Radio România Internațional

Tag: survey

December 28, 2019

GOVERNMENT – The Liberal Government in
Bucharest on Friday adopted a memorandum of the Justice Ministry calling for
the shutdown of the Special Unit investigating magistrates. Justice Minister
Catalin Predoiu said the unit was set up by the previous Social-Democrat
Government without any public consultations, against the backdrop of negative
reactions from several magistrates’ associations, European partners, GRECO and
the Venice Commission. Minister Predoiu said the law regulating the unit is
flawed, rendering the special section inoperable. At present, the
Social-Democrats say it is outrageous even discussing the possibility of
disbanding the special unit, claiming abuses are a daily reality in the justice
system. Recalling that Romanians voted in the May referendum against any
emergency decrees being passed in the justice field, interim Social-Democrat
leader Marcel Ciolacu suggested a debate in Parliament on this matter and the
consultation of all associations and stakeholders in the justice field.

SURVEY – The labor force crisis, the high inflation rate and the
potential negative evolution of the exchange rate are the biggest challenges
facing the business sector in Romania next year, reads a survey titled Survey
on the state of the economy, published by a consultancy company. According to
the survey, the labor force crisis deepened in 2019, while the import of
foreign workers offset under 10% of the needed workforce. Moreover, business
people believe that, beyond boosting consumption, the salary increases in the
public sector have spiked imbalances on the labor market. Asked what measures
would be needed to develop a stable economic framework, companies mentioned
fiscal predictability, the digitization of public administration, investment in
infrastructure or a national plan for vocational requalification. The survey
was conducted over December 1-15 on a sample of 450 companies from various
fields of activity, from trade to financial services, agriculture, energy,
textiles and IT.

NEW YEAR’S EVE – Successful bands from the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s
will perform live in Bucharest as part of the 2020 New Year’s Eve Party dubbed
Disco Night Fever. 11 bands and artists from Romania, the Republic of Moldova,
Germany and the United States will electrify the crowds with live concerts. The
list of performers includes the band O-Zone, which has reunited for this
special occasion, the famous duo Milli Vanilli, Haddaway or Turbo B, the
soloist of the band Snap! The New Year’s Eve Party will end in Bucharest with a
spectacular fireworks show.

WEATHER – Meteorologists have issued
two alerts against extreme weather conditions, in place until Sunday evening. A
code yellow alert against heavy snowfalls and blizzard was issued for six
counties in the east and northeast, as well as for mountainous regions.
Additional snowfalls and strong wind are expected in the center, east and
southeast. Meteorologists have also announced a drop in temperatures
nationwide. On Sunday and Monday temperatures are expected to drop below 0 down
to minus 10 degrees Celsius. Highs will predominantly be negative in the
northern half of the country during the interval, while temperatures in the
south will go as high as 4 degrees Celsius, which is normal for this time of the
year.

(Translated by
V. Palcu)

28 December 2019
Young people in Romania – a collective portrait

A recent sociological survey conducted by the
Friedrich Ebert Foundation in Romania puts the spotlight on an age category of
which people talk a lot but know little, namely young people. The survey
conducted in 2018 reveals the attitude, outlook and self-perception of the
Romanians aged between 14 and 29 on such issues as family, education,
lifestyle, religion and democracy. They have been compared with young people
from other European countries, EU and non-EU members.

All economic and social indicators referring to young
people in Romania are looking very bad, says Gabriel Badescu, one of the authors
of the survey together with Daniel Sandu, Daniela Angi and Carmen Greab. Some
of these indicators must be applied in a broader European context, though. For example,
more than half of Romanian respondents agree that democracy is a good form of
government but 23% believe that under some circumstances, dictatorship could be
a better form of government than democracy. In comparison with the other nine
countries in south-eastern Europe included in the survey, democracy enjoys the
lowest level of support in Romania, notwithstanding the authoritarian
tendencies visible in all European countries.

Worth noting is that generational change does by
itself bring along better, more democracy-loving pro- citizens, says Gabriel
Badescu:

This decline in people’s attachment to democracy is
not uniformly spread throughout all age categories. In fact, it very much
depends on the respondent’s age. When we refer to the quality of democracy, we
should know that young people are a vulnerable and problematic category. Problematic
because according to studies, once certain attitudes are imprinted at an early
age, it is extremely difficult to change them later; they remain engrained and
perpetuate themselves.

Besides mentalities, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation’s
study also looked at the level of support for minorities in Romania and the
other nine countries. Gabriel Badescu tells us what the findings are:

Support for minority rights is low among young
people. Romania has the lowest levels of support in the case of several categories
of minorities out of all the 10 countries. It also has the second lowest level of
support for the ethnic minorities and the third lowest when it comes to the
rights of the poor.

The study has also revealed a disparity between Romania’s
regions and between its rural and urban areas. The disparity between young
people in the urban areas and those in rural areas reflects a disadvantage for
the latter. According to other surveys, in 2017, the poverty risk rate in the
rural area stood at 37.3%, which is six times higher than in urban areas. The
survey on young people carried out in 2018 reveals that 23% of young people in
rural regions fall in a category known as NEET, which stands not in employment, education or training, which means
they don’t pursue any kind of formal education and they are not employed
either. This figure is twice as high in the rural areas than in urban areas, a
disparity which is not found in other EU countries.

The economic situation is also used
by the authors of the survey to explain the rather high percentage of young
people who want to emigrate. Unlike 2014, when a similar survey was conducted
and when 60% of young people aged between 14 and 29 intended to emigrate, in
2018, this figure dropped to almost 30%. The sociologist Daniel Sandu points
out that this figure reflects wishes and not necessarily specific plans to
leave the country:

It’s not essential how intense this
wish is when trying to establish whether they will, indeed, leave the country.
The desire to leave can rather be interpreted as an answer to the question: ‘how
do you assess your opportunities for self-development in your own country?’. If
the economic situation in your own country is difficult, as it was in 2014, and
if there are fewer opportunities, then the tendency occurs to project your departure
or to wish to leave the country.

