The Week in Review 29.10-3.11.2018

A selection of the week's events.

România Internațional, 03.11.2018, 14:16

Radio Romania celebrates 90th anniversary

On Thursday, November 1st,
when it celebrated 90 years since its first broadcast, the Romanian Radio
Broadcasting Corporation was decorated by President Klaus Iohannis with the
National Order for Cultural Merit in the rank of Commander. According to the
Presidential Administration the order acknowledges the radio’s important
contribution to promoting and supporting the Romanian cultural, moral and civilisational
values. The events
devoted to Radio Romania’s anniversary also included an extraordinary concert given
by the National Radio Orchestra together with the Academic Choir and the Radio
Children’s Choir. Also on Thursday the public radio aired the first episode of
the first radio sitcom ever produced in Romania called Somewhere in 1928, an
11-episode comedy about the birth of the public radio. Events dedicated to this
celebration started on Monday when the institution’s most important studio was named
after the celebrated radio professional Paul Grigoriu. A very talented
journalist and a top professional loved and respected by the audience and his
colleagues alike, Paul Grigoriu worked at the public radio for more than four
decades, starting in 1969.

Three years since the Colectiv fire

On October 30th Bucharesters
commemorated three years since the devastating blaze that destroyed the
Colectiv night club in Bucharest killing 64 and wounding over 100. A young man
wounded in the fire killed himself 18 months after the tragedy. The
capital city Bucharest and other cities across Romania on Tuesday hosted
commemorative events devoted to the Colectiv victims. In Bucharest, special
religious services were held and a commemorative march titled The March of the
Guitars. Romania’s President Klaus
Iohannis laid a wreath of flowers at the site of the tragedy. Three
years after the tragedy, Health Minister Sorina Pintea admitted that Romania is
incapable of dealing with a fire of such magnitude. Hospitals all over the
country can accommodate only 11 patients suffering from severe burns and
authorities would have to call for external help, should a similar tragedy
occur. Moreover, to this day, Romania still has scores of bars, nightclubs,
guesthouses and shopping malls running without a permit from the fire
department. As regards the criminal case related to the Colectiv fire, it is
still ongoing in the court of first instance, with the victims’ families still
waiting for justice to be served.

Two
European Commissioners in Bucharest

The European Commissioner for Regional development
Corina Cretu and the European Commissioner for Budget and Human Resources
Gunther Oettinger participated in an international conference in Bucharest, on
the future of the cohesion policy. PM Viorica Dancila, who also took part in
the conference, said that Bucharest pleaded for clearer eligibility criteria,
contributing to a more accurate assessment of the applications for EU funding. Commissioner
Cretu said in turn that in the forthcoming EU budget, for 2021-2027, Bucharest
will benefit from a 7 billion euro increase in allocations under the cohesion
policies. Also, Commissioner Gunther Oettinger said that he wanted to
contribute to Romania’s joining the Schengen area and pointed out that free
circulation is one the European values.

Switzerland to lift restrictions for Romanian workers in 2019

Switzerland will eliminate all labour
market restrictions for Romanian workers starting next May. The announcement
was made by the President of the Swiss Confederation, Alain Berset, during his
Thursday visit to Bucharest, where he was received by President Klaus Iohannis.
Alain Berset has said that Switzerland is supporting Bucharest’s candidacy to
the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and, although it is not an EU member,
his country will be by Romania’s side during the latter’s mandate as EU Council
president in the first six months of next year.

MPs reject no-confidence motion against justice minister

On Wednesday, the Chamber of Deputies rejected the simple motion
filed by the opposition National Liberal Party and Save Romania Union Party
against the Justice Minister Tudorel Toader. The initiators accused the
minister of having left justice in the hands of criminals. During Tuesday’s
plenary debates, minister Toader said that he acted in order to make sure that
citizens were not wrongfully sued. We recall that Toader has started the
procedure to dismiss Romania’s Prosecutor General Augustin Lazar, whom he
accused of generating legal conflicts of a constitutional nature, of holding
political public speeches and of launching unprecedented accusations against
the state authorities and the legislative and executive power. Toader’s
arguments were similar to those used when he requested the dismissal of the
former head of the National Anticorruption Directorate, Laura Codruta Kovesi,
whom president Iohannis had to dismiss following a ruling issued by the
Constitutional Court.

Romania lowers VAT for tourist services

As of November 1st the VAT on tourist services in Romania
is 5%, down from 9%. The measure taken by the Government early this month is
meant to boost tourism and curb tax evasion. The VAT was reduced for
accommodation in hospitality units, including for the rental of camping sites.
Restaurant and catering services benefit from the drop too, as well as
activities in the entertainment industry, such as services provided at amusement
parks, and sporting facilities such as fitness centres.

Bucharest hosts agricultural fair

Hundreds of companies from 25 countries are taking part, until
Sunday, in the largest agricultural event in Romania: INDAGRA 2018. Out of
them, some 380 are Romanian. The fair
presents agricultural machinery and equipment, traditional foodstuffs, organic
products, seeds, fruit trees and flowers. Also, visitors are given the
opportunity to taste food and wines. 15 years after the disappearance of
domestic production, this year’s edition of INDAGRA presents the first
agricultural tractor based on a 100% Romanian concept. 80% of the parts used in
the manufacturing of the tractor are made in Romania.