31 August, 2020 UPDATE

A roundup of the main stories in Romania today.

Newsroom, 31.08.2020, 20:00

No-confidence motion. A meeting to debate and vote on a no-confidence motion against the Liberal government
initiated by the Social Democratic Party could not be held because of a lack of
quorum. According to the Social Democrat speaker of the Chamber of Deputies
Marcel Ciolacu, only 226 MPs attended the meeting, but 233 were necessary to
ensure quorum.

Covid-19. 755
new daily cases of Covid-19 infections and 43 new deaths were reported in
Romania on Monday. The total number of contaminations reached 87,540, with the
death toll standing at 3,621. 506 patients are in intensive care and 37,869
have recovered. The local authorities are this week starting to assess the
situation of COVID-19 cases and the transmission rate, given that the new
school year is supposed to start on September 14. Depending on this assessment,
they will decide on how the new school year begins and how they will adapt the
3 scenarios proposed by the public health authorities.

Relaxation. The Romanian government on Monday adopted new relaxation measures to be applied
as of September 1. These include the resumption of cultural activities in
enclosed areas and the reopening of restaurants and cafes indoors. The
conditions were set up in a meeting of the National Committee for Emergency
Situations. Restaurants will only reopen in counties where the cumulated number
of Covid-19 cases in the last 14 days is below or equal to 1.5 per one thousand
inhabitants. The same condition applies to the opening of cinemas and performance
venues that will operate at half capacity. Also, as of September 1, seminars
and private events will resume with the participation of a maximum of 50
persons in enclosed areas and 100 outdoors.

Romanian Language Day. Various cultural
events were held simultaneously in Romania, the Republic of Moldova and the
Romanian communities abroad to celebrate Romanian Language Day on 31st August. President
Klaus Iohannis said language defines our identity and culture, shapes us and
inspires us. He praised the efforts of Romanian language teachers abroad who
pass on to the new generations the roots inherited from the past and help them
define themselves culturally and spiritually. First held in 2013, Romanian
Language Day overlaps with the national holiday in the Republic of Moldova and
is a tribute to the movement of national revival in the neighbouring state,
which has majority Romanian-speaking population.

Elections. The election campaign for the
local elections of 27th September continues in Romania. The
authorities have announced the rules which candidates and their staff must
respect during this period to prevent infections with the novel coronavirus. 41
county council seats are up for election, as well as some 3,200 mayor seats, and
over 1,300 county councillor and some 40,000 local councillor positions. The
local elections were first due to take place in June but were postponed because
of the coronavirus outbreak.

Festival. The prestigious George Enescu international
competition is under way in Bucharest. Held mostly online, the competition is
bringing together 205 young musicians from 39 different countries. 184 of them
are taking part in the competitive sections for instruments, namely violin,
cello and piano, while 21 are taking part in the composition section. Prizes
are worth 100,000 euros.