June 5, 2023

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 05.06.2023, 13:53

Pentecost. Orthodox
Christians and Greek Catholics in the majority Orthodox Romania are today
celebrating the second day of Pentecost, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, and
which is a bank holiday in this country. Pentecost or the Descent of the Holy
Spirit upon the apostles marks the foundation of the Christian Church and is
celebrated 50 days after Easter. According to the New Testament, the 12
Apostles, gathered in a house, received the Holy Spirit, who gave them the
power to preach in languages ​​they had never spoken before. Following the
sermon of the Apostle Peter, 3,000 people were baptised and formed the first
Christian community. On the second day of Pentecost in some areas of the
country, decorated clay pots are given away, usually accompanied by a bread
ring with a candle on top in remembrance of those loved ones who have passed
away.

Summit. Romania’s president Klaus
Iohannis will attend a meeting of the Bucharest Nine leaders’ summit in
Bratislava on Tuesday, which he is co-chairing together with the presidents of
Slovakia, Zuzana Caputova, and Poland, Andrzej Duda.
The meeting will also be attended by NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg.
According to a statement from the Romanian president’s office, the meeting,
which is held less than a month before the NATO summit in Vilnius, will provide
an opportunity for an exchange of views with regard to the priorities on the
allied agenda and the major objectives, with emphasis on the consolidation of
NATO’s deterrence and defence posture on the eastern flank and boosting
cooperation with Ukraine. Special attention will be given to the vulnerable
partners in the region, such as the ex-Soviet, majority Romanian-speaking
Republic of Moldova, which is facing growing security challenges.

Strike. The teachers’ strike
continues on Tuesday, trade unions in the education system have announced. They
say they are not convinced the government plans to invest in education after
the strike is over. As an example, they cite the fact that the new salary bill
does not establish the average salary as the basis for calculating the salaries
of beginner teachers. In a statement, they also say they are not satisfied with
the wording of the government’s emergency order, which only mentions the
previous commitment in a substantiation note. They also rejected the pay rises
proposed by the government, saying they are too low. The government, however,
says it met all of the protesters’ demands with a gross increase of 200 euros
for the teaching staff and of 80 euros for the non-teaching staff and by
providing all the guarantees requested with respect to the future salary law.
The authorities are calling on teachers to return to classrooms to end the
school year, insisting its new emergency order solves all their requests.
Education minister Ligia Deca said a few days ago the authorities were
considering extending the school year and rescheduling exams if the teachers’
strike continued.

Environment. President Klaus
Iohannis said on World Environment Day that by implementing the measures
related to circular economy, the amount of plastic that ends up in oceans may
decrease by more than 80% globally by 2040. World Environment Day helps raise
awareness about the many challenges faced by the environment, the president
said in a statement, adding that this day encourages people to act to limit
climate change, protect biodiversity and combat air, water and soil pollution.
World Environment Day 2023 is dedicated to efforts to fight plastic pollution.
Estimates show that around 20 million tonnes of plastic end up every in year in
lakes, rivers and seas around the world.

Volleyball. The Romanian men’s
volleyball side defeated Turkey 3-2 on Sunday night in Konya in a Golden League
Group A match. Romania, who won the Silver League last year, thus scored their
first victory in Group A. Turkey top the group with 6 points, followed by
Denmark, also with 6, Portugal with 4, and Romania with 2 points. Romania will
play three consecutive matches at home, in Braşov,
facing Turkey on 10th June, Denmark on 14th June and
Portugal on 18th June. Group winners and the host country will
qualify for the Final Four tournament hosted by Croatia. If Croatia win their
group, the second-placed side will also qualify. (CM)