December 18, 2023 UPDATE
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 18.12.2023, 19:45
MOTION – The Bucharest Chamber of Deputies is debating the simple motion tabled by USR and the Force of the Right against the liberal minister of education, Ligia Deca. The document is entitled “A minister who lies cannot manage Education”. Its initiators are asking for Ligia Deca’s resignation, whom they blame for the catastrophic results of the Romanian students in the PISA tests and for trying to manipulate these results, by conveniently presenting only the numbers she wanted. USR and the Force of the Right also say that Minister Deca should have resigned over the education laws. The vote on the motion is to be given in Tuesdays meeting.
REVOLUTION – The city of Timișoara continues to commemorate the people who lost their lives in the Romanian anti-communist revolution of 1989. 34 years ago, under orders from the communist regime, security forces opened fire on the crowd of protestors, killing nearly 100 people and wounding a few hundreds. On December 18, martial law was declared in Timișoara after the massacre of the previous day, when dozens of people were killed. Hospitals were overrun, the streets were blocked by tanks and tactical vehicles and a general curfew was in place. This was the day when several young people were gunned down on the steps of the Orthodox Cathedral. In Bucharest, MPs convened in solemn meeting on Monday to commemorate the victims of the tragic events of those days.
BUDGETS – The government submitted the recently adopted state and social security budgets for 2024 to Parliament for debate. A tight deadline has been set for discussions in committee and plenary meetings, with a final vote scheduled for Wednesday. The government expects an economic growth of 3.4%, with the goal of increasing tax collection and reducing tax evasion. Investments and transports will receive additional funds. Investments will also increase to nearly 7% of the GDP next year, while education will have the largest budget in history. Pensions are also expected to increase by 13.8% starting January 1, with a recalculation slated for September. The draft budget also allots funds to increase allowances and social benefits and teachers salaries. The government also wants to raise public sector salaries by 5%. The opposition has filed hundreds of amendments, claiming the budgets plans are unrealistic, quoting data compiled by economists, according to which tens of billions were left out of the estimated budget, which could thus deepen the budget deficit.
WAR IN GAZA – The Israeli army has published new details confirming that the accidental killing of three hostages from Gaza by Israeli armed forces is a breach of “rules of engagement”. The Israeli troops opened fire on three people that walked out of the building without their shirts on, to prove they had no bombs strapped and carrying a white flag bearing the message “SOS” and “Help 3 hostages”. According to Radio Romanias correspondent on the ground, the incident has further inflamed tensions, putting additional pressure on the Israeli government to reach an agreement with Hamas for the liberation of the approximately 120 hostages still being held captive in Gaza. Meanwhile, the IDF announced the discovery of the biggest tunnel used by Hamas Islamists in Gaza.
EVACUATIONS – A group of 14 people consisting of Romanian citizens and their families were safely evacuated from Gaza and arrived in Romania, the Foreign Ministry announced. The people were evacuated to Egypt on Saturday, crossing the Rafah checkpoint, where representatives of the Romanian Embassy in Egypt accompanied them to Cairo. Here they boarded a flight to Romania. So far, 302 people, Romanian citizens and family members, have been evacuated from the Gaza Strip. The Romanian MFA says it remains in permanent contact with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities to help evacuate the remaining citizens, depending on the developments on the ground. (EE)
