Radio România Internațional

Tag: european football championship

The Year 2016 in Review

A new Government in Romania

The President of the Timis County Council and former Social-Democrat MP Sorin Grindeanu was nominated for the position of Prime Minister. President Klaus Iohannis accepted the proposal, after previously rejecting the nomination of former Development Minister Sevil Shhaideh. Shhaideh had been the first option of Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea. If accepted, Shhaideh would have been the first female Prime Minister of Romania as well as the countrys first Muslim Prime Minister. Resting on a comfortable majority in Parliament, where the Social-Democrats and their coalition partners, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, are holding the majority, Grindeanus Cabinet marks the return to power of the Social-Democratic Party, following a year of technocratic rule under the leadership of Dacian Ciolos. We recall that Dacian Cioloss Cabinet was sworn in in November 2015, in the wake of mass anti-corruption protests against the Government led by Victor Ponta.

The Social-Democratic Party scores landslide win in parliamentary elections

The Social-Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats also won the leadership of the new Parliament after winning the December 11 elections by a wide margin. Liviu Dragnea was appointed Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies while the co-president of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats Calin Popescu-Tariceanu secured a new term as Senate Speaker, which is virtually the second-most powerful position in the state. The Social Democrats grabbed over 45% of the votes, while the Liberals grabbed only 25% of the votes, which prompted the resignation of Liberal leader Alina Gorghiu. Six months since its inception, the Save Romania Union, an NGO turned into a political party, became the third party to enter Parliament after securing 9% of the vote. Another three parties managed to get the minimum number of votes to enter Parliament: the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, which announced its support for the Grindeanu Cabinet, without getting any ministry portfolios, and the Peoples Movement Party led by former President Traian Basescu. Less than 40% of Romanians cast their votes to elect the 465 MPs of the new Parliament. The December 11 elections also marked a return to the old party-list voting proportional representation, replacing the 2012 first-past-the-post voting system, which resulted in an overinflated Parliament with 586 MPs.

First female Mayor of Bucharest

On June 5, Bucharesters elected the citys first female Mayor, Social-Democrat Gabriela Vranceanu-Firea, who entered politics 4 years ago. A former controversial journalist, Firea grabbed 41% of the vote in a city traditionally controlled by right-wing parties. The voter turnout was very low in Bucharest, standing at 33%, way below the national average of 48%. The local elections were held in a single ballot, the winner being the candidate who grabbed the largest number of votes. The system was criticized by civil society and the media, who have called the mayors legitimacy into question against the backdrop of a low voter turnout.

Romanian diplomacy in 2016

Romanias foreign policy in 2016 observed the same guidelines, both in respect to NATO and the European Union, and Russia. Former Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu constantly underlined the importance of a “substantial trans-Atlantic relation and pleaded for strengthening NATOs eastern flank. On the other hand, pragmatism dominated relations with Russia. Romania supported the economic and diplomatic sanctions imposed on Moscow by the European Union and NATO.

A new president for Moldova

With respect to the Republic of Moldova, in 2016 Romania continued to support the reform process in this country, with a view to consolidating Moldovas European track. The excellent bilateral relations between the two countries, also owing to the pro-Romanian sympathies of President Nicolae Timofti, as well as the setup of a pro-Western ruling coalition and Parliament majority, now risk crumbling with the election of pro-Russian Socialist Igor Dodon. After the election, president Klaus Iohannis merely said he had taken under advisement the Moldovan citizens vote. The presidencys press release makes no mention to Dodon, a critical opponent of Romania. Iohannis refers to him as “the new president of the Republic of Moldova, who must display wisdom and balance during his term in office.

