July 7, 2014
For a roundup of domestic and international news, click here.
Bogdan Matei, 07.07.2014, 12:00
ROMANIAN BACCALAUREATE — The results of the summer session of the Romanian Baccalaureate exam have been made public today. Also today students may file their contestations, with the final results due to be released on Friday. Partial results released on Sunday by the Education Ministry reveal that over 59% of high school graduates have passed the exam, 3% more than last year. Certain irregularities were reported this year as well, although Minister Remus Pricopie had previously said all fraud attempts would be severely punished.
DAN VOICULESCU — The founding president of the Conservative Party, Romanian businessman Dan Voiculescu will today appear before the Bucharest Court of Appeal for his official hearing in the fraud case regarding the illegal privatisation of the Institute for Food Research. Sentenced to prison ever since 2008 for having caused the state a prejudice of nearly 60 million euros, Voiculescu had part of his assets seized by prosecutors. As of Friday last week he has been investigated for blackmail. Voiculescu allegedly threatened three business people to launch an aggressive smear campaign against them, unless they signed advertising contracts with his own private and influential media trust. Voiculescu has denied all charges, arguing he does not know any of the plaintives.
TENNIS — BRD Bucharest Open, the first WTA tournament ever held in Romania, has kicked off, totalling 250,000 dollars in prize money. WTA 3rd ranked Simona Halep is the main contender for the title. Romania is also represented by Monica Niculescu, Irina Begu, Alexandra Cadantu, Alexandra Dulgheru and Andreea Mitu. All the other six Romanian players have been knocked out from the opening round held on Saturday. Competing are powerful WTA players such as Roberta Vinci and Karin Knapp of Italy, Klara Koukalova and Petra Cetkovska of the Czech Republic, Annika Beck of Germany, Anna Schmiedlova of Slovakia, Polona Hercog of Slovenia and Vania King of the United States.
UKRAINE — Ukrainian security forces will be mounting a blockade against the cities of Lugansk and Donetsk, seen as hotbeds of pro-Russian separatism in eastern Ukraine, Kiev authorities have announced. Ukrainian officials are thus trying to force rebel troops to lay out their arms and surrender. Over the last few days, the Ukrainian military has taken control of several important cities in the region and has operated mass-arrests among rebel forces. Pro-Western president Petro Poroshenko has spoken of a turning point in the conflict, although signalling that the path to fully liberating the region is long and difficult.
PROTEST — Some 200 law enforcement agents have today staged a protest in front of the Interior Ministry building in Bucharest. Dissatisfied with wage policies, protesters criticize discriminatory treatment of employees carrying out similar activities and diverging salaries. Protesters also want bonuses for night time shifts to be increased for certain categories of officers, and refunds for their public transport subscriptions.
DEVELOPMENT — At least seven members of the Palestinian movement Hamas were killed on Monday following an air strike over the Gaza Strip. This is the bloodiest in a series of attacks since the cross-border conflict of 2012 with Israel. Israeli military authorities have confirmed the air strike, saying it was retaliation against a ballistic attack on southern Israel. In another development, the Police has arrested six people allegedly involved in the kidnapping and murdering of a Palestinian teenager last week. The young man was kidnapped by a group of young Israelis in front of his own home. His body was subsequently discovered in a forest. The murder is seen as a local vendetta after three Israeli teenagers were kidnapped and killed in the West Bank.
PROTEST — Some 200 law enforcement agents have today staged a protest in front of the Interior Ministry building in Bucharest. Dissatisfied with wage policies, protesters criticize discriminatory treatment of employees carrying out similar activities and diverging salaries. Protesters also want bonuses for night time shifts to be increased for certain categories of officers, and refunds for their public transport subscriptions.
FORMER PRESIDENT PASSES AWAY — Former Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze has passed away today, aged 86. Shevardnadze was the leader of Soviet diplomacy in the late 80s, during the spell of Mikhail Gorbachev. He was the champion of expanding the USSR’s relations with the West. Seen as one of the heroes who helped put an end to the Cold War, he was elected president of Georgia in 1995. He grew unpopular with time, being forced to resign eight years later, in the aftermath of the so-called Rose Revolution, leaving behind a corrupt and poor country gripped by chaos.
NORTH KOREEA — The communist authorities in Pyongyang have called an end to the conflict in the Korean peninsula, arguing in favour of improving relations between north and south. In a press release made public to mark 20 years since the death of Kim Il-sung, the founder of the communist dictatorship in North Korea, Pyongyang authorities have called for what they have termed the “peaceful reunification of the peninsula in a federal state”. The Korean war of 1950-1953 that divided the communist north from the pro-American south that killed thousands of people ended with a truce, although neither parties have so far signed a peace treaty.
