Protest without incidents on August 10
One year after the violent incidents of August 10, 2018, Bucharest hosted a new protest rally on Saturday.
Daniela Budu, 12.08.2019, 13:55
As many as 25 thousand people, including from the Diaspora, protested on Saturday evening in front of the government headquarters in Bucharest asking for an answer to what happened at the protest of the Diaspora one year ago, given that nobody has been found guilty for the protesters repression yet. We remind you that the protest of August 10, 2018, which was attended by almost 100 thousand people who showed discontentment with the governing coalition, was marked by the brutal and disproportionate intervention of gendarmes who used tear gas and water cannons against the protesters. People were injured on both sides, and legal action was taken in several cases, which are currently being handled by the prosecutors of the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism DIICOT.
According to the organizers of this protest rally, which unfolded without major incidents, the participants also protested against the latest developments in the political and social life. 4 people were taken into custody by the police as tear gas sprays and cold weapons were found on them. Also 11 people needed medical care, given the high temperatures reported on Saturday in the capital Bucharest. Protests also took place in other cities of Romania as well as abroad, mainly in the European capitals where many Romanians live. The interim interior minster Mihai Fifor thanked the protesters for the civilized and peaceful way in which they protested. Minister Fifor also thanked the authorities involved for the way they got mobilized, for their responsible attitude and professionalism.
The protest in Bucharest was also covered by several foreign publications. “Thousands rally in Romania on anniversary of violent protest” wrote the British publication This is Money, that also added: “The protest was organized and promoted by groups of Romanians working abroad, angry at what they say is entrenched corruption, weak public administration and attempts by the ruling coalition to weaken the judiciary in one of the European Unions most corrupt states”. The English version of an article carried by Radio Free Europe headlines: “We know what you did last summer”. The issue was also covered by the German TV station Deutsche Welle that said that the rally was held in the context of a weakened governing coalition, given the poor results they obtained in the EP elections and the imprisonment for corruption of its leader Liviu Dragnea. (translation by L. Simion)