A disappointing year for Romanian sports

2016 was a lackluster year for Romanian sports. In August, at the Rio Olympics in Brazil, Romania grabbed only five medals: one gold, two silver and three bronze. To make matters worse, weightlifter Gabriel Sincraian lost his bronze medal after failing a doping test. Romania ranked 47th in the medal standings, the lowest position since 1952. In June, at the European Football Championship in France, Romania was bottom-of-the-tables in Group A. Subsequently coach Anghel Iordanescu was replaced by German Cristoph Daum, the first foreign coach in the history of Romanias national squad. However the performance and results of our footballers did not improve much with the first matches in the preliminaries to the 2018 World Cup in Russia. In handball, although seen as medal favorites, Romania ranked 5th at the European Championships in Sweden. In tennis, Romanias best-seeded player, Simona Halep, ranked 4th at the end of the competitive season.

7 January 2017
The Year 2016 in Review

A new Government in Romania

The President of the Timis County Council and former Social-Democrat MP Sorin Grindeanu was nominated for the position of Prime Minister. President Klaus Iohannis accepted the proposal, after previously rejecting the nomination of former Development Minister Sevil Shhaideh. Shhaideh had been the first option of Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea. If accepted, Shhaideh would have been the first female Prime Minister of Romania as well as the countrys first Muslim Prime Minister. Resting on a comfortable majority in Parliament, where the Social-Democrats and their coalition partners, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, are holding the majority, Grindeanus Cabinet marks the return to power of the Social-Democratic Party, following a year of technocratic rule under the leadership of Dacian Ciolos. We recall that Dacian Cioloss Cabinet was sworn in in November 2015, in the wake of mass anti-corruption protests against the Government led by Victor Ponta.

The Social-Democratic Party scores landslide win in parliamentary elections

The Social-Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats also won the leadership of the new Parliament after winning the December 11 elections by a wide margin. Liviu Dragnea was appointed Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies while the co-president of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats Calin Popescu-Tariceanu secured a new term as Senate Speaker, which is virtually the second-most powerful position in the state. The Social Democrats grabbed over 45% of the votes, while the Liberals grabbed only 25% of the votes, which prompted the resignation of Liberal leader Alina Gorghiu. Six months since its inception, the Save Romania Union, an NGO turned into a political party, became the third party to enter Parliament after securing 9% of the vote. Another three parties managed to get the minimum number of votes to enter Parliament: the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, which announced its support for the Grindeanu Cabinet, without getting any ministry portfolios, and the Peoples Movement Party led by former President Traian Basescu. Less than 40% of Romanians cast their votes to elect the 465 MPs of the new Parliament. The December 11 elections also marked a return to the old party-list voting proportional representation, replacing the 2012 first-past-the-post voting system, which resulted in an overinflated Parliament with 586 MPs.

First female Mayor of Bucharest

On June 5, Bucharesters elected the citys first female Mayor, Social-Democrat Gabriela Vranceanu-Firea, who entered politics 4 years ago. A former controversial journalist, Firea grabbed 41% of the vote in a city traditionally controlled by right-wing parties. The voter turnout was very low in Bucharest, standing at 33%, way below the national average of 48%. The local elections were held in a single ballot, the winner being the candidate who grabbed the largest number of votes. The system was criticized by civil society and the media, who have called the mayors legitimacy into question against the backdrop of a low voter turnout.

Romanian diplomacy in 2016

Romanias foreign policy in 2016 observed the same guidelines, both in respect to NATO and the European Union, and Russia. Former Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu constantly underlined the importance of a “substantial trans-Atlantic relation and pleaded for strengthening NATOs eastern flank. On the other hand, pragmatism dominated relations with Russia. Romania supported the economic and diplomatic sanctions imposed on Moscow by the European Union and NATO.

A new president for Moldova

With respect to the Republic of Moldova, in 2016 Romania continued to support the reform process in this country, with a view to consolidating Moldovas European track. The excellent bilateral relations between the two countries, also owing to the pro-Romanian sympathies of President Nicolae Timofti, as well as the setup of a pro-Western ruling coalition and Parliament majority, now risk crumbling with the election of pro-Russian Socialist Igor Dodon. After the election, president Klaus Iohannis merely said he had taken under advisement the Moldovan citizens vote. The presidencys press release makes no mention to Dodon, a critical opponent of Romania. Iohannis refers to him as “the new president of the Republic of Moldova, who must display wisdom and balance during his term in office.

