EASTER — The Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the most important day in the Christian Calendar, was celebrated on Sunday by Orthodox and Greek Catholic Christians all over the world, including Romania. At midnight Christians gathered in Churches and monasteries to receive the holy fire and sing Christ is risen! The Holy Light was distributed to Christians by Patriarch Daniel at the Orthodox Cathedral in Bucharest. The Holy Fire was brought from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. In his public Easter message, Patriarch Daniel said Christ’s Resurrection gives meaning to our lives and urged people to share the joy of this celebration with their family and friends.
MESSAGES — Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis wished Romanians Happy Easter alongside their families and friends. In turn, Romania’s Defense Minister, Mihai Fifor, conveyed an Easter greeting to all Romanian military, wherever they may be, at home or in various corners of the world, as well as to the veterans and the families of the victims who were killed in the line of duty. “In moments like these, more than ever, we should not forget the sacrifice our military make every day for each and every one of us, to defend the security and stability of Romania and the Alliance we are part of”, Minister Fifor said in his message.
SECURITY MEASURES – Over 50,000 employees of the Romanian Interior Ministry were mobilized to maintain public order, safety and security across the country during Easter. Gendarme and police troops were chiefly deployed around churches and other religious institutions. 250 thousand people are expected to attend more than 700 public events that will take place in Romania in the next four days. Traffic police, equipped with more than 300 traffic radars and backed by helicopters, will be monitoring traffic on Romania’s motorways during the Easter days. The Inspectorate for Emergency Situations said over 1,000 emergency calls were received on Resurrection Night, mostly for first aid. No church reported any fire problems. Over 4,600 officers of the fire brigade and over 800 fire trucks, as well as 320 first aid units were standing by on Saturday night.
EURO — The National Commission for the switch to the euro will convene on Thursday in its first session. Talks will focus on convergence criteria for adopting the European single currency. Two weeks ago Prime Minister Viorica Dancila announced the setup of the commission, whose role is to prepare the roadmap for Romania joining the Eurozone, as well as the necessary actions to prepare the Romanian economy and society for this move.
ROMA DAY — Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis conveyed a message to mark the International Roma Day, celebrated on April 8 worldwide. The head of the state said the traditions, values, aspirations and needs of the Roma community must be understood in order to come up with solutions for the social inclusion of this minority, while at the same time preserving their cultural identity. President Ioahnnis also believes that Roma citizens’ contribution to the history and diversity of Romanian society should also be underscored. According to the official website of the European Parliament, the Roma account for the largest ethnic minority in Europe, tantamount to some 10 million people, who are often subject to various forms of discrimination and social exclusion.
ATTACK — German officials say there is no clue to confirm that the man who drove a truck into a crowd of people in the Western city of Muenster on Saturday is in any way linked to an Islamic terrorist cell. Two people were killed in the attack. The driver, a German national, shot himself after the attack. According to some sources, the man had a history of mental health issues.
TENNIS — Romania’s Davis Cup team on Sunday defeated Morocco 5-nil in the second round of Europe/Africa Zone Group II. On Sunday in the men’s doubles Marius Copil and Florin Mergea defeated Amine Ahouda/ Lamine Ouahab, 6-2, 6-1. In the singles Edris Fetisleam defeated 6-2, 6-nil Yassir Kilani, while Dragos Dima outplayed 6-nil, 6-4 Soufian El Meshabi. Romania will play either Poland or Zimbabwe in the third round. In other news from tennis, Romanian Ana Bogdan, 90 WTA, lost the semi-finals of the WTA tournament in Monterrey, Mexico, totaling over 225 thousand dollars in prize money. Bogdan was ousted by the WTA third-ranked Garbine Muguruza of Spain, 6-nil, 7-5.
(Translated by V. Palcu)