As to who wants to leave country most
strongly, the survey reveals some surprising answers, says sociologist Daniel
Sandu:

If we look more closely we notice a
bimodal distribution of migration intentions. There are two very different groups,
at opposite ends. One group is made up of young people coming from advantaged families
who plan to study abroad. The group is made up of young people from families
who have access to goods, but not as a result of their families’ affluence but because
different members of their families are already abroad. They send money back to
the country and give these young people access to goods, but they don’t provide
them with stability and real prospects for the future in this country.

The perception of the future is in
fact founded on how the present is perceived. In this respect, the survey confirms
other statistics. The representative of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation in Romania,
Victoria Stoiciu, explains:

As it transpires from our survey and
other studies, young people are clearly an underprivileged category, first and
foremost economically. If we look at the poverty rate among young people, I’m
referring to those aged between 14 and 25, we will see it is very high, higher
than among other age categories. We usually refer to the elderly or the retired
when we draw such comparisons. It doesn’t mean that the elderly don’t have problems,
but that the economic situation of young people is much worse. What’s more,
young people are under-represented politically.

31 July 2019
November 15, 2018 UPDATE

NEGOTIATIONS – Negotiations between the
Bucharest metro trade unions and the management are due to continue, following
a warning strike on Thursday morning. The metro employees threaten to go on a
general strike beginning on the 19th of November. They demand a 42%
salary increase, but were only offered an 18% increase by the management.
According to the transport minister Lucian Sova, the salaries of metro
employees have grown every year in the last four years, the last time by 21%
last year. 700,000 people use the Bucharest metro every day.

PRESIDENCY – Romania is ready to take over and successfully carry
out its term as holder of the EU Council presidency in the first part of next
year, Prime Minister Viorica Dancila has again given assurances. The events
timetable has been finalized and all working mechanisms have been created. We
have the capacity to show our European partners that Romania is a balanced and
responsible member state, determined to contribute to the future of the
European Union, regardless of the purely political considerations at one time
or another, the Romanian prime minister also said. Tuesday’s vote in the
European Parliament is one such example and I assure you that it will not make us
stray from our objectives, said Dancila. She added that she was disappointed
with the conclusions of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism report,
given that Romania has proved to be a loyal and fair partner of the European
Union. We recall that European Parliament’s resolution and the aforementioned
report are critical of the changes to the justice laws made by the ruling
coalition formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals
and Democrats.

BREXIT – The foreign ministry in Bucharest
welcomes the fact that Brussels’ and London’s negotiators have arrived at a
final version of the text of UK’s EU withdrawal agreement. This marks an
important moment in the negotiation process and paves the way for defining a
close and strong future relationship between the EU and London, which is
Romania’s strategic objective, given the bilateral strategic partnership and
the close security cooperation, which is important to maintain in the context
of the developments in the eastern neighborhood, where Romania and Great
Britain share a common objective, reads a press release from the Romanian
foreign ministry. The withdrawal agreement will guarantee the protection of the
rights of all Romanian citizens who settle in Great Britain before 31st December
2020. They will be able to continue to work, live and study in Britain after
obtaining a settled status, the ministry also says.

SIF – The Government on Thursday passed an emergency decree setting
up the Sovereign Investment Fund. The Fund is aimed at developing and helping
build profitable businesses in priority fields for the Romanian state, either
standalone or jointly with external investors or other investment funds.
Stipulated in the 2017-2020 governing platform and drawing on experience of
states such as France, Norway, Poland or Italy, the Sovereign Fund will
comprise profitable Romanian state-owned companies with a joint capital of some 2 billion euros.

SURVEY – Over 60% of Romanians have contracted loans while 37% of
them have monthly expenses tantamount to their revenue, reads a survey on
Romanians’ financial habits released on Thursday. As regards loans, 83% of
Romanians trust the banking system, saying they would take out a loan from a
bank if they needed money. Additionally, 70% of Romanians who took out loans to
finance a previous debt say their situation will improve in the future. 45% of
Romanians have no family savings and the little they put on the side is
destined for emergency situations.

EXERCISE – Some 1,800 Romanian and foreign military backed by 250
pieces of technical equipment are taking part in the Scorpions Fury multinational exercise under way at the shooting
range in Cincu, central Romania until the 16th of November. The aim
is to evaluate the capacity of the Headquarters Multinational
Brigade South East in Craiova, in the south, to ensure the command and control
of a NATO collective defense operation. The military carry out both
computer-assisted command exercises and field training and tactical combat
shooting exercises. Turkish, Polish, Bulgarian, Italian and Portuguese as well
as Romanian military are taking part.

MEETING – Romania’s Interior Minister Carmen Dan on Thursday met in Budapest
with Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister for National Security Sandor Pinter. The
agenda for talks focused on bilateral and regional cooperation and the upcoming
agenda of the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting, ahead of Romania’s
taking over the EU Council presidency in the first half of 2019. Minister Dan
presented the priorities of Romania’s term in office ahead of the council
meeting, with complex topics outside internal security, border crossing
management and civil protection. Attending were also the heads of the Romanian
Police and the Romanian Border Police.

COMMITTEE – Members of the Romanian-Moldovan inter-Government
committee for economic cooperation on Thursday signed a cooperation protocol in
several fields. The document was signed by Moldovan Minister of Economy and
Infrastructure, Chiril Gaburici, and Romania’s Minister for the Business
Environment, Trade and Entrepreneurship, Stefan Radu Oprea. Moldova will
cooperate with Romania in the field of economy, SMEs, and connecting certain
towns and villages in Moldova to Romania’s drinking water grid. Additional
cross-border projects were discussed, such as the Romanian Mobile Emergency Service for Resuscitation and
Extrication (SMURD) and the bridge over the river Prut. Moldova’s energy issues
were also tackled during the meeting. Minister Oprea reiterated Romania’s
support for Moldova’s European accession. The next inter-government committee
meeting is slated for June 2019 in Bucharest.

RADIRO – Starting November 18
Bucharest plays host to one of the most important music events of the year: the
International Radio Orchestras Festival – RaDiRo. The festival marks 90 years
since the public radio was founded and 100 years since the Great Union. The
Radio Concert Hall and the Auditorium Hall of the Fine Arts Museum will host 8
symphonic concerts and 4 jazz concerts. This year’s guests include pianist
Mihai Ritivoiu and cellist Andrei Ionita, alongside the famous vocalist Aura
Urziceanu. Europe’s oldest radio
orchestra, MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra from Germany, will return to
Romania this year along with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra of Great Britain,
Svizzera italiana – Lugano of Switzerland and RTE National Symphony Orchestra
from Ireland. All concerts are broadcast live on Radio Romania and the Romanian
Television Corporation, as well as members of the European Radio Broadcasting
Union.

