January 11, 2015
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România Internațional, 11.01.2015, 13:32
The president of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, is taking part today in