Radio România Internațional

Tag: revolt

  • December 18, 2022

    December 18, 2022

    COMMEMORATION Timisoara, a city in
    Western Romania, on Saturday kept a moment of silence in memory of the first
    victims of the Romanian anti-communist revolution 33 years ago. Following the
    orders given by dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, officers with the Interior and
    Defence Ministries opened fire on the peaceful protesters who had taken to the
    streets of this martyr-city. The anti-communist revolt broke out in Timisoara,
    on December 16th and extended to Bucharest on December 21st and also to other
    cities across Romania. Over one thousand people were killed and about 3
    thousand were wounded in clashes between the protesters and troops of the Defence and Interior ministries all over Romania, the only country in eastern
    Europe where the communist regime was changed through violence and bloodshed.








    SPORT Romanian swimmer David Popovici
    on Sunday won the silver medal in the 200 meter free-style race of the FINA
    World Swimming Championship 25 meters in Melbourne, Australia. The Romanian
    came second after South-Korean Sunwoo Hwang with Tom Dean of Britain coming third
    in the race. Popovici’s prize closet also includes a European title in the 200
    meter free-style race, which he won in Kazan last year. In 2022 he walked away
    with gold in the 100 meter and 200 meter races both in the European and world
    championships.








    TALKS
    After heated debates on Saturday night, negotiators of the European Parliament
    and EU Council reached an agreement to overhaul the bloc’s carbon market,
    cutting planet-heating emissions faster and imposing new CO2 costs on fuels
    used in road transport and buildings. According to the Czech Environment
    Minister Marian Jurecka, the agreement will allow the EU to meet climate
    objectives within the main sectors of the economy while making sure the most
    vulnerable citizens and micro-enterprises are effectively supported in the
    climate transition.


    GAS Azerbaijan intends to slightly increase its gas exports to Europe in 2023,
    the country’s president Ilham Aliyev has said as Brussels seeks to replace the
    diminishing energy supplies from Russia, Reuters reports. On Thursday, Gazprom
    announced its exports to countries outside the Community of Independent States
    dropped 45.1% between January 1st and December 15th as
    compared to the same period in 2021. If Russia completely stops gas deliveries
    to Europe and Chinese gas demand rebounded from the Covid-19 restrictions, the
    EU could face a shortfall of 27 billion cubic meters of gas next year.








    FOOTBALL In the World cup finals in Doha, Qatar, France is defending against
    Argentina the title it obtained four years ago. On Saturday Croatia celebrated
    its win against Morocco for the third position in the ranking. After a third
    place in 1998 and the finals it lost against France in Russia in 2018, it has
    been Croatia’s third podium since the country declared its independence back in
    1991. Morocco, the revelation of this world cup edition, is the first African
    and Arab country to have made it to the finals of the prestigious competition.
    The Moroccans outperformed Spain in the round of 16 and Portugal in the
    quarters but lost to France in the semis.




    (bill)

  • Landmarks in modern Romanian history

    Landmarks in modern Romanian history


    The year 2021 is, among other things, a year of utmost
    importance for the history of Romania. In 2021 we mark 200 years since an
    iconic event occurred in Romania’s past. Historians have been unanimous in
    describing the event as the trigger factor for the process of national rebirth.
    Such a process was possible against the backdrop of a deep-seated social discontent.
    The event is known as the 1821 Revolution. In April 2021,
    Romanian Parliament voted in favor of the year 2021 being officially declared
    the Tudor Vladimirescu Year. By the same token, Ecaterina Teodoroiu and Tudor
    Vladimirescu were granted hero status of the Romanian nation. In one of our previous instalments we focused extensively on the events
    staged in Gorj county, the native region of both Teodoroiu and Tudor
    Vladimirescu. Our host back then was Gorj County
    Council’s spokesperson Oana Palos.     It is also Oana Palos we have
    approached, so that she may give us details on the whys and the wherefores of
    the 1821 Revolution. First off, Oana Palos emphasized the importance of the
    1821 Revolution.

    Oana Palos:

    In fact, it
    was a revolt known as the Revolution of 1821, which was started right here in
    Gorj, by a bunch of commoners who were known as panduri/pandours (irregular,
    skirmisher troops) and who grouped themselves around Tudor Vladimirescu, a
    chieftain who was also born in Gorj, into a family of freehold peasants. The
    Revolution flared up and galvanized Oltenia, reaching as far as Bucharest, but it was short-lived, it lasted for a couple of months,
    because Tudor Vladimirescu was assassinated, just as it happened to a great
    many other Romanian leaders, at various stages in history. However, for the
    full commitment of those who fought for the Romanian cause, the 1821 Revolution
    earned its place in history and Tudor Vladimirescu gained hero status, being
    associated, according to the traditional mindset, to the status of prince,
    Prince Tudor. Let us perform an exercise in imagination, 1821, 1921, 2021. We
    go across time and space. And here we are, marking 200 years since those
    events. Allow me to invite you to think of the month of June
    1921, when, a century ago, Tudor Vladimirescu’s centennial had also been marked
    through the reinterment, in Targu Jiu, of the remains of Romanian army’s first
    female officer who fought in World War One, we’re speaking about Ecaterina Teodoroiu,
    the young woman who was also born in Gorj, back in the day she took a go-against-the-grain-stance
    and went on to become a symbol of courage and sacrifice.