MEDAL – Romanian Stefania Claudia Priceputu on Thursday scooped
bronze in the 50-kg category at the Under-23 World Wrestling Championships
underway in Bucharest. In the bronze final the Romanian defeated Lisa Ersel of
Germany. Romania so far has won another two medals: Mihai Radu Mihut won bronze
in the 63-kg Greek-Roman event, while Nicu Ojog won the silver medal in the
82-kg category. Also worth mentioning is that Romania will win either silver or
gold after Alexandra Anghel has qualified in the 72-kg category final, where
she will take on Turkey’s Buse Tosun. A total of 30 athletes represent Romania
in this year’s edition.

(Translated by C. Mateescu & V. Palcu)

15 November 2018
Romanians’ opinions on their allies

Whereas at domestic level Romanians’ political preferences vary, sometimes quite dramatically from one election cycle to another, their foreign policy options are much more stable. Thus Romanians remain strictly attached to the country’s alliances and partnerships with the main champions of democratic values in Europe and the world.

Three quarters of Romanians say the United States should remain the country’s top strategic partner, according to the findings of a recent survey conducted this month by the Avangarde Group of Social and Behavioral Studies, with an error margin of 3.2%. Another three Western democracies followed the United States of America: Germany, with 45% of respondents’ choice, France with 29% and Great Britain with 16%. Additionally, over 37% of respondents want Romania to have closer relations with the United States, 25% with Germany while 11% with France.

The study also reveals that nearly 60% of Romanians say the US anti-ballistic missile shield in Deveselu, southern Romania, is a good thing, while 20% say it’s a bad thing. As regards the foreign military presence on Romanian soil, 33% of respondents said NATO should increase the number of troops deployed to Romania, over a half say it should stay the same, while 14% believe the US should have fewer soldiers in Romania.

According to the survey, 45% of respondents argued in favor of improving relations with Moscow, 24% say Romania should distance itself from Russia, while 31% believe Russia is Romania’s fiercest enemy. Analysts say the explanations for these idiosyncrasies are rooted both in the past as well as in the present.

On the one hand, Romania’s treasure sent to Tsarist Russia for safe-keeping during the Great War, has never been returned by Moscow, as well as the annexation of the Romanian eastern territories in 1940 by the USSR, followed by the instatement of communist rule in 1945, are very telling of the respondents’ choice. The study also points out that 87% of respondents want the new US ambassador to Bucharest to continue to support the National Anticorruption Directorate’s crusade against corrupt politicians.

“Romanians focus on the corruption of the political class and the fight against corruption ranks high on the public agenda. US support in this respect is well received amongst Romanians”, sociologist Marius Pieleanu, the director of the Avangarde Group of Social and Behavioral Studies concluded.

29 October 2018
October 28, 2018 UPDATE

EARTHQUAKE – A 5.8
Richter scale earthquake shook Romania on Sunday morning, without producing any
victims or material damages. The impact reached as far as Moldova, Ukraine and
Bulgaria. According to the scientific director of the National Institute for
Earth Physics, Mircea Radulian, the earthquake was a normal phenomenon for
Vrancea region. We recall the last major earthquake was reported in Romania on
November 22, 2014 and measured 5.7 degrees on the Richter scale. Two weeks ago,
Romania hosted the biggest earthquake drill in an EU state in the last 14
years. The most devastating earthquakes were those in 1940 and 1977, both killing
over 2,500 people and injuring another 15,300.

DST – Romania on Sunday reverted to winter time as per daylight
saving time. Clocks were shifted back, making Sunday night the longest of the
year. According to a European survey, 84% of respondents want to keep the
standard summer time, claiming the time shift is causing fatigue, haziness,
insomnia, focus issues and energy drain. According to the European Commission,
member states can decide on their own which time frame they should observe,
provided they report their choice by the end of April 2019. Should the
Commission’s timetable be observed, the March 31, 2019 time shift will be the
last one to be compulsory.

ATTACK – US flags were
flown on Sunday at half-mast all over the country after a synagogue shooting on
Saturday in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which left 11 dead. The perpetrator
shouted All Jews must die before opening fire on the crowd. The attacker was
indicted on 29 criminal counts, including anti-Semitic crimes and risks the
death penalty, US Attorney General Jeff Sessions has said. According to the
BBC, this was the bloodiest attack targeting the Jewish community in the US.
President Donald Trump has labeled it a wicked act of mass murder. Pope Francis said the attack was
an inhumane act of violence.Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed horror at the attack, while Germany’s
Chancellor Angela Merkel called for increasing efforts to combat anti-Semitic
acts of violence worldwide.

SURVEY – Over 37% of Romanians want closer
relations with the USA, while 11% say Romania should strengthen relations with
France, according to the findings of a recent survey conducted by the Avangarde
Group of Social and Behavioral Studies released on Sunday. 59% of respondents say
the anti-ballistic missile shield in Deveselu is a good thing, while 20% say
it’s a bad thing. 33% say that, military-wise, NATO should increase the number
of troops in Romania, 53% say it should stay the same, while 14% want NATO to
deploy fewer troops to Romania. Asked if the US should remain Romania’s
strategic partner, 74% of Romanians said yes, 26% said no. The survey also
reveals that most Romanians believe the next US ambassador to Romania should
continue to support the fight against corruption started by the National
Anticorruption Directorate. The study was conducted over October 17-20 over a
sample population of some 800 people and an error margin of 3.2%.

VISIT – EU Commissioner for Regional Policy
Corina Cretu on Monday and Tuesday is paying an official visit to Romania. Her
agenda includes meetings with high-ranking Bucharest officials and talks over
the future of the European cohesion policy. The EU official says the cohesion
policy guarantees the quality of life for EU citizens, the effects of which are
also transparent in Romania. Corina Cretu says that Romania has been allotted
over 45 billion euros for its own development since it joined the EU in 2007.

