Investigation into the August 10 events
Accusations related to the events occurring at the anti-government protest of August 10 continue to be levelled in Bucharest.
Corina Cristea, 22.08.2018, 12:46
The authorities have not yet shed light on the violent actions reported at the anti-government protest organised in Bucharest on August 10 by the Romanian Diaspora, despite the statements made by the interior minister Carmen Dan and the fact that two weeks have already elapsed since then. On Sunday evening, minister Dan gave a press conference which she started by presenting her apologies to all those who were subject to a form of violence at the rally, both civilians and gendarmes, after which she presented the sequence of events as well as a summary of what she called “fake news and lies”, which, according to Carmen Dan, circulated in the online environment and the mass-media.
Two days later, when she was heard in Parliament, she spoke again about the events of August 10, saying the report she had received from the relevant structures in her subordination would be made available to the relevant committee in the Chamber of Deputies as soon as the parliamentary procedure was completed. Carmen Dan added that she had no operative responsibilities during the protest, claiming that she only attended a briefing with those coordinating the action.
Carmen Dan: “There wasn’t any operative meeting, there was a briefing, and on that occasion I requested to receive a first report on the mission the next day. It is not the minister’s responsibility to clarify aspects related to the operative mission because it is not the minister who has the legal responsibility to intervene in making operative decisions.”
The right of centre opposition in Bucharest believes the minister should resign and has expressed discontent with the classification of the report on the August 10 events and with the absence of the Bucharest prefect from the hearings.
The representative of the opposition National Liberal Party Victor Paul Dobre says: “Today, only one person, a decision-maker, the capital’s prefect, was missing from the hearings, and as the interior minister said, the prefect was the person who made a decision, after holding consultations with the unit commander. The person with whom we could have clarified the reasons for the intervention and other aspects related to it was missing, therefore we did not receive answers to our many questions. The capital’s prefect is not just a regular official, she is the person who represents the Romanian Government in the city hall of Bucharest, the capital of the country.”
In the opposition’s opinion, Carmen Dan is trying to cover up the Gendarmerie’s responsibility in the events, when peaceful protesters were attacked with tear gas and brutalised. Hundreds of people have lodged criminal complaints against the gendarmes, whereas the Social Democratic Party denounces an alleged coup meant to forcefully topple a legitimate government. (translated by Diana Vijeu)
