Already famous not only in the country,
\nbut also abroad, the many protests staged as of last year in Romania under the
\nlogo #REZIST are the expression of a form of civism that has become stronger in
\nthe past years. But, except from this type of civism, coagulated around big
\ncorruption cases, another type of activism has also started to gain ground, the
\none entailing little steps, perseverance and dialogue with decision makers.
\nSome of the activists engaged in this type of actions are supported by the
\nResource Center for Public Participation, an NGO which, for nine years now, has
\nawarded the most persevering and creative of them, at the yearly Public
\nParticipation Awards Gala. This year, the centre has awarded projects developed
\nin 2017, by celebrating both categories of activism: the one manifested by
\nmeans of large-scale street protests and the one carried out by small
\ninitiative groups concerned with social issues such as housing conditions,
\neducation and equity in school and environmental protection. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Oana Preda, the
\nExecutive Director of the Resource Centre for Public Participation has told us
\nmore about this year’s theme:<\/p>\n
This
\nyear’s gala was centered on the concept of solidarity, because we think
\nsolidarity would be one way of these types of activists getting to know each
\nother and fighting together. In the past years, we have seen civic spirit and
\nengagement developing, and a growing number of people becoming willing to fight
\nfor a cause. Unfortunately, the change in people’s attitude has not brought
\nabout a significant change with regard to the authorities. Pessimism is still
\nthere, but people are determined to
\nresist.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
SAMAS association
\n(Health for Mothers and Infants) is one of those groups that have managed to
\ndefend their stand and have their voices heard by the public authorities. They
\nhave convinced the National Audiovisual Council to include among TV commercials
\none promoting breastfeeding up to 6 months. The message was an extremely important
\nvictory, given that, according to UNICEF, only 12% of the infants are breastfed
\nwithin the first hour since birth, and the rate of exclusive breastfeeding in
\nthe first six months of a child’s life stands at 16%.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Here is one of the
\nmembers of the association, Eli Roma, talking at the public participation gala:<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
TV broadcasters are still reluctant to broadcasting this message as often as other
\nmessages of public interest. Our intention was to encourage mothers, because
\nit’s not easy to breastfeed, but it’s not impossible either. We do not blame
\nanybody. If a mother chooses not to breastfeed, then it’s her choice, but,
\nmothers and fathers, it’s a great thing to offer your child the best.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Another major
\ntopic of concern for Romanians is water. Ovidiu Mihut, one of the Romanians
\npassionate about fishing, has joined others like him and ran a campaign titled
\n‘The desertification of Fagaras Mountains and the illegal appropriation of
\nstate owned land’. Ovidiu Mihut has drawn public opinion’s attention to the
\nnegative impact on the environment of micro-power plants in the protected
\nmountain areas. Moreover, as regards the EU legislation, he has sent a
\nnotification to the European Commission, which has started an infringement
\nprocedure against Romania for failure to observe its obligations regarding the
\nconservation of natural habitats when authorizing the building of micro hydro
\npower plants. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Here is Ovidiu Mihut himself:<\/p>\n
We are
\nnot an organization, we are just citizens and we are among the first to say it
\nout loud that building such micro hydro power plants in natural protected areas
\nis just a means for some individuals to get rich with public money. The
\neconomic efficiency of these micro-power-plants can be compared to the
\nefficiency of a watch battery used to power a train engine. We have managed to
\nprove that, in fact, these power-plants are nothing but curtains hiding big
\nacts of corruption.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Oana Vasiliu is
\nanother Romanian who has proven that perseverance is extremely important when
\nit comes to defending your stand on a certain issue. Proof of that has been the
\ncampaign known as ‘the revolution of the people in the Canta welfare home’,
\nwhose aim was to show the inhumane living conditions there. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Oana Vasiliu lived
\nthere herself:<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
I’ve managed
\nto get out of that place. I lived in the Canta welfare house for 7 years with
\nmy three children. It’s terrible to live there. There are many ill people,
\npeople with disabilities, children suffering from epilepsy and autism, and they
\nall live there, in rooms which are no bigger than 9 square meters. Local
\nauthorities refuse to provide those people with decent housing facilities. For
\nseven years I sent one notification after another and I managed eventually to
\nget out of there. But those who are still there are constantly said no to,
\nprobably because they do not know how to defend their rights. With the help of
\njournalists I have helped them, in the sense that they now know their rights.
\nPeople commit suicide there and it’s inhumane that local authorities know about this and they do nothing to fix the situation.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
In Iasi, civic
\ncampaigning managed to raise people’s awareness as to the problems in Canta,
\nbut in Constanta, in south-eastern Romania, an activism campaign managed to
\nconvince the local authorities to set up the first counseling and emergency
\nreception centre for victims of domestic violence. That happened thanks to the
\nactivities carried out by the ‘Necuvinte’ (non-words) Association, which,
\nthrough a campaign titled ‘the Caravan of Changes’, managed to raise people’s
\nawareness and inform citizens about the scale of domestic violence. Simona
\nVoicescu, who took part in the campaign, told us more about the activities
\ncarried out by the association:<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A
\nshelter was set up, and also a free helpline, but all that required a lot of
\nwork. We were faced with an aggressive attitude in Constanta, and even later,
\nafter opening, when we asked information about the centre we were told to
\nsubmit a notification in writing, to be replied to within 30 days.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Despite
\ndifficulties, thanks to the pressure put by civic organizations, the public
\nopinion and the local media, the decision was made for the centre to be opened,
\nafter only 25 days. That is why the Resource
\nCenter for Public Participation decided to award this campaign, along with the
\nothers, at this year’s Public Participation Awards Gala. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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