October 2018
March 5, 2018 UPDATE

Mock exams — Unionists in the public education sector on Monday called for a boycott of the first test in the mock exams taken by 8th graders ahead of middle school graduation, namely the Romanian language and literature test. Several schools in Romania boycotted the test. Some of the problems pointed out by teachers are the effects of the new salary scheme on their incomes, the method of calculating bonuses and the scarce funds for equipment purchases. On the other hand, the Education Ministry reminded trade union leaders that the employees in the system received a 20% pay raise on March 1 and that the collective bargaining agreement is being renegotiated. Trade unions promised not to initiate a labour dispute.

Motion — The Romanian Chamber of Deputies on Monday debated a new simple motion tabled by the opposition. The motion is targeted against the education minister Valentin Popa whom the Liberals accuse of lack of professionalism in dealing with the problems of the education system. The Liberals have drawn attention to the delays in paying salaries, to the lack of money for investments, which could result in the merger and closure of certain schools. Minister Popa has rejected all accusations. The vote on the motion will take place on Friday.

Corruption — The High Court of Cassation and Justice in Bucharest on Monday acquitted, through a definitive sentence, the president of the National Liberal Party Ludovic Orban. He was accused of using his influence for obtaining undue benefits. Last month Orban was acquitted in a trial court after the National Anti-Corruption Directorate accused him that in 2016 he allegedly contacted a businessman to ask for financial help for the election campaign in the run up to the local elections when he had been appointed by the Liberal Party to run for the position of mayor of Bucharest. Also on Monday the High Court of Cassation and Justice postponed for March 22 ruling a definitive sentence in the case of the former president of the Prahova county council Mircea Cosma and his son, a former MP, Vlad Cosma, who were sentenced in a court of first instance at 8 years and 5 years in prison respectively. The two Social Democrats were prosecuted by the anti-corruption prosecutors for bribe taking, abuse of office and influence peddling. Subsequently, Vlad Cosma accused the prosecutors of having used him to fabricate evidence against several Social Democratic leaders, which caused a huge political and media scandal in Bucharest.

Drills – Over 1,700 Romanian and foreign troops will take part, as of Monday until March 15th, in a large-scale multinational exercise, organised by the Romanian Navy, in Dobrogea (south-eastern Romania) and in the international waters of the Black Sea. Spring Storm 18 is based on a unique training concept which brings together the navy, air and land forces, as part of a NATO immediate assurance action plan adopted at the 2016 Summit. Romanian troops are training jointly with fellow military from the US, France and Bulgaria, and from partner countries like Georgia and Ukraine.

Rome — In Italy, the leader of the Five Star Movement, Luigi Di Maio, on Monday claimed he had the right to govern Italy after voters did not return a majority to any single party. His anti-establishment party got 32% of the votes cast on Sunday. The coalition made up of the right wing Forza Italia and Lega Nord- the North League (far right) obtained almost 37% of the votes, while the leftist bloc, in power, got almost 23% of the votes. Italy is heading towards a Parliament without majority, after Sunday’s parliamentary elections in which the voter turnout was almost 73%. Italian analysts expect lengthy negotiations for the formation of a new government. They have remarked the failure of the center-left ruling coalition and the advance of the populist and Xenophobe parties. The European Commission expressed confidence that a stable government would be formed in Italy.

Flu — The number of people killed by the flu in Romania reached 79, the National Center for Monitoring and Controlling Transmissible Diseases announced on Monday. According to the aforementioned source, the victims were suffering from chronic diseases and had not been vaccinated against the flu.

Tennis — Romanian Simona Halep maintains the first position in the WTA ranking made public on Monday. Halep, 26, who has been holding the top position for 18 weeks, has an advance of 440 points compared to 2nd ranked Caroline Wozniacki. Third in the WTA ranking is Garbine Muguruza of Spain. Another 6 Romanian tennis players are in the WTA Top 100. Romania has two players in the WTA Race top 10: Halep on 2nd position 700 points away from the leader Caroline Wozniacki and Mihaela Buzărnescu on 10th position. (news translated and updated by Lacramioara Simion)

5 March 2018
February 24, 2018 UPDATE

EU BUDGET – EU funding, particularly the cohesion and the agriculture funds, might be lowered by up to 15% in the next EU multi-annual budget, beginning 2020 when the UK will no longer be a member. The announcement was made by the president of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker on Friday, at the end of an informal meeting of EU leaders. He added that 15 out of 27 member states were willing to raise their national contributions to the common budget. President Klaus Iohannis said at the meeting that Romania was open to the idea of contributing more than 1.1% of the GDP instead of 1%, so that the current levels of the cohesion and Common Agricultural Policy funding be maintained, which countries like Romania need in order to bridge the gaps in social and economic development compared to Western Europe. EU leaders have agreed that the Union must spend more on defence and security, for the Erasmus education programme and for curbing illegal migration. The President of the European Council Donald Tusk has announced that EU leaders are willing to step up negotiations on the next multi-annual financial framework, but that an agreement is unlikely to be reached this year.

