THE WEEK IN REVIEW
April 29- May 3, 2024
Ştefan Stoica, 04.05.2024, 13:28
The mini-holiday of May 1 and Orthodox Easter
Orthodox believers, a majority faith in Romania, along with Greek Catholics, celebrated Passion Week before Easter, which they celebrate on Sunday, May 5. The Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Daniel, sent a message on Wednesday stating that the Resurrection of the Lord is the celebration of the merciful love of Christ, the one who defeated hatred, violence and death, giving people eternal life. That is why Easter is the celebration of forgiveness, peace and joy, Daniel said. He urged the sharing of Christ’s love, peace and joy with those around, by word and deed, especially to orphaned children, the sick and the elderly, as well as Romanians among foreigners. We remind you that, this year, the Catholic faithful celebrated Easter on March 31. The Easter holidays will end the mini-holiday that started on Wednesday, May 1, on Labor Day. Tens of thousands of Romanians spent time at the seaside, where the summer season officially opened, and in mountain resorts.
Voting abroad in the European Parliament election
12 parties or alliances and four independent candidates registered for the European Parliament elections that will take place on June 9 in Romania. The Central Electoral Bureau validated the final list this week,and established by drawing lots the order in which the formations will be entered on the ballot. The printing of ballot papers for polling stations abroad has already begun. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luminiţa Odobescu, declared that there will be a record number of polling stations outside the country, over 900, almost double those organized at the 2019 European Parliament elections. It is also the largest number of voting stations ever organized abroad. Along with the elections for the European Parliament, local elections will also take place in Romania on June 9. The political formations that wanted to enter the race for mayors, local, municipal, and county councils only had Tuesday to submit their candidacies.
Help for TAROM
The European Commission has given its consent for TAROM, the national airline, to receive state aid worth over 95 million euros in order to restructure. According to the Community Executive, the subsidies will allow the company to restore its long-term viability. In order to limit the possible distortions of competition generated by public support, TAROM will significantly reduce the number of routes and aircraft. The measures in the restructuring plan provide for the cancellation of a debt of over 49 million euros, and a capital injection of almost 46 million euros. The European Transport Commissioner, Adina Vălean, stated that the approval of the aid for TAROM represents a health certificate for the company, and an advantage in finding investors for the national airline operator. The Minister of Transport, Sorin Grindeanu, stated that the aid will be used mainly for renewing the aircraft fleet, optimizing destinations and commercial policy, streamlining aircraft maintenance activities, and digitizing the company.
New evacuations from Gaza
Nine Romanian citizens and their family members were evacuated from the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, and reached the territory of Republic of Egypt, where they were taken over by the mobile consular team of the Romanian Embassy in Cairo. 323 Romanian citizens and their family members have been evacuated from the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.
Romanian cinematography awards
The film ‘Liberty’, directed by Tudor Giurgiu, received the Gopo Trophy for the best feature film at the Gopo Awards Gala, which took place on Monday. The film won the most Gopo statuettes, including those for best director, Tudor Giurgiu, best actor in a leading role, Alex Calangiu and best actor in a secondary role, Iulian Postelnicu. Inspired by real events, the film tells a story that happened in Sibiu (center) during the Revolution of 1989. “Freedom” and “Don’t expect too much from the end of the world”, by Radu Jude, were rewarded, ex aequo, with the prize for best script. The distinction for best actress in a leading role went to Ilinca Manolache for her role in the film ‘Don’t expect too much from the end of the world’. ‘Anatomie D’une Chute’ / ‘Anatomy of a Fall’, directed by Justine Triet (France) received the award for best European film. The actress Rodica Mandache received the award for her entire career, and the actor Dan Nuţu was honored with the award his entire activity.
A new soccer champion
The domestic football competition has not yet reached the end, but the team FCSB from Bucharest has mathematically secured the title of champion, since the seventh stage of the play-off, by winning against the current title holder, Farul Constanţa (southeast ). It is the first title won by FCSB in the current competitive system, with play-off and play-out, and comes after a 9-year break for the Bucharest team. In handball, the Romanian men’s champion, CS Dinamo Bucharest, qualified for the semifinals of the EHF European League continental competition, after a double victory against the Danes from Skjern Handbold. The Final Four tournament of the EHF European League will take place on May 25 and 26, in Hamburg, Germany.
