September 12, 2021 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 12.09.2021, 19:00
Covid-19RO. Some 2,250 new cases of coronavirus infection were reported in Romania on Sunday, in 33,200 tests, the Strategic Communication Group has announced. 29 Covid-19 related deaths were reported. At least 4,800 infected people are currently hospitalized, of which 600 in intensive care. So far, 5.2 million people have been fully vaccinated in Romania, which accounts for about one third of the eligible population.
School. Almost 3 million pupils and preschoolers return to classes in Romania on Monday. The new school year has 34 weeks, is divided into two semesters and ends on June 11, 2022. The Minister of Education, Sorin Cîmpeanu, has announced that, on the first day of school, festivities will be allowed in which parents can participate, provided they wear a mask and keep a safe distance from other participants. But there are also children who will not be able to go to school physically, as several towns and villages have exceeded the COVID-19 infection rate of 6 cases per one thousand inhabitants. 7000 pupils will not be able to physically participate in ceremonies marking the start of the new school year, due to either a high rate of infection or lack of proper infrastructure in schools, Sorin Cîmpeanu has announced. He has voiced hope that important progress will be made in vaccinating pupils after school starts, as the relevant authorities can organize mobile teams, which will bring immunization closer to schools.
Moldova. The Republic of Moldova is faced with one of the highest rates of new cases of Covid-19 and related deaths, Radio Chisinau reports. Over the past week, the number of new cases has increased by 43 percent and the number of related deaths has doubled. On the other hand, France, which is among the leading European countries in terms of vaccination, with more than 80% of the population over the age of 12 already vaccinated, is preparing to implement new measures to combat the epidemic as of next week. Starting September 13, a new vaccination campaign starts for the administration of a third dose, first in the centers for the elderly, as their residents were the first to be vaccinated at the beginning of the year. Countries around the world are currently considering administering vaccines to children, while pharmaceutical companies, including Moderna, are trying to get the green light for the use of anti-COVID-19 serums in teenagers. Pfizer, whose COVID-19 vaccine is already being administered to teenagers, has started testing the vaccine in younger children. Globally, there have been at least 224 million cases of infection with the new coronavirus and more than 4.6 million related deaths, according to worldometers.
Visit. On Sunday, in Budapest, Pope Francis described the Hungarian nation as faithful to its roots but also urged Hungarians to be open to others. In what observers saw a diplomatic hint at Viktor Orbans anti-migration policies, the Pope said that the symbol of the cross meant we should reach to the others as well. The 84 year-old Pope went to Hungary for the closing service of the International Eucharistic Congress. He had closed-door talks with President Janos Ader and Prime Minister Orban, which were not followed by press statements. The head of the Hungarian government, who disapproves of the Popes call for refugees of all faiths to be received in Europe, wrote on Facebook that he had asked the Sovereign Pontiff not to let Christians in Hungary perish. A Calvinist and married to a Roman Catholic, Orban does not share the Popes tolerance of LGBT people and is often accused of promoting homophobic policies. From Hungary, Pope Francis left for neighboring Slovakia, where he will stay for three days.
Festival. The George Enescu International Festival continues in Romania. Its the 25th edition of the festival and celebrates 140 years since the birth of the great Romanian composer. The Russian conductor Vladimir Jurowski is once again the artistic director of the festival. He has stated that “this anniversary edition gathers the most important musicians of the world and promotes the idea of united European cultures”. In total, 32 orchestras from 14 countries perform at this years edition of the festival. Radio Romania and the Romanian Television are co-producers of the George Enescu International Festival.
Untold. The sixth edition of the largest electronic music festival in Europe, Untold, has ended in Cluj Napoca, north-western Romania. Over 200 DJs and artists participated in the event, after almost two years of break, on the seven stages of the festival. In total, more than 100,000 people attended the events organized during the festival, which began on Thursday. This year, the organizers tried to combine electronic music with traditional tunes. Untold gathers every year the most important DJs in the world. This year, in Cluj-Napoca were present, among others, David Guetta, DJ Snake, Afrojack, Martin Garrix, Nina Kravitz and Paul Kalkbrenner.
Tennis. The British teenager Emma Răducanu (18 years old), won the US Open 2021, after, on Saturday, in the final, she defeated the Canadian Leylah Fernandez (19 years old), 6-4, 6- 3. Emma won the prestigious American tournament without losing a set and coming from qualifications, something that has never happened in the history of tennis. The US Open was Emmas second participation in a Grand Slam tournament, after the one at Wimbledon, where she had to give up in the round of 16, due to medical problems. Emma, born to a Romanian father and an Asian mother, has thus secured a 2.5 million USD check and has jumped from the 150th to the 23rd position in the WTA rankings. (MI)