GRECO – The Romanian Justice Minister, Tudorel Toader, this week had a meeting in Bucharest with a delegation of the Group of States against Corruption – GRECO, which traveled to Romania for an emergency assessment of the new justice laws in respect of the fight against corruption. The talks focused on the amendments to the justice laws and the practical consequences that they may have on the judiciary. The GRECO team also had meetings with representatives of other governmental agencies, the legislative power and the judiciary, as well as of relevant NGOs. GRECO said, at the end of the talks in Bucharest, that those in charge of investigating, prosecuting and trying corruption offences should benefit from adequate independence and autonomy, including in terms of disciplinary mechanisms. The delegation recommended that Bucharest requested the opinion of the Venice Commission regarding the planned judicial reform.

EDUCATION – Over 70 foreign education institutions are attending this weekend the 28th World Education Fair in Bucharest. Last year over 6,000 young Romanians chose to further their education abroad. Most of them went to Britain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany and Spain.

THE FLU – In Romania, 53 people have died from the flu this season, according to the latest report issued by the National Infectious Disease Monitoring Centre. The number of cases exceeds 800, with most of the flu patients reported in the capital city Bucharest, followed by the counties Constanta (south-east), Olt (south), Braşov (centre) and Iaşi (noth-east). The Healthcare Minister, Sorina Pintea, says we cannot speak about flu epidemic in Romania at the moment.

LOAN – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is giving out a loan of 60 million euro for the construction of a new gas pipeline crossing Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Austria (the BRUA pipeline), to support the regional European energy markets, the international financial institution announced in a news release. The funds will be given to Transgaz, the company building the Romanian segment of the gas pipeline. Totalling 1,318 km in length, the new European gas corridor will ensure better interconnection of the countries on its route, and will support the energy market enabling new connections with major infrastructure projects. The deputy PM Viorel Ştefan says the signing of the loan agreement between the EBRD and Transgaz on Friday in London is a confidence signal sent to investors with respect to business opportunities in Romania.

MILITARY – The Kandahar military base in southern Afghanistan Saturday hosted a ceremony to transfer authority from the Romanian Battalion 280 Infantry, Fearless Hearts, to Battalion 30 Mountain Troops, the Carpathian Eagles. For one month, the members of the two task forces conducted joint missions to enable the Mountain Troops to take over each segment of the theatre of operations. Among other things, the Romanian military are conducting land patrol missions on an area of 1,200 sq km, assisted by drones operated by the American partners and working together with the Afghan forces. Kandahar is Afghanistans second-largest town after the capital city Kabul. The area managed by the Romanian troops is densely populated, and threats are significant, the Radio Romania envoy reports. Analysts expect this summers parliamentary election to strengthen the Taliban presence in the region. A suicide attack by the Islamic State group in Kabul has killed 3 and wounded 5 people on Saturday.

EUROVISION – Romanias representative in the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest held in Portugal will be chosen by the public on Sunday, by televoting. Fifteen songs will be competing in the final in Bucharest. The motto of this years edition was ‘Eurovision unites Romania!’. The Eurovision is an international music competition organised by the European Broadcasting Union, the largest association of public television broadcasters in Europe, and has been aired for 60 consecutive years. Romanias best performances so far have been the 2 third places (in Kiev, 2005, with Luminiţa Anghel & Sistem and in Oslo, 2010 with Paula Seling and Ovi) and a 4th place won by Mihai Trăistariu in 2006, in Athens.

COLD WAVE – Weather experts warn that Romania will be facing a cold wave for several days. Temperatures are expected to go down to lows of 20 degrees below 0, and stay at levels 10-15 degrees Celsius below multi-annual average figures. Strong winds will be adding to the low temperatures, while snowfalls will be reported mostly in the south, centre and south-west of the country. The cold front will be in place until around March 1st.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

24 February 2018
February 19, 2018 UPDATE

PARLIAMENT – The Chamber of Deputies Monday discussed a simple motion tabled by the Liberals in Opposition against the Labour Minister, Lia Olguta Vasilescu. The Liberals criticise the drop in salaries for certain employee categories further to the introduction of the unified wage scheme and the transfer of social security payments from employers to employees. In turn, the Labour Minister says there are no statistical data to verify the claims that 2 million Romanians have seen their incomes drop further to the “fiscal revolution. MPs will vote on the motion on Wednesday.

