December 7, 2016 UPDATE

Romanias Constitutional Court announces it will decide next week in relation to the notifications on the law that changes the ordinance on the salaries of personnel paid from public funds

Newsroom, 07.12.2016, 12:30

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT– Romanias Constitutional Court will decide on December 14 in relation to the notifications filed by the National Liberal Party and the technocratic government regarding the law that changes the ordinance on the salaries of personnel paid from public funds. The Chamber of Deputies passed the law on November 7, with the amendments proposed by the experts committees, which provide for pay rises by 15% in the education and healthcare systems. The PM Dacian Ciolos subsequently announced that the government had to ask for a constitutionality check of the law passed by Parliament, and not of the emergency ordinance.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS – The Romanian foreign minister, Lazar Comanescu, on Wednesday expressed Bucharests unequivocal support for Ukraines independence and territorial integrity, as well as for boosting cooperation between the Ukrainian authorities and the North-Atlantic Alliance. Attending the meeting of the NATO foreign ministers held in Brussels, Comanescu encouraged Ukraines domestic reform efforts. The participants also analyzed the situation in Afghanistan, with the Romanian foreign minister presenting Romanias significant contribution to NATOs commitments to that country.

QUAKE – As many as 100 people have died and several hundreds have been injured, and tens of buildings have collapsed in Indonesia following a 6.4 magnitude quake that hit the province of Aceh, in the north. The earthquake occurred in the morning at a depth of 8 kms. No tsunami alert has been issued. The province of Aceh was seriously damaged in 2004 following a 9.2 magnitude quake that was followed by a tsunami. 120,000 people died in that natural disaster.

TABLE TENNIS – Romanian table tennis players Adina Diaconu and Andreea Dragoman on Wednesday won the gold medal in the doubles of the World Junior Table Tennis Championships in Cape Town, South Africa. In the finals, Diaconu and Dragoman defeated the Japanese Hina Hayata and Miyu Kato, 4-2. In the singles, Diaconu won the bronze medal, and afterwards lost in the semi-finals to Mak Tze Wing of Hong Kong, 0-4. (Translated by L. Simion and D. Vijeu)