NEGOTIATIONS – Trade unions representing the public
subway service, Metrorex, will resume negotiations over the collective
employment agreement on Monday. The previous agreement expired on Saturday and
Friday’s talks produced no results. Unionists want a 42% salary increase and
better working conditions. They threaten to launch an all-out strike starting
November 10. The Metrorex leadership claims such a salary increase is
impossible as it’s exceeding the company budget, also violating certain legal
provisions. Moreover, Metrorex leaders argue, salaries have been increased by
10% every year starting 2015.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Marius Copil on
Sunday lost 7-6, 6-4 to Roger Federer of Switzerland in the Basel tournament
final, totaling some 2 million euros in prize money. This was the first match
pitting the two players and Copil’s third match against a top-10 player, after
ousting Marin Cilic of Croatia in the round of 16 and Alexander Zverev of
Germany in the semi-finals. This was also Copil’s second final in the ATP
circuit, after earlier this year he reached the final match of the ATP
tournament in Sofia. Following Sunday’s result Marius Copil will be ranked 60
in ATP standings.

(Translated
by V. Palcu)

28 October 2018
October 28, 2018

EARTHQUAKE – A 5.8
Richter scale earthquake shook Romania on Sunday morning, without producing any
victims or material damages. The impact reached as far as Moldova, Ukraine and
Bulgaria. According to the scientific director of the National Institute for
Earth Physics, Mircea Radulian, the earthquake was a normal phenomenon for
Vrancea region. We recall the last major earthquake was reported in Romania on
November 22, 2014 and measured 5.7 degrees on the Richter scale. Two weeks ago,
Romania hosted the biggest earthquake drill in an EU state in the last 14
years. The most devastating earthquakes were those in 1940 and 1977, both killing
over 2,500 people and injuring another 15,300.

DST – Romania on Sunday reverted to winter time as per daylight
saving time. Clocks were shifted back, making Sunday night the longest of the
year. According to a European survey, 84% of respondents want to keep the
standard summer time, claiming the time shift is causing fatigue, haziness,
insomnia, focus issues and energy drain. According to the European Commission,
member states can decide on their own which time frame they should observe,
provided they report their choice by the end of April 2019. Should the
Commission’s timetable be observed, the March 31, 2019 time shift will be the
last one to be compulsory.

ATTACK – US flags were
flown on Sunday at half-mast all over the country after a synagogue shooting on
Saturday in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which left 11 dead. The perpetrator
shouted All Jews must die before opening fire on the crowd. The attacker was
indicted on 29 criminal counts, including anti-Semitic crimes and risks the
death penalty, US Attorney General Jeff Sessions has said. According to the
BBC, this was the bloodiest attack targeting the Jewish community in the US.
President Donald Trump has labeled it a wicked act of mass murder. Israeli
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed horror at the attack, while
Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel called for increasing efforts to combat
anti-Semitic acts of violence worldwide.

SURVEY – Over 37% of Romanians want closer
relations with the USA, while 11% say Romania should strengthen relations with
France, according to the findings of a recent survey conducted by the Avangarde
Group of Social and Behavioral Studies released on Sunday. 59% of respondents say
the anti-ballistic missile shield in Deveselu is a good thing, while 20% say
it’s a bad thing. 33% say that, military-wise, NATO should increase the number
of troops in Romania, 53% say it should stay the same, while 14% want NATO to
deploy fewer troops to Romania. Asked if the US should remain Romania’s
strategic partner, 74% of Romanians said yes, 26% said no. The survey also
reveals that most Romanians believe the next US ambassador to Romania should
continue to support the fight against corruption started by the National
Anticorruption Directorate. The study was conducted over October 17-20 over a
sample population of some 800 people and an error margin of 3.2%.

ELECTION – Regional elections are being held today in
Hessa Land in Western Germany, which could further weaken parties in the Big
Coalition in power in Berlin, Reuters reports. The ballot follows two weeks
after the historic failure of the Social-Christian Union in Bavaria, the ally
of Angela Merkel’s Christian-Democratic Union, which grabbed the lowest score
in an election since 1950. The result rocked the ruling coalition, threatened
by divergences over migration. In case of a failure in Hessa, talks over
maintaining Angela Merkel at the helm of the Christian-Democratic Union could
intensify at the annual party congress slated for December.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Marius Copil,
93 ATP, is today playing Roger Federer in the Basel tournament final. Federer
is world number 3 and seeded first in the tournament in Switzerland, totaling
some 2 million euros in prize money. This is the first match pitting the two
players and Copil’s third match against a top-10 player, after ousting Marin
Cilic of Croatia in the round of 16 and Alexander Zverev of Germany in the
semi-finals. This is also Copil’s second final in the ATP circuit, after
earlier this year he reached the final match of the ATP tournament in Sofia.

HANDBALL – The Romanian men’s handball team is
today playing the defending world champions France at home in the 2020 European
Championship preliminaries. On Wednesday, Romania lost 13-21 to Portugal away
from home. Romania is drawn in Group 6 alongside France, Portugal and
Lithuania. The first two teams in each group will advance to the championship,
as well as the best-ranked four teams in second position in the group tables.
The 2020 European Championship will be hosted by Sweden, Austria and Norway.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

28 October 2018
Religious Opinions and Attitudes

95% of the Romanians believe in God, but only 21% say they go to church regularly. Also, although 67% are of the opinion that ‘homosexuality should be discouraged, only 27% of the Romanians think that a referendum is necessary to define marriage as strictly the union between and man and a woman. These data are part of a recently published info-graph, aimed to highlight religious attitudes among Romanians.

The Friedrich Ebert Romania Foundation made public the info-graph as part of its Social Monitor project, at a time when the ruling coalition announced its intention to organize a referendum, in response to a petition signed by three million people, calling for a change in the Romanian Constitution, in the sense that the Constitution should clearly state that family is based only on the freely consented marriage between spouses, man and woman, instead of just between spouses, as the fundamental law currently states. The petition was set forth by ‘The Coalition for Family, which militates for the traditional heterosexual family, based, among other things, on Christian principles.