A disappointing year for Romanian sports

2016 was a lackluster year for Romanian sports. In August, at the Rio Olympics in Brazil, Romania grabbed only five medals: one gold, two silver and three bronze. To make matters worse, weightlifter Gabriel Sincraian lost his bronze medal after failing a doping test. Romania ranked 47th in the medal standings, the lowest position since 1952. In June, at the European Football Championship in France, Romania was bottom-of-the-tables in Group A. Subsequently coach Anghel Iordanescu was replaced by German Cristoph Daum, the first foreign coach in the history of Romanias national squad. However the performance and results of our footballers did not improve much with the first matches in the preliminaries to the 2018 World Cup in Russia. In handball, although seen as medal favorites, Romania ranked 5th at the European Championships in Sweden. In tennis, Romanias best-seeded player, Simona Halep, ranked 4th at the end of the competitive season.

7 January 2017
European football in the spotlight

Sports journalists and the millions of fans in Europe have never seen such tension revolving around the opening of a European football championship as they have in France. The chaos created by Russian and English fans in Marseille, local crime and the incidents in Nice, clashes between German and Ukrainian fans in Lille are signaling major flaws in the French authorities security system. “When you cant deal with the hooligans in the street, how can your truly combat terrorism?, the Gazeta Sporturilor daily writes. The newspaper also writes: “fans can bring virtually anything into the stadium, even a tank, while the Russians most likely were carrying flare guns.

UEFA, the administrative body for association football in Europe, has launched an investigation into the outbursts of violence at the end of the match pitting England against Russia, and has warned that if English and Russian fans resort to violence again, the two teams may be kicked out of the tournament.

On the other hand, trade unions are forcing the hand of a Government that already finds itself against the wall. Pilots with the national airliner Air France on Saturday went on strike, calling on the Government to scrap the new labour law that makes it easier to fire and hire people. The strike action has disrupted transport plans for football fans. The protest reflects an escalation of tensions within France. The garbage removal companies are on strike until Wednesday, and rail traffic has just resumed after a nine-day strike. In late May filling stations were empty, due to a protest of refinery workers.

Regardless of tensions outside the pitch, football fixtures at EURO 2016 carried on as scheduled. On Saturday, Romania played in the opening match against the host country, France, losing 2-1. Cheered by 20,000 Romanian fans, Romanias team had a good start, and was close to scoring an early goal 3 minutes into the game. For the next hour Romania defended well against the French team, seen as favourite to win. Giroud scored the first goal on 57 minutes, but Stancu came with the equalizer 8 minutes later, scoring from a penalty kick. Payet scored the winning goal 1 minute from full time, shattering Romanias hopes for a draw.

Unlucky is the word the Romanian press used to describe Romanian footballers after the match against France. In the other fixture in Group A, also on Saturday, Switzerland defeated Albania 1-nil. The next games will be played on Wednesday, when France is playing Albania and Romania goes up against Switzerland.

13 June 2016
The Week in review, June 6-12

Romanian politics after local elections

With the result of last week’s local election validated, the victors are ready to get to work. Expectations are very high. The leftist Social Democratic Party (PSD) got 34.83% of the mayor seats throughout the country. Next came the National Liberal party (PNL), with 31.49%. The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) only got 5.73%. The same top three positions have also been maintained in the race for local and county councils. The Social Democrats also won the position of Bucharest mayor and all six district mayor positions. This is also the first time when a woman, Gabriela Firea, runs the capital city Bucharest.

