Editorial Note: The following news reports are summaries from original sources. They may also include corrections of Arabic names and political terminology. Comments are in parentheses.

 

Romanians Protest Austerity Measures, Following Fellow Europeans

January 21, 2012

Snow dampens Romania anti-government protests

By Sam Cage

Saturday, January 21, 2012

BUCHAREST (Reuters) -

Hundreds of Romanians protested against the government's austerity measures on Saturday, but heavy snow deterred many from pressing a week of occasionally violent demonstrations demanding the government resign.

Romania had suffered little of the unrest seen in other austerity-hit European countries like Greece until now and while the protests have been relatively small, they have marked the country's worst violence in more than a decade.

About 100 demonstrators met in Bucharest's University Square, a major crossroads in the middle of the city known as 'Kilometre Zero of Democracy' for its role in the 1989 anti-communist revolution, a smaller number than in preceding days.

People also took to the streets in other cities to demand the resignation of President Traian Basescu and close ally Prime Minister Emil Boc, who cut salaries by 25 percent and raised a sales tax to put the European Union's second-poorest country on a more solid footing after deep recession.

"Every day this government remains in power is a day in which Romania loses money, loses opportunities, loses jobs," said USL co-leader Victor Ponta.

Boc is struggling to hang on to power before a parliamentary election due late in the year but the protests are unlikely to be enough to force early polls or change policies which maintain an International Monetary Fund-led deal.

On Thursday, some 7,000 opposition supporters rallied in Bucharest and some joined a separate anti-austerity protest, where police fired tear gas against demonstrators, some of whom threw bricks and rubbish bins.

That was the biggest demonstration in Romania since 2010, but still far smaller than in countries like Spain, Greece, France or Britain.

Opinion polls put Boc's centrist PDL at 18 percent support, compared with about 50 percent for the USL, a fragile leftist alliance, and analysts say the protests are unlikely to affect policy or force the government out at this stage.

"They've done only bad moves, the government does nothing to raise our living standards. Our low pay makes us second-hand Europeans," said 42-year old Daniela Lupu, a public clerk at the demonstrations.

Basescu has so far not commented on the protests and Boc, visiting a motorway construction site, stressed the government's achievement of economic stability, with growth of about 2.5 percent last year after recession.

"I understand the unhappiness of Romanians," Boc said. "I am just as convinced, along with my colleagues, that the measures were absolutely necessary and correct."

(editing by Elizabeth Piper)

Romanian protests take nasty turn

EurActiv with Reuters, 20 January 2012

Background:

Deputy Health Minister Raed Arafat resigned earlier in January following his opposition to the health care provisions suggested by Romanian authorities that would privatize half the emergency healthcare system.

The incident sparked wide demonstrations that were soon transformed into violent protests against the government and proposed austerity measures. The authorities decided to withdraw the proposals but did not manage to ease the frustration of the protestors who

***

Romanian riot police fired tear gas at protestors who threw bricks and bottles back at them yesterday (19 January), as demonstrations against government austerity measures entered their second week.

The police arrested up to 50 people believed to have triggered the violence, including those accused of throwing mental fencing at officers, according to private television station Realitatea.

Hundreds of demonstrators from an opposition rally which took place earlier in the day joined the protest in the main Bucharest square in the evening. Traffic was blocked and protestor numbers there rose to 1,500, riot police said.

About 7,000 opposition supporters rallied in Bucharest earlier on Thursday to demand that government leaders resignation, following a week of anti-austerity protests across the country which have sometimes turned violent.

The rally was organised by the leftist opposition USL to press for the resignation of Prime Minister Emil Boc's centrist coalition and his ally President Traian Băsescu. The Social-Liberal Union (USL) is an alliance between three opposition parties, the Social Democratic Party of Victor Ponta, and the centre-right alliance made up of the National Liberal Party of Crin Antonescu and the Conservative Party of Daniel Constantin.

They paraded along a main boulevard from Bucharest's triumphal arch - modelled on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris - to the government headquarters, chanting "Down with Băsescu" and comparing him with former communist dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu.

"People are out on the streets in all the cities of Romania," USL co-leader Victor Ponta told the crowd, gathered in freezing temperatures.

"People are upset: many are angry because they lost their jobs, many are angry because their pensions were slashed, many others are humiliated by the rulers every day. But there is a single thing that unites us - we all want Băsescu out."

The USL staged its march separately from main square protests which erupted spontaneously last week after a popular deputy minister, a respected Palestinian-born medic, clashed with Băsescu and resigned over a controversial health reform plan.

Hundreds of demonstrators supporting the spontaneous movement are meeting every day in the square, as well as other cities, to attack pay cuts and tax increases the government has implemented under an International Monetary Fund-led aid deal.

The austerity policies have helped Romania to put its once troubled finances on a steadier footing, but have also slowed recovery from a deep and painful recession.

The USL has committed to stick with the IMF deal, but said it would revoke some of Boc's austerity measures if it takes power. It has called for a parliamentary election to be brought forward from late this year.

Latest opinion polls show support for the USL, a fragile leftist alliance, at about 50% compared with 18% for Boc's PDL.

Analysts say the protests are not big enough to sway policy but will make it even more difficult for the PDL to regain ground in the polls and hang on to power.

