December 23, 2017

Fresh anti-government protests have been announced in Bucharest and many other cities and towns across the country, in the afternoon/ Ceremonies to commemorate the gendarmes killed during the Anti-communist Revolution of December 1989 were held in Romania

Bogdan Matei, 23.12.2017, 13:30

PROTESTS – Fresh anti-government protests have been announced in Bucharest and many other cities and towns across the country, in the afternoon. The initiators are NGOs that accuse the Government and the parliamentary majority made up of the Social Democratic Party-The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats of trying to subordinate Justice, by changing the legislation in the field. On Friday, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjorn Jagland, sent a letter to Romanias President, Klaus Iohannis, urging him to call for an opinion from the Venice Commission on the legislative reforms already adopted by Parliament. Earlier, the Bucharest embassies of Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden had sent a joint letter, calling on all sides involved in the process to reform the judiciary to avoid any action which might lead to the weakening of the independence of the judiciary and of the fight against corruption. In response, the Romanian Foreign Ministry said that strengthening the rule of law and boosting the fight against corruption are among the priorities set by the Government. In their turn, the leaders of the parliamentary majority, Social-Democrat Liviu Dragnea and Liberal-Democrat Calin Popescu Tariceanu have promised that the Justice and Foreign ministers, Tudorel Toader, and Teodor Melescanu, respectively, will correctly inform the embassies on the changes brought to the legislation in the field.

COMMEMORATION – Military and religious ceremonies and floral tributes were paid this morning at the Henri Coandă Otopeni International Airport, near Bucharest, to commemorate the gendarmes who lost their lives during the Anti-communist Revolution 28 years ago. Doing their military service in Câmpina, southern Romania, the gendarmes were sent on December 23, 1989, to defend the airport, which was allegedly under ground and air attacks by the so-called terrorists loyal to former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. In Otopeni, however, the army opened fire on them, killing 37 officers, non-commissioned officers, pupils and conscripts. Started on December 16, 1989 by the inhabitants of Timisoara, in the west, who opposed an abusive measure taken by the local authorities, the Revolution spread to the whole country and culminated on December 22, with the Ceausescu couples attempt to flee Bucharest. Captured by the army, he was executed on December 25, following a summary trial. Over 1,000 people died and some 3,400 got injured during the 1989 Revolution.

CENTRAL BANK – The National Bank of Romania has announced it will issue next year new banknotes and coins featuring the countrys new coat of arms. They will circulate concurrently with the existing ones. The new coat of arms features a crowned eagle. The new banknotes and coins will be gradually introduced on the market, depending on the real needs for currency. The new banknotes will also bear the date of “January 1, 2018, on the obverse. According to a communiqué issued by the National Bank of Romania, all the other graphic and safety elements are identical with those on the banknotes and coins which are already in circulation.

MIGRANTS – A Syrian and a Sudanese citizen have been temporarily taken into custody for 30 days for migrant trafficking, after the Romanian border police spotted them while guiding six Iranian nationals, who illegally tried to cross the Serbian- Romanian border. According to a communiqué issued by the Border Police on Saturday, the migrants intended to reach a country in Western Europe.

TENNIS – The world number one woman tennis player, Romanian Simona Halep, is playing Johanna Konta of Great Britain, in the semis of the “Intercontinental World Tennis Championship demonstrative tournament in Thailand. Playing in the other semi-final are Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic, no.4 WTA, and Latvias Jelena Ostapenko, no. 7 WTA. On Sunday, the winners of the two semis will meet in the final, and the defeated players will fight for the third place.