Gabriela Firea: “I’m a person who relies on dialogue and that will not change in the future. I’m also not the type of person to hold grudges so I’ll be able to communicate very well with all general councillors, irrespective of the party they represent, because it’s in the best interest of the people of Bucharest. I can assure you I’ll only come up with projects that are in the best interest of the Bucharest locals, and not with controversial projects. If we have doubts about something, then we’ll ask for the people’s opinion, we will consult with the Bucharesters.”

The surprise of this year’s local election was mathematician Nicusor Dan, the leader of Save Bucharest Union, who came out second in the competition for Bucharest mayor. After elections Nicusor Dan has announced his party will be renamed, with a view to the parliamentary elections this fall, into Save Romania Union.

Salary increase for public sector employees

More than 650,000 public sector employees will see their salaries rise starting in September, under a government emergency order on salary standards in the public sector passed this week. The ordinance was needed in order to bridge the pay gap between employees holding the same position and having the same qualifications but different salaries.

Healthcare employees will see the biggest rises, labour minister Dragos Paslaru explained: “There are major dysfunctions in the healthcare sector as far as salaries are concerned. We had to rethink the salary scheme to make sure that doctors with the same position and seniority have the same basic salaries, regardless of where they work across the country. We’re also working on a similar payment scheme for the education sector.”

This new piece of legislation will cost the budget around 200 million euros this year and some 580 million euros in 2017.

Problems in the agriculture sector

Hundreds of farmers have taken to the streets of Bucharest on Tuesday, unhappy with the delays in the payment of subsidies and in the adoption of some crucial laws for this sector. The head of the Agriculture Committee with the Chamber of Deputies, Nini Sapunaru, alongside other MPs, announced that they are working on several bills for the farming sector, while Agriculture Minister Achim Irimescu has promised them that subsidies will be fully paid by end-July. Minister Irimescu’s activity, however, has been monitored by MPs, who are accusing him of bad management. The Chamber of Deputies’ plenary sitting has even passed, with a majority of votes, a simple motion against Achim Irimescu. Under the law, this motion does not automatically trigger the minister’s dismissal, as such decision can only be taken by the prime minister.

Anti-corruption and the rule of law

The Ambassador of France to Bucharest, François Saint-Paul, awarded the highest French civilian decoration, that of Knight of the Legion of Honour, to the chief prosecutor of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, Laura Codruţa Kövesi. According to the French official, the Romanian anti-corruption agency is highly popular and has become a model at European level. Laura Codruţa Kovesi emphasized that fighting corruption was vital to safeguarding the rule of law.

Laura Codruţa Kovesi: “I am very proud to be working with brave, active people, who want to change Romania, who want to live in a country free from corruption, who know that we are all equal before the law and who have not allowed people with impressive wealth or with high-level public positions to intimidate them. This medal also rewards the fight to maintain and consolidate the rule of law. We will stay on this path, to the extent to which the institutional stability and the investigative abilities of the Anti-Corruption Directorate are preserved.”

Official visits abroad

The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, pleaded for stronger cooperation between Romania and Luxembourg. On Monday and Tuesday the head of state made an official visit to Luxembourg, where he stated, following talks with top-level officials, that there are promising results and further opportunities in the economic field, with Luxembourg being one of the most important investors in Romania. The President emphasized that Romania offers favourable market and resource conditions to investors, and that the two countries should consolidate the current achievements and identify cooperation areas to be approached in the future.

Meanwhile, in Paris, the Prime Minister Dacian Cioloş took part on Thursday in a special meeting of the Council of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which Romania intends to join. On Friday, Dacian Cioloş and his French counterpart Manuel Valls signed an updated roadmap for the strategic partnership between Romania and France. The Romanian PM was also invited to attend, together with President François Hollande, the opening ceremony of the European Football Championship and the opening game, between the host country and Romania.