Although most Romanians believe themselves to be religious, as both sociological surveys and common perceptions indicate, the Social Monitor info-graph has shown some discrepancies and gaps with regard to the choice of a religious life, which seems to be so solid and consistent. Here is the representative of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation Victoria Stoiciu with more:

Victoria Stoiciu: “According to the census, 99.6% of the Romanians belong to a certain religious denomination. On the other hand, though, if we look at the way in which people choose to live by these religious beliefs in their day to day lives, only 44% of them pray every day. Only 21% of the respondents say they go to church weekly. So, the discrepancy is clear. Although approximately 100% of the Romanians say they are religious, in reality they do not practice religion as much.

Anthropologist Vintila Mihailescu agrees with the data made public by the Social Monitor, which in fact confirm several credible researches carried out by prestigious sociological institutions, and the data provided by the national census conducted in 2011. Still, there are nuances to be kept in mind, especially when analysing the gap between what Romanians declare and what they really do. One example is that the vast majority of Romanians say they are religious, but only a quarter go to church every week, and less than a half pray every day.

Vintila Mihailescu: “This gap should not be interpreted as hypocrisy. We must understand that orthodox practices are, probably, less institutionalized than others. The direct relationship with God, by praying at home, is in itself a form of practicing religion. This gap in the graph is therefore not necessarily hypocrisy, as it is usually believed. It does not mean ‘I say I am religious, but actually I dont have time for this foolishness. Many communities that are very religious have their own customs and habits, which are often pre-Christian, even related to magic. These practices, therefore, which are by no means canonical, are accepted by some priests as a means of shepherding the believers.

In fact, the info graph made public by the Social Monitor confirms that the religious customs of a community—such as the generic community of Romanians—is not so much an expression of the faith of its members, but rather a bond between them.

Victoria Stoiciu: “It also seems paradoxical that 99.6% of the respondents say they belong to a religion, but only 95% say they believe in God. While not spectacular, this 5% gap is not insignificant either. It can be explained by the sense of belonging to a cultural community and to a tradition. For instance, if you were born into an Orthodox Christian family, you have been baptized, got married in church and so on, all these things mark your membership of a religion, but they do not mean that you necessarily believe in God as well. Belonging to a cultural community is not to mean that a person feels bound to observe the regular religious practices: going to church, praying, etc. The major rituals, the rites of passage, like baptisms, weddings, funerals, are generally observed.

It is along the same lines of a gap between principles and practice that another set of data has been read, namely the ones regarding the low support for a referendum on defining a family as based on the marriage of a man and a woman, although 67% of the Romanians believe homosexuality should be discouraged by society. Still, these data are also indicative of tolerance, Vintila Mihailescu believes:

Vintila Mihailescu: “The fact that homosexuality must be discouraged is, for a believer, a Christian or a man of the church, only natural. This is not good or bad in itself, but rather it is in line with how people define a good Christian. The surprise lies somewhere else. Two-thirds of Romanians seem to say: homosexuality must not be encouraged, but this must not mean persecution, it must not go as far as to changing the Constitution or the laws. Homosexuality should be neither encouraged, nor punished. And this requires more wisdom than I had expected.

Something even more relevant for the current state of mind in the Romanian society is that 79% of the Romanians link faith to morality, saying that one must believe in God in order to be a moral person.

Vintila Mihailescu: “This is symptomatic, because in peoples minds this connection is reinforced when living in a society perceived as being immoral, with very lax rules. There is a perceived risk of immorality, so the church becomes the only chance and the only thing to rely on. There is a return to the church, seen as the only possible guarantor of morality. And this means more than the fact that society is closely linked to religion. It shows peoples distrust in the morality of their society. We see ourselves as a deeply immoral society, or as threatened to become so, and in this case the only protection we have left comes from the church.

18 July 2018
December 19, 2017

JUSTICE LAWS – The Senate is today debating a bill on modifying the statute of judges and prosecutors. Adopted last week in the Chamber of Deputies, the bill on Monday got a positive opinion from Parliaments special committee on the justice laws, which analyzed the amendments tabled by senators. One of the main changes introduced by representatives of the ruling coalition allows the President to refuse only once to appoint certain prosecutors and compels him to motivate his refusal publicly. Another amendment provides for prosecutors decisions to be rescinded by their superiors if the latter deem them unlawful or ungrounded. Also today MPs continue debates over the second draft law on modifying the justice laws, the one focusing on judicial organization. On Monday Parliament debated the amendments tabled to the first articles in the law. Alternatively, hundreds of magistrates protested in front of courts of law in Bucharest and other cities against the judicial overhaul that the Social-Democrats and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats are planning, a process that magistrates say lacks transparency.

BUDGET – The Romanian Parliament is debating the draft budget for 2018. Todays session is debating the addendums, after the body of the text and its articles was adopted on Monday, together with the funds allotted to the main credit release authorities: the Presidency, the Senate, the Chamber of Deputies, and the Governments General Secretariat. A final vote has been scheduled for Thursday. Romanias budget for next year is based on an economic growth rate of 5.5%, an exchange rate of 4.55 lei against the euro, an average monthly income of €565 and a budget deficit of 2.97% of the GDP. The priorities for 2018 are healthcare, education and infrastructure. The right-wing opposition has criticized the Government, saying the budget projection is risky and will most likely increase public debt.

COMMEMORATION – Commemorative events continue in Timisoara, western Romania, to mark 28 years since the 1989 anti-communist revolution and in memory of those who lost their lives. Events will continue until December 20, Victory Day, when Timisoara will play host to a rock concert. Started out as a grassroots movement against the local authorities abusive decisions, the revolution spread quickly across the country, and led to the demise of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu on December 22. Over 1,000 people were killed and nearly 3,400 were wounded over December 16-25. Romania was the only country from the Soviet bloc where the anti-communist revolution ended in violence with the dictatorial couple being executed. Prosecutors with the Military Prosecutors Office on Monday said a military diversion was orchestrated on the night of December 22, which led to a massive loss of lives and destruction.

SURVEY – Over 85% of businesspeople in Romania are against the transfer of social security contributions from employers to employees, reads a recent survey commissioned by the Council of SMEs. 60% of respondents said they encountered serious difficulties in implementing and negotiating the move starting January 1, 2018. Ovidiu Nicolescu, the honorary president of the Council of SMEs, has warned that many net salaries will drop. The survey was conducted over December 12-18 with a sample population of 328 businesspeople.