Police fire tear gas at Romanian protesters

By Sam Cage and Radu Marinas

Thu Jan 19, 2012 5:16pm EST

BUCHAREST (Reuters) -

Romanian riot police fired tear gas at protesters who threw bricks and bottles back at them on Thursday in Bucharest's main square where demonstrations against the government's austerity drive have taken place since last week.

The police arrested up to 50 people believed to have triggered the violence including throwing metal fencing at them, according to private television station Realitatea TV.

Hundreds of demonstrators from an opposition rally which took place earlier in the day joined the protest in the main square in the evening. Traffic was blocked and protester numbers there rose to 1,500, riot police said.

About 7,000 opposition supporters rallied in Bucharest earlier on Thursday to demand the government's resignation, following a week of anti-austerity protests across the country which have sometimes turned violent.

The rally was organized by the leftist opposition USL to press for the resignation of Prime Minister Emil Boc's centrist coalition and his ally President Traian Basescu.

They paraded along a main boulevard from Bucharest's triumphal arch - modeled on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris - to the government headquarters, chanting "Down with Basescu" and comparing him with former communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.

"People are out on the streets in all the cities of Romania," USL co-leader Victor Ponta told the crowd, gathered in freezing temperatures.

"People are upset: many are angry because they lost their jobs, many are angry because their pensions were slashed, many others are humiliated by the rulers every day. But there is a single thing that unites us - we all want Basescu out."

The USL staged its march separately from main square protests which erupted spontaneously last week after a popular deputy minister, a respected Palestinian-born medic clashed with Basescu and resigned over a controversial health reform plan.

Hundreds of demonstrators supporting the spontaneous movement are meeting every day in the square, as well as other cities, to attack pay cuts and tax increases the government has implemented under an International Monetary Fund-led aid deal.

They have protested against the opposition as well as the government and there has been little violence since the weekend.

The austerity policies have helped Romania to put its once troubled finances on a steadier footing, but have also slowed recovery from a deep and painful recession

The USL has committed to stick with the IMF, but said it would revoke some of Boc's austerity measures if it takes power. It has called for a parliamentary election to be brought forward from late this year.

Latest opinion polls show support for the USL, a fragile leftist alliance, on about 50 percent compared with 18 percent for Boc's PDL.

Analysts say the protests are not big enough to sway policy but will make it even more difficult for the PDL to regain ground in the polls and hang on to power.

(Writing by Radu Marinas)

Romania reinstates health official amid protests

EurActiv, 18 January 2012 - Updated 19 January 2012

Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc has reappointed popular Deputy Health Minister Raed Arafat, whose resignation last week over proposed healthcare reforms sparked violent protests across the country.

Arafat, a respected Palestinian-born doctor who is credited with creating an efficient emergency medical system in Romania, resigned after criticising the draft bill, which aimed to privatise parts of the health system and is backed by President Traian Băsescu.

Protests which initially began on Thursday in support of Arafat have widened to express general discontent against government spending cuts. Arafat's return is unlikely to satisfy thousands of Romanians who have staged street protests for five straight days and are gearing up for more.

Protests in Bucharest yesterday (18 January) drew more than 1,000 people but were largely peaceful. Thousands of protesters demonstrated in other cities. Arafat was reinstated a deputy minister yesterday.

Riot police estimated that 13,000 protestors have hit the streets across the country since Friday. Bucharest has seen Romania's worst unrest in more than a decade.

Small rallies in support of Arafat quickly turned into wider protests calling for the resignation of Băsescu and Boc's centrist coalition government, even though it has now withdrawn the healthcare bill.

"He will resume his job as deputy health minister," Boc told reporters. "Mr Arafat remains the same expert and professional in his field ... and will be part of the team working on the new healthcare bill."

Unlike other European states, Romania had managed to avoid violent protests despite cutting state wages and jobs, freezing pensions and raising value added tax in 2010 to shore up public finances it committed under an international aid deal.

In Bucharest at the weekend, protestors smashed windows, set fire to newspaper stands and rubbish bins, damaged bus stops and buildings and hurled stones at riot police, who used tear gas.

"I think officials realised they have made a mistake in pushing away a reputed expert," said Cristian Pătrășconiu, a political commentator. "But this move will not cancel the idea of protests, which have long ago moved to other topics than healthcare."

Earlier in the day, Romanian media said the International Monetary Fund had postponed a mission to review Romania's precautionary aid deal due to the protests but the Fund said it would stick to its scheduled visit which starts on 25 January.

"In contrast to what has just been reported in the press today, the IMF mission is still on schedule as indicated in the press notice previously sent," it said in a statement.

Positions:

Sergei Stanishev, President of the European Socialists Party (PES), stated: Romania has been the victim of a gradual, but systematic destruction of democratic institutions and mechanisms, in a manner strikingly similar to that in Hungary.

The President Traian Basescu has fallen short of his constitutional oath to remain politically neutral. The Government are timidly following his attempts to override democratic checks and balances.

As leader of the Party of European Socialists (PES), I call on the Romanian Government to respect basic democratic standards and urge them to commit to a technical system which allows for free and fair elections at the earliest available opportunity.

 

 

 

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