11 June 2016
June 10, 2016

FOOTBALL — The European Football Championship kick-starts today on Stade de France in Paris, with a match pitting the host country, France, against Romania. Playing in the same group are also Switzerland and Albania. In the wake of the bloody terror attacks which hit Paris in November 2015, the French authorities are now on alert, to avoid and thwart prospective terror attacks during the football championship. According to the BBC, France will be facing the first security challenge today, when tens of thousands of people are expected to attend an open air concert near the Eiffel Tower. 90,000 police officers and members of the security forces have been mobilized for the football championship, which lasts a month. In another move, the championships might also be affected by social movements. The workers of the National Railway Company have entered the second week of strike, significantly impacting the football fans’ travels in Paris. In their turn, the pilots of the French national airline, Air France, threaten to start a three-day strike as of Saturday, demanding pay-rises.

VISIT — French President Francois Hollande and Romanian PM Dacian Ciolos will attend the opening ceremony of the European Football Championship, on Stade de France, this evening, and will watch the France-Romania football match. On the second day of his visit to Paris, PM Dacian Ciolos is due to have talks with the French President, Francois Hollande. The Romanian PM has already met with his French counterpart, Manuel Valls. The two officials signed the updated Roadmap of the bilateral strategic partnership. Prime Minister Ciolos is also due to meet with representatives of the French Agriculture Academy, as well as with two orphans, the children of the couple of Romanian nationals who got killed in the Paris attacks, in November 2015. On Thursday, the Romanian Prime Minister had a meeting with the Secretary General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, Angel Gurria.

CORRUPTION — The offense of “abuse in office” has been identified in over 40% of the files processed by the National-Anti-Corruption Directorate in Romania (DNA), the DNA chief prosecutor, Laura Codruta Kovesi has announced. She said that in 2015, in the files relating to cases of abuse in office, the estimated prejudice exceeds 600 million Euros. The Romanian state will not be able to recover the money, if Romania’s Constitutional Court decides to decriminalise the “abuse in office” offense, Kovesi warns.

DETENTION – Dan Nicolae Straja, the manager of the Oncology Institute in Bucharest was taken into custody on Thursday night by the Romanian anti-corruption prosecutors on corruption suspicions relating to public purchasing. In the same file, the manager of the Bagdasar Arseni Clinical Emergency Hospital in Bucharest, Bogdan Paltineanu has also been taken into custody. He will be brought to the Bucharest Tribunal today, with the prosecutors proposing a 30-day preventive arrest measure. The anti-corruption prosecutors on Thursday searched four hospitals in Bucharest, in a case where the prejudice estimated so far stands at 2.6 million Euros.

FESTIVAL– The central Romanian city of Sibiu is hosting the International Theatre Festival, one of the biggest events in the world, devoted to performing arts. Reaching its 23rd edition this year, the festival brings together over 2,800 artists from 70 countries, for 10 days. In a nutshell, Sibiu will venue over 450 shows and cultural events. The festival opens up with a grandiose urban theatre show, entitled “Flight Through Time”, put up by the Kitonb theatre company from Italy. The grand Square in downtown Sibiu will become a huge stage for artists, who will do acrobatics on platforms suspended high, above the square, by a huge crane. The marathon of theatre shows will start with actors from England, Spain, Poland, the Republic of Moldova and Romania, and the street performances will be an attraction in the pedestrian area in the historical centre. The first day of the International Theatre Festival in Sibiu will end at midnight with fireworks.

RESTRICTIONS — The Israeli authorities have announced they blocked access to the West Bank and Gaza Strip until Sunday, at midnight, toughening restrictions on Palestinians, as was announced in the wake of Wednesday’s terrorist attack in Tel Aviv, France Presse reports. The Benjamin Netanyahu cabinet on Thursday announced the suspension of entry permits to Israel granted to over 80,000 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip, on the occasion of the Ramadan, which started on Monday. Four Israelis were killed by two Palestinian militants who opened fire on Wednesday evening, in a café in downtown Tel Aviv. The attack has been claimed by the Hamas Islamist movement, a fundamentalist organisation which controls the Gaza Strip Palestinian territory.