RWB – 65 journalists were killed in 2017 worldwide, of whom 50 professionals, 7 bloggers and 8 freelancers, reads the Reporters without Borders annual report, made public today. According to the report, 2017 was the less deadly in the last 14 years, which is mostly due to a better protection of reporters, and the fact that most journalists have already fled countries located in hot zones across the globe. Same as last year, Syria ranks first in terms of the largest number of journalists killed (12), followed by Mexico (11), Afghanistan (9), Iraq (8) and the Philippines (4).

UN – The United States on Monday vetoed a UN draft resolution rejecting Donald Trumps recent recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital. The text was voted by all the other 14 members of the Security Council. The resolution states that the status of Jerusalem must be solved via negotiations, and that any decisions and actions which purport to have altered the character, status or demographic composition of the City of Jerusalem have no legal effect, are null and void and must be rescinded. We recall that President Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel has prompted the unanimous opposition of the international community. Israel annexed the eastern part of Jerusalem after the 1967 war, then voted a law making the Holy City “indivisible. The annexation has never been recognized by the international community, and Palestine considers Eastern Jerusalem as the rightful capital of their future state.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

19 December 2017
Romania marks 10 years of EU membership

Ten years since their countrys accession to the European Union, 57% of Romanians continue to trust the EU, according to the results of a survey made public recently by the European Commission Representation in Romania. Also, 86% of respondents have a neutral or positive opinion on the EU, while only 14% have a negative perception. In the Romanians opinion, the main advantages of being EU members are the good ties among its members, democracy, the observance of human rights and the rule of law and also the capacity to promote peace and democracy beyond its borders.

The fact that 54% of Romanians believe that their voce is being heard at EU level proves that they become active European citizens. As for the future, Romanians believe that the main threats and challenges are the fight against terrorism (65%), the relations with Russia (46%) and the immigration policy (41%). They support, just like the EU Commission President, Jean Claude Junker, the “unity for all scenario, which prompted the head of the European Commission Representation in Romania, Angela Cristea, to say that the dominant image that the Romanians have on the EU is that of a project of peace and understanding, both among its member states and in its foreign relations.

The survey also shows that according to the Romanians, the main advantages of their countrys EU accession are finding a job in another member state, the access to more markets and the positive impact of EU funds on the region they live in. As for disadvantages, these are a decrease in the purchasing power, foreigners having the right to buy land and real estate and the exodus of qualified labor force. Holding the EU Council Presidency in the first half of 2019, at a highly important moment for the future of the EU, is a major opportunity for Romania and an equally big responsibility, minister delegate for European Affairs, Victor Negrescu has said. He also said that in this context, Bucharest plans to correlate its Presidencys priorities with the peoples expectations, by placing the citizen at the heart of the policies it plans to promote at European level.

The survey also shows that Romanias top priorities during their countrys 6-month EU Presidency are, in the opinion of its citizens, the cohesion policy (66%), security and migration (58%), joining the Schengen area (57%), and having the Mechanism of Cooperation and Verification (56%) lifted. Also, Romania will host the first high-level meeting of the EU leaders post-Brexit, in 2019. (Translated by E. Enache)

28 November 2017
November 16, 2016 UPDATE

ARREST — The former head of the Permanent Electoral Authority in Romania, Ana Maria Patru, on Wednesday was taken into custody, pending trial, in a file in which she is accused of influence peddling and money laundering. According to the anti-corruption prosecutors, she allegedly demanded and received over 200,000 euros in bribe, in exchange for implementing IT procurement contracts with a particular company, and tried to conceal the source of the money by setting up a fictitious circuit. Ana Maria Patru announced her resignation as head of the Permanent Electoral Authority.

VERDICT — The ex-MEP Adrian Severin on Wednesday was sentenced to four-year imprisonment, in a final ruling issued by the High Court of Cassation and Justice in Bucharest. Anti-corruption prosecutors requested penalties of 6 and a half years for bribe taking and 5 years for influence peddling. Adrian Severin was accused of having accepted the 100,000 euros per year promised by two journalists from “The Sunday Times”, who were running an undercover investigation, in exchange for submitting amendments in the specialised committees of the European Parliament. Two other MEPs, from Slovenia and Austria, also accepted to sell their services to The Sunday Times journalists. Unlike Adrian Severin, they resigned following this corruption scandal.

ECONOMY – In Romania, the hard-won macroeconomic balance must be preserved, the governor of the National Bank of Romania Mugur Isarescu warned once again. The central bank official says that in spite of Romania’s economic growth, encouraging demand and consumption has created jobs in other countries rather than in Romania, given that the demand has been primarily met by imports, which are going up at a much faster rate than exports. Financial-banking analysts estimate that Romania needs a 5% annual growth rate for a long period if it is to recover its development delays compared to Western Europe.

DIPLOMACY — US acting president, Democrat Barack Obama, on Wednesday reiterated the United States’ commitments to its European allies, amidst fears that his successor, right-wing populist Donald Trump, is a threat to democracy, international news agencies report. In a speech delivered in Athens, President Barack Obama said he and President-elect Donald Trump “could not be more different” but he added that American democracy is bigger than any one person. He also said that now, more than ever, the world needs a democratic Europe. In the following days, Obama will meet German chancellor Angela Merkel, French president, Francois Hollande, and the Prime Ministers of Great Britain and Italy, Theresa May and Matteo Renzi, respectively. Afterwards, Obama will travel to Peru, to attend the Asia-Pacific Cooperation Summit. His successor at the White House, Donald Trump, will take over his mandate on January 20, 2017.

INVESTIGATION — Romania’s technocratic PM, Dacian Ciolos, on Wednesday sacked state secretary Adrian Sanda, the head of the Secretariat for recognising the merits of the fighters against the communist regime, in the 1945-1989 period. Also on Wednesday, prosecutors and police conducted more than 20 house searches in several counties in Romania, in a case concerning the status of fighter with a determining role in the 1989 Revolution. The investigation is conducted by the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice, and targets offences like aggravated abuse of office, influence peddling, and forgery of private documents. According to official statistics, in the December 1989 anti-communist revolution, 1,100 people died and over 3,000 were wounded.

