August 1 – 7
A look back at the main developments in Romania this past week
Roxana Vasile, 06.08.2016, 14:07
Queen Anne of Romania dies at 92
On August the 1st Anne, wife to King Michael I of Romania, died in a hospital in Switzerland, at the age of 92. Had the Romanian society not experienced the tragedy of Sovietisation in 1948, her wedding with the Romanian sovereign would have taken place in Bucharest and would have been joyfully celebrated by the entire Romanian nation. Because of the Kings forced abdication and subsequent exile however, the wedding was held in Greece. Of their nearly 70-year long life together, King Michael and Queen Anne spent more than 40 away from Romania, where they only returned—not without difficulty—after the 1989 anti-communist Revolution. Historian Adrian Niculescu gave us more details:
Adrian Niculescu: “The role of Queen Anne was that of the wife of a king in exile, of sharing his destiny, and first and foremost of giving him a family. While playing an institutional role, she was primarily a person of vital importance in supporting King Michael I.
On Tuesday, August 9, Queen Annes body will be repatriated from Switzerland. The Queen will be buried in Curtea de Arges, the final resting place of Romanian royalty, on August 13, which is a day of national mourning. Romanians regret the death of Queen Anne, the longest-living Queen in the history of Romania. She was one of the most important symbols of wisdom, dignity, and a moral role model, said President Klaus Iohannis. In turn, PM Dacian Ciolos said the Queen remains a symbol of graciousness, discretion and dignity. Condolence messages also came from Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church, political leaders and other public figures.
New social measures target public sector staff
The salaries of more than 650,000 Romanian public sector employees were raised on August 1 by 10%, under a Government emergency ordinance aimed at eliminating inequities in the system. Healthcare, teaching, public administration and defence personnel will be getting higher pay, depending on seniority and speciality, and other bonuses will add to their basic wages. Also on August 1, new regulations took effect, concerning the level of child-rearing benefits. The minimum threshold for these benefits is nearly 250 euros, and the ceiling has been eliminated. Taking advantage of these benefits will be those parents who have made taxable revenues for at least 12 months during the past two years. The benefits account for 85% of the average net revenues of those 12 months.
Romanian carriers threaten to protest
Romanian carriers threaten to stage nation-wide protests in mid-September, unless the issue of tariffs for the compulsory car insurance policy is solved. This week they have requested that the Government should freeze policy prices at last years levels. Here is Constantin Isac, vice-president of the National Union of Road Carriers:
Constantin Isac: “Promises have been made, months have passed, and what do we see? The average price increase compared to June last year was 80%, with peaks reaching as much as 300 or even 500%. As everybody knows, for lorries, 12-15 months ago the compulsory car insurance policy was roughly 1,000 euros. The offers we are receiving from insurers these days amount to 5,000 euros. And this difference should be covered by an increase in our fees. However, for the time being the market cannot support this fee rise, so basically Romanian carriers are pushed out of the market.
A new round of negotiations with the Government is scheduled in two weeks time.
Ambulance, fire, SMURD call centres to be merged
The head of the Romanian Emergency Department, dr. Raed Arafat, announced on Thursday that authorities were working to set up a common dispatch centre for ambulance, fire and emergency resuscitation and extrication services, as well as to create a registry of the NGOs able to provide assistance in case of incidents with multiple victims. Raed Arafat also mentioned that the owners of buildings that do not have fire safety permits have to get them by the end of the year at the latest. Until they obtain the required documents, the investment beneficiaries are fully and exclusively liable for all risks. As of January 1, 2017, sanctions for the buildings used without a fire safety permit will range from 4,500 to 11,000 euros. These measures were taken after last autumns fire at the Colectiv nightclub, which killed tens of people.
Healthcare Ministry checks blood transfusion centres
The Romanian Healthcare Ministry has identified 142 unauthorised blood transfusion centres in the country, most of them operating in public hospitals. According to a news release issued by the Ministry, the causes will be analysed in the forthcoming period, and conformity programmes will be put together. Unless the problems are solved by November 1, the respective centres will no longer receive blood from the National Haematology Institute. A woman died and another one was in a critical condition recently because of faulty transfusion procedures in such units.
31st Olympics start in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
More than 100 athletes represent Romania, between August 5 and 21, in the 31st edition of the Summer Olympic Games, held in Rio de Janeiro, the first South-American city to host such an event. A total of 10,000 athletes from more than 200 countries will compete for Olympic medals. For the first time in history, Kosovo and South Sudan are taking part in the competition. Another novelty is that a refugee team is competing under the Olympic colours. The Games are not free from problems and controversies in Brazil as well as internationally. On the one hand, the South-American host state is struggling with substantial political, financial and economic problems. On the other hand, the Games start after the largest doping scandal in history. And Zika, the virus spread mostly by the bite of infected mosquitoes, is another problem looming over the current edition of the Olympic Games.
(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)
