December 21, 2021

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Newsroom, 21.12.2021, 13:55

COMMEMORATION The
heroes of the anti-communist uprising of December 1989 are commemorated in
Bucharest today. Religious services and military ceremonies are held at the
Revolution Heroes Cemetery and at the dedicated monuments downtown. Similar
events are scheduled on Wednesday at the Romanian Revolution Heroes Monument,
at the Radio Hall and the Romanian Television Corporation. Originating in Timișoara
(west), on 16th December, the uprising spread across the country,
culminating with dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu fleeing the capital city on 22nd
December amid the protests of hundreds of thousands of Romanians. Captured by
the Army, Ceauşescu and his wife Elena were subject to a summary trial and
executed in the southern town of Târgovişte. Romania was the only country behind the
Iron Curtain where the change of regime was accompanied by bloodshed. Over 1,000
people were killed and some 3,000 wounded.

BUDGET The draft 2022 state budget and social security budget laws
will be discussed and voted on in Parliament on Thursday. MPs have until this
afternoon to table amendments. Also today, the budgets of the main public
institutions are discussed in Parliament’s specialised committees. The
government passed the bills on Monday and promised they are based on
predictability and stability. The budget is based on an estimated
economic growth rate of 4.6% and a GDP of some 260 billion euro, a predicted
inflation rate of 6.5% and gross average salaries of 1,200 euros per month, with
the budget deficit expected to stay within the limits agreed on with the
European Commission under the excessive deficit procedure, namely 5.84% of GDP.
The public pension fund will receive 7.32% of GDP. The Liberal
president Florin Cîţu criticised the fact that only 6.7% of GDP was earmarked
for investments, instead of 7% as agreed within the ruling coalition. The
Social Democratic leader Marcel Ciolacu argued however that the budget
execution is more important than the exact breakdown of expenditure. The leader
of USR party in opposition, Dacian Cioloş, says the draft budget relies on
over-estimated revenues and said although public education is a priority for
President Iohannis, not enough funding has been earmarked for the sector.

TALKS The PM of Romania Nicolae Ciucă continues his first visit
to Brussels since taking over the office less than a month ago. After last
night’s working dinner with the president of the European Council, Charles
Michel, Nicolae Ciucă has meetings scheduled today with the head of the
European Commission Ursula Von Der Leyen, and with the NATO secretary general,
Jens Stoltenberg. Radio Romania’s correspondent in Brussels says Romania’s
Schengen accession is a priority in the prime minister’s talks with EU
officials. European security, with a focus on tensions in Romania’s
neighbouring areas and at Ukraine’s eastern border, will be tackled in the
meeting with the NATO secretary general.

COVID-19 Traffic is hindered in downtown Bucharest today, as protesters
encouraged by the nationalist opposition party AUR are picketing the Parliament
Palace, disgruntled with the authorities’ plan to make the digital COVID
certificate a requirement at the workplace. Measures to prevent a potential new
pandemic wave were discussed by the health minister Alexandru Rafila with
business community representatives, and the idea of a law making access to jobs
conditional on the digital COVID certificate was put forth. According to the
health ministry, the measure could be taken in case the number of COVID-19
infections goes up 1.5 times for 3 consecutive weeks. Today the
authorities announced 826 new COVID infections in 24 hours, and 88 related
fatalities, 22 of them from a previous date. Since the start of the pandemic, some 1.8 million COVID-19
cases have been reported in Romania and over 58,000 COVID patients died. Romania
has the second-lowest vaccination rate in the EU, after Bulgaria. (tr. A.M. Popescu)