SURVEY – 29% of the Romanian household owners choose to give bribe in order to have easier access to public services, this being the highest percentage registered in the whole of the EU, a report issued by Transparency International shows. According to the survey, young people in Romania are mainly requesting a social organisation of the public and business environments, so that access to services and careers no longer be conditioned by the existence of a mechanism of relations. In another move, the report also underlines that public institutions and private companies do not generate a real integrity environment. Civil society in Romania should move on to a new type of approach, in order to enjoy the support of the public at large in the fight against corruption, the report also shows.

BOOK FAIR — Bucharest is hosting until Sunday the 23rd Gaudeamus International Book and Education Fair, the longest-lived and most dynamic book fair in Romania, organised by Radio Romania. The highlights of this year’s fair include events devoted to the Romanian film industry, attended by the directors Cristian Mungiu and Radu Jude, and some of the most recent international releases launched in their Romanian version. This year’s guest of honour is China. During its 96 editions in various Romanian cities in 20 years of existence, the fair has brought together more than 2,600,000 visitors and some 10,500 special events. (Translated by D. Vijeu)

16 November 2016
July 31, 2016 UPDATE

INVESTIGATION – Deputy Governor of the National Bank of Romania Bogdan Olteanu, currently under home arrest for 30 days in a case where he is accused of influence peddling, has announced he would step down on Monday. Olteanu was arrested on Thursday, prosecutors calling for his pre-trial arrest. Anticorruption prosecutors are accusing Olteanu of demanding and receiving 1 million euros and support for his election campaign from a businessman in exchange for appointing Liviu Mihaiu as the governor of the Danube Delta, during his time as Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies. This is the first National Bank official to be investigated by the National Anticorruption Directorate. In a press release, the Central Bank said the investigation is focused on Bogdan Olteanus political career before he became Deputy Governor in 2009.

SURVEY – Over 40% of Romanians believe immigration and terrorism are the main challenges facing the EU, reads a recent Eurobarometer published by the European Commission in July. Over 31,000 people from 34 European countries and regions took part in this survey over May 21-31, 2016. In Romania, 42% of respondents depicted a positive image of the EU, down by 15% as compared to the previous survey, while 14% of them said they had a negative image of the EU, up by 5%. At national level, Romanians concerns are related to the healthcare and social security schemes, with 37% of the answers, unemployment 25% and inflation 24%.

MILITARY EXERCISE – Over 2,700 military from five NATO member states – Bulgaria, Canada, Poland, Romania and USA – and five members of the Peace Partnership – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine are starting today and until August 5 taking part in a large-scale military exercise in Cincu, central Romania. Organized by the General Staff of Ground Forces, the exercise is aimed at training the military in compliance with NATO standards. Command, training, computer-assisted simulations, ground troops and tactical exercises will be organized. According to the Defense Ministry, over 900 Romanian military and some 1,700 US troops equipped with M1A2 Abrams tanks and Bradley armored fighting vehicles, and 47 Canadian military equipped with infantry combat vehicles, will be carrying out tactical shooting exercises.

MEASURES – Starting August 1, the VAT for the Romanian agriculture sector will drop from 20 to 9%. The measure will be applied for fertilizers, pesticides, seeds and other agricultural products used in seeding and cultivating plants. Farmers will pay less for farm works this year, while consumers are expected to buy cheaper products starting next year. Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos explained the decision is aimed at stimulating quality farming and stepping up productivity in this sector. Also starting August 1, some 650,000 employees in the public sector will get higher salaries. The measure will apply to the employees in the healthcare, education, administration and defense sectors. Also on August 1, over 600 former MPs will benefit from special pensions, awarded depending on the number of mandates they have had.

BILATERAL RELATIONS – The UK will continue its strategic partnership with Romania, focusing on two pillars, security and prosperity, British Ambassador Paul Brummell has said. Attending a summer camp in central Romania, the British official said Romanians in Britain should remain calm, because Brexit negotiations will be a long process, at the end of which nothing will change. Brummel gave assurances that no changes will involve the situation of Romanian students in Great Britain before negotiations are completed.

WYD – The World Youth Day was celebrated on Sunday in Krakow Poland, where hundreds of thousands of people, mostly young pilgrims from all around the world, came to attend a mass officiated by His Holy Father Pope Francis. In his message, the pontiff urged young people to embrace hope and focus on prayer as the central aspect of their lives. The Pope also told young people to look beyond the mundane gratifications offered by technology, and use their hearts to change the world. The event coincided with the 1,050th anniversary of Polands adoption of Christianity.

TURKEY – Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has told a television that he would forward Parliament a minor constitutional reform, which, if adopted, will place the national intelligence service and the chiefs of general staff under the presidencys control. The measures are aimed at handling full control of the military to the civilian leadership after the failed coup of July, where one military faction used tanks, fighter jets and helicopters to overthrow the power. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said military academies will be shut down and replaced with a National Defense University. The Turkish presidents statement follows last weeks thorough-going reform of the military: nearly half of the generals have been dismissed. After July 15, some 18,700 people have been arrested. 140 newspapers, radio and television stations were shut down.

31 July 2016
Sexual Harassment in Universities

For Romanians, sexual harassment is a notion displayed more in American movies than as a daily reality. Even though asking for sexual favors in exchange for services, promotions or better grades is a felony in Romania, relatively few complaints are filed by those impacted. In fact, there are currently no official statistics on this phenomenon or on the resulting impact for victims. The FILIA center, a feminist organization fighting gender inequality, selected the university environment to start research through an exploratory study on sexual harassment in schools.