EIB – Romania is interested in further benefitting from the variety of financing instruments offered by the European Investment Bank, especially those that help improve the absorption of non-reimbursable EU funding, the Romanian Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici said in Bucharest on Monday, after a meeting with the EIB vice-president Andrew McDowell. In turn, the EIB official pointed out that the banks products are designed to reduce the investment deficit in Romania, to contribute to the countrys economic growth and to help create new jobs. According to an EIB report made public on Monday in Bucharest, over the past 25 years the group has granted loans of over 13 billion euros to Romania. Official data indicate that in 2017 alone, the EIB Group, which comprises the EIB and the European Investment Fund, provided support to Romania amounting to 1.9 billion euros.

TRANSPORT – The European Commission announced on Monday that 1.3 billion euro in cohesion funds will be invested in upgrading a section of the railway corridor connecting Curtici, on the Romanian – Hungarian border, to Constanta on the Black Sea Coast, reads a news release issued by the EC Representation in Bucharest. The works will target a significant improvement of speed and safety on the segment between Curtici and the town of Simeria, where 13 railway stations will be upgraded, the improvement of the signalling and passenger information systems and the building of related infrastructure, such as bridges and tunnels.

FLU – Another 3 people died from the flu in Romania, with the death toll reaching 35, and more than 500 cases reported, the authorities announced on Monday. Most of the cases are reported in Bucharest, followed by the counties Constanta (in the south-east), Olt (south), Brasov (centre) and Iasi (north-east). The authorities recommend vaccination, and the Healthcare Ministry announces around 80,000 shots are still available. So far more than 920,000 people have got flu shots. The Healthcare Minister Sorina Pintea says Romania is not facing a flu epidemic. She added that prevention measures are of the utmost importance, while hospitals and public health authorities must implement all the necessary measures.

JUDICIARY – The High Court of Cassation and Justice will pass a final ruling on March 5 in a case where Ludovic Orban, the president of the main Opposition party, the right-wing National Liberal Party, was tried for influence peddling with a view to obtaining undue benefits. The National Anti-Corruption Directorate is seeking a one-year imprisonment sentence in the case. Orban was found not guilty by the court of first instance, but an appeal has been filed. According to prosecutors, in March 2016 Orban contacted a businessman requesting financial support for the local election campaign, in which he was running for Mayor General of Bucharest.

DEFENCE – The Senate of Romania Monday endorsed a bill on the procurement of multiple rocket launchers for the Romanian Army. Under the document, the Government of Romania is awarding to the US Government the contracts for the procurement of 3 sets of 18 launch systems each, including the ammunition, control elements, sensors, logistic support as well as personnel training. The funds will be taken from the Defence Ministry budget. The Chamber of Deputies is to make the final decision on this bill.

AmCham – Investments must be a priority in this years public budget, the American Chamber of Commerce in Romania states in a report made public on Monday. According to AmCham, it is only through investments that economic growth can translate into wellbeing, modern infrastructure, high performance administration and high quality public services. The report says that in 2017 compliance with the deficit target was the main concern in public budget execution, but this was at the expense of investments, which hit a 12-year low. AmCham argues that authorities have sacrificed public investments in order to be able to increase public sector salaries and pensions. AmCham also recommends better absorption of European funds, fiscal stability, increased productivity and a focus on high value-added economic activities.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

19 February 2018
Death toll from Bucharest nightclub fire reaches 53

Two victims of the Colectiv nightclub fire died at Floreasca Emergency Hospital this morning, taking the death toll to 53.

On Wednesday evening, Alexandru Pascu, the bassist of Goodbye to Gravity, the heavy metal band that was holding a free concert in the Colectiv club when fire broke out, on October 30, died in a French hospital, where he had been transferred earlier in the day.

He is the fourth member of Goodbye to Gravity who died of injuries sustained in the fire. Guitarists Vlad Telea and Mihai Alexandru died in the club, while the band’s drummer, Bogdan Enache, died on November 8th, his condition having worsened while he was being transferred to a hospital in Switzerland.

The band’s lead singer,Andrei Galut, is currently being treated in a hospital in the Netherlands, where he underwent surgery.

Over 70 people, including 20 in critical condition, are still in hospital. 36 people have been transferred to hospitals in Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Britain, Norway, Israel and Switzerland. All expenses related to transport and treatment are covered by the Romanian state.

A crisis group made up of specialist doctors has also been created to provide psychological counseling to the injured and the families of the victims. In another development, judges decided on Wednesday to release the former mayor of Bucharests sector 4 where the fire occurred. Cristian Popescu Piedone was arrested last Saturday on charges of abuse of power and intellectual forgery. The magistrates decision is final.

12 November 2015