(Translated by Diana Vijeu)

10 June 2016
25 March, 2016

The Belgian police have arrested seven persons in
connection with Tuesday’s attacks in Brussels, in which at least 31 people were
killed and 270 wounded, the BBC reports. The police are still looking for two
other persons believed to be directly involved in the attacks claimed by the
so-called Islamic State. The two were caught on surveillance cameras in the
company of the three suicide bombers responsible for the attacks. The latter,
who had Belgian nationality, were on a list of most wanted suspects in
connection with the Paris attacks last November, in which 130 people were
killed. In a bid to ensure Belgium of Washington’s support in the fight against
terrorism, US Secretary of State John Kerry today met senior officials in
Brussels. The US lost two citizens in the attacks.
Separately, the French police made one arrest on Thursday, thwarting a plot that was in an advanced stage, according to the French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve, who added that no link was established to either the Paris or the Brussels attacks. EU justice and interior ministers who held an emergency meeting in the wake of the Brussels attacks decided on Thursday to speed up a plan to tighten control on the Schengen borders and take measures to fight terrorism financing.

Romanian
prosecutors investigating the deadly fire at the Colectiv nightclub in
Bucharest last October have requested a new expert report to be ready by the 1st
of April. Investigators say the three reports submitted so far, from the
National Institute for Research and Development in Mine Safety and Protection
to Explosion, the Forensics Institute and the General Prosecutor’s Office,
contradict each other and generate confusion. The fire, which has claimed 64
lives so far, sparked large-scale street protests last autumn that led to the resignation
of prime minister Victor Ponta. The three owners of the club, who are currently
in house arrest, are facing charges of manslaughter.

Clocks change in Romania on Saturday night, when 3 am
becomes 4 am. The practice, known as Daylight Saving Time, is meant to use
sunlight as much as possible. In summer, clocks are turned forward by one hour.
When Romania switches to summer time, there will be a 3-hour difference between
Romania’s time and UTC. Sunday will thus be the shortest day of the year, with
only 23 hours. More than 100 different countries worldwide use Daylight Saving
Time. In Romania, it has been used since 1932.

Romania’s majority Orthodox
community, as well as its Greek-Catholic minority are today celebrating the
religious feast of the Annunciation. This is the celebration of the announcement
by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary that she would conceive the Son of God.
For Catholics, it’s Holy Friday today, the commemoration of Christ’s
crucifixion and death three days before his resurrection. This year,
Roman-Catholic and Protestant Christians celebrate Easter on Sunday, 27th
of March, while Orthodox and Greek-Catholic Christians celebrate it on the 1st
of May.

The 98th anniversary of Romania’s union with Bassarabia, an eastern province that had until then been under Tsarist occupation, is celebrated in Bucharest and across Romania. The Romanian Academy is holding a special event today, musicians from the Republic of Moldova are having concerts in Bucharest, and street events are held on Sunday in the centre of Bucharest to celebrate the union.

World no. 5
Simona Halep of Romania defeated the Russian player Daria Kasatkina to reach the third
round of the WTA Premier tournament in Miami, with 6 million euros in prize
money. Two other Romanian players are vying for a place in the third round:
Irina Begu, world no. 35, who faces Sabine Lisicki of Germany, world no. 37,
and Monica
Niculescu, world no. 33, who faces the Chinese player Shuai Peng, world no. 664. Both matches are held
today.

Romania face defending European champions Spain on Sunday in Cluj in a
friendly game ahead of the European Football Championship hosted by France this
summer. In another friendly on Wednesday, Romania defeated Lithuania 1-nil in
Giurgiu, also at home. Romania will face France in the opening game at the
European Championship on the 10th of June, in a group that also
includes Switzerland and Albania.

(Translated by: C. Mateescu)

25 March 2016