Over 600 people, students, doctoral candidates professors and support completed online questionnaires from over 42 universities. Though not considered a representative piece of research, its results do offer insights into the size of the phenomenon and general attitudes on sexual harassment. One conclusion suggests that the problem exists in the university setting because of a fear of filing complaints against inappropriate actions once they occur. Some respondents emphasized the need to clarify the definition of sexual harassment in their universities codes of conduct as well as introduce penalties proportional to the gravity of the deed. Here with details is Andreea Braga, president of the FILIA Center:

“Sexual harassment is defined in law 202/2002 on equal opportunity for women. This is a law applied largely on the labor market. Sexual harassment is also defined in the Criminal Code, but there is no clear definition applicable to all universities. Codes of conduct differ from one university to another, and in some of them sexual harassment is clearer, more nuanced, while in others there is a simple mention that sexual harassment is forbidden. A more ample definition, or one that offers more concrete examples, could simplify the procedures of filing a complaint, and would encourage persons faced with this kind of abuse to file complaints. One of the results of our study indicates that when they are asked if they have faced sexual harassment, about 20% answer yes. But, when asked to give concrete examples of sexual harassment, the percentage increases. Those who initially answer no, when asked to check the box with concrete examples, pick one, and the percentage goes up to 50%. Therefore, we have a problem of connecting sexual harassment to very serious cases, the kind that sometimes appear in the news. Those cases include demands for sexual favors in exchange for a better academic evaluation. We [tend to] overlook less serious cases of sexual harassment.

These less serious cases, like sexual jokes and name-calling, are not limited to the academic environment, but are widespread in daily life, including instances of inappropriate touching in public transportation. According to Andreea Braga, these cases should not be overlooked:

“We were told that people couldnt make jokes any more because we bristle at the drop of a hat and we throw around accusations of sexual harassment. But these jokes with sexual overtones can go as far as jokes about rape, which legitimizes behaviors later on. This is what happens with inappropriate light touching. They say: ‘Whats the big deal, I just touched you a little. But in the end, its my body and my intimacy. I am in a place where I came to learn and grow, not to shut myself off and believe it is my fault, because I dressed in a blouse that gives a man the impression that they can touch me.

So what exactly happens in an institution for education and personal development when students deviate from the norm? Heres what a study conducted by the FILIA Center and Andreea Braga discovered:

“At a first glance, there are 380 people of 668 who said that there is sexual harassment in universities in general. Of those individuals, 165 people said they were subject at least once to jokes with sexual overtones that made them uncomfortable. 129 respondents were subject to commentaries with sexual overtones or received nicknames with a sexual connotation. 13 people faced threats or pressure related to their academic or professional evaluation in exchange for sexual relations.

So who is the aggressor in these situations? We asked Andreea Braga:

“Most people indicated by the respondents said ‘a male student and ‘a male professor. There are other answers, such as ‘a male doctoral candidate and ‘a female doctoral candidate, or ‘a female professor, but these cases are fewer. Most of the time the answer is ‘a student or ‘a professor, which means that this problem exists in relationships between colleagues and relationships with authority figures who must give performance evaluations. Maybe in that situation you are afraid of standing up to someone on whom your future depends.

Under these circumstances, it falls on the universities to condemn sexual harassment as explicitly as possible, and to create an environment where the victim is vindicated, not the aggressor. Andreea Braga:

“What also matters is the culture or environment where we study or work, as well as our colleagues reaction when we are victim to sexual harassment. We can see that more often than not some forms of violence against women are minimized. When it comes to sexual harassment, it is even more difficult to step up and get through this. There is a sum of factors — the confidence that, if you are wronged, this wrong can be corrected by the institution where you study, and it can be consolidated through policies adopted by each university. It can only be consolidated through changes in the code of conduct, which clearly show the willingness to improve norms in schools. These must be accompanied by programs or awareness campaigns regarding the rights and obligations that professors and students must retain when interacting with each other.

VM The FILIA Center hopes the exploratory study on sexual harassment in universities will raise alarm and awareness for campus safety, as well as opportunities for further research into the

24 February 2016
December 26, 2015

CHRISTMAS – Orthodox and Greek Catholic Christians in Romania celebrate the Synaxis of the Most Holy Mother of God. Emerged in the 5th century, this is one of the oldest feast days observed by the Christian Orthodox calendar. The word ‘synaxis is Slavonic for ‘gathering, in this case referring to the gathering of the saints around the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his Christmas address, Romanian Orthodox Church Patriarch Daniel urged people to seek the peace of the soul that may bring about social order. At the Vatican, his holiness Pope Francis in his Christmas address launched an appeal to peace and condemned the terrorist atrocities and the evil in the Middle East that has forced people out of their homes.

EARTHQUAKE – A 6.3 Richter-scale earthquake shook northern Afghanistan, with aftershocks reaching as far as India. According to the US Institute for Geophysics, the epicentre of the tremor was located in the northern province of Badakhshan, close to the Pakistani border. Tens of people have been reportedly injured. Press agencies recall that hundreds of people died following a massive earthquake that occurred in the same region on October 26.

REFUGEES – Europe must regain control of its borders, the German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Saturday, in response to emerging information according to which Islamic State militants would have counterfeit passports. The German official has warned that refugees should not be included in the same category with those suspected of terrorism, adding that many militants originate from Europe. Minister Steinmeier went on to say that the European Councils proposal to extend the remit of the European Agency managing cooperation between national border guards securing its external borders – FRONTEX and the EUs aid to Turkey so that this country might contribute to curbing the flow of refugees to Europe are vital to secure a better control of EU borders. Over a million refugees, fleeing conflicts and wars in the Middle East, have arrived in Europe this year, mostly in Germany.

SURVEY – Over 70% of Romanians have confidence in the institution of family, although less than half trust in the institution of marriage, according to a survey conducted by IRES. The survey also reveals that Romanians share the same social tendencies, moral standards with their partner, although not necessarily their political affinities. Regarding the image of the ideal marriage, respondents referred to aspects such as mutual respect and communication, time spent together, appreciation, faithfulness, understanding, tolerance and the existence of children as key to a happy marriage. The study also shows that divorce is seen as the acceptable solution in cases of violence from one of the partners, infidelity, lack of love or alcohol abuse. Over 90% of Romanians argued against polygamy and are extremely conservative regarding same-sex marriages, 82% of respondents arguing against this form of marriage.

INVENTIONS – 2015 was rich in inventions. Some of the breakthroughs that have helped change the face of our lives over the last year include a modified wheelchair for people with disabilities, allowing them to climb stairs unassisted. Also this year a new generation of bendable smartphones was released, as well as a pocket scanner, a 3D pen, a palm-sized printer, and the 3D printer that can print prosthetics in less than 42 hours. Adding to the list is a robot capable of solving the Rubik cube puzzle and the 128 GB memory-card.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

26 December 2015