    Oana Palos also told us that, locally, a yearly
    program has been thought out, dedicated to Tudor Vladimirescu’s bicentennial,
    including cultural and artistic evocative presentations, so each and every
    month, taking into account the circumstances generated by the pandemic,
    exhibitions were mounted as well as stage performances or religious and
    military ceremonies.


    Oana Palos:


    On May 2, but also on June 9,
    the events we staged were held under the aegis of the bicentennial. In Tudor
    Vladimirescu’s birthplace, the commune of Vladimir, in the very house where he
    was born, a wreath-laying ceremony with military honors was held, followed by a
    significant historical and military reenactment of a battle episode in 1821,
    when the apparel was presented, typical for the age, that of the boyars, of the arnauti (the Albanian guards), the pandours. In the same evocative vein, this
    time on June 9, in the center of Targu Jiu municipal city, where The Heroine of
    Jiu is interred, at the Mausoluem that was erected in her honor, a wide-scope
    series of events was held, followed by a traditional manifestation: a
    commemoration round dance was performed, whose significance was twofold: 200
    years since the Tudor Vladimirescu’s Revolution and 100 since the reinterment
    of Eaterina’s bones in Targu Jiu. We should also say that the official
    commemoration divine service was performed by a 100-strong gathering of
    priests, the number of one hundred was purposefully picked, to pay tribute to
    Ecaterina Teodoroiu, the divine service was followed by that ancient, typical
    Gorj custom, the commemoration round dance, usually performed to commemorate
    the departed. The custom has been preserved to this day. Also, as an absolute
    first, a stage performance was presented, titled The Tudor Vladmirescu Case,
    no doubt, a one-of-a kind-performance, primarily because of its concept, we’re
    speaking about a rock opera, a fusion between a ballad, rock and traditional music, which brought before
    the audiences unique episodes of Tudor Vladimirescu’s life way back when the
    battles were waged, led by him, yet the conception is a modern, abstract one.
    We would also like the show to become an element of tourist attraction, it will
    be on in Targu Jiu for the summer.


    Oana Palos once again, this time speaking about other projects they have
    prepared for the Tudor year.


    What else have we prepared for the Tudor Year…Projects,
    that’s for sure, and we want them to have as great an impact as possible. We’re
    speaking about photo-documentary exhibitions, including documents from museum
    archives and the collection that are our property, pertaining to Tudor
    Vladimirescu’s life and activity, launching events for photo and graphic
    albums, street performances, theatre and film festivals. In august, for
    instance, and also as part of the bicentennial, we will mount a street
    exhibition with 50 metal boards being placed in the city center with historical
    images of the Revolution, we will also have images projected on the municipal
    city’s historical buildings, a national historical film and theatre festival
    will also be held, the Vatra/The Hearth festival.


    The organizers are set to facilitate participation in
    the events to all those who so wish, so they assured us we’re only one click
    away from that. We can follow, live online, all the events, if we search Gorj,
    Targu Jiu, Tudor Vladimirescu on our computers.

    (Translation by Eugen Nasta)


  • Tragedy and Change

    Tragedy and Change

    In Bucharest, desperation, pain and horror turned to anger. The anger turned to change, change that many desired, but few dared think possible. After last Fridays fire that killed over 30 people in a Bucharest club, leaving 150 injured, Romanians observed three days of national mourning of an exemplary manner.



    Starting Tuesday, however, the people took to the streets, striking fear in the people in power. Spontaneous, fed by social media, without visible leaders, without authorization from the authorities, protest marches brought out to the street tens of thousands of people in all major cities. Most of them young, the protesters expressed in a noisy, cutting, sarcastic, but non-violent way their revolt at a political class they see as cynical, feckless and corrupt. One of the most popular slogans of the marches was ‘Corruption Kills!, uttered against both local and national administrations.



    On Wednesday, Social Democrat Prime Minister Victor Ponta, who has been under investigation for corruption since summer, along with his entire coalition cabinet, resigned. That same day, Bucharest district 4 mayor Piedone, whose office released the license for the club where the tragedy occurred, also stepped down. Starting Thursday, parliamentary party representatives started consultations with President Klaus Iohannis to designate a new PM. Thrown off by the vehemence of the street, politicians have failed to make specific nominations, because that position is now a hot potato for any one of them. Interim PM Sorin Campeanu, Minister of Education, is not believed to be able to stay on for long.



    The main party in the ruling coalition, the Social Democratic Party, pleads for maintaining the present three party formula, because they claim that they need as soon as possible a functioning executive to issue the state budget for next year and run the country over the winter. Of the parties in the opposition, the Liberals and the Hungarian Union call for dissolving Parliament and early elections, resetting the political game and restore legitimacy to members of Parliament. The idea of early elections is closer to what people call for in the streets.



    Slogans are flying such as ‘This is the moment/ Down with Parliament and ‘All parties/ The same filth, and the people are getting more and more restless. Calls for resignation have been also thrown at other political figures, such as the Peoples Advocate, Victor Ciorbea, the head of the Orthodox Church, Patriarch Daniel, and even President Iohannis. Other protesters claim that the republic itself has been compromised, calling for a change back to monarchy. Far from shouting with the same voice, the street these days displays all the tensions in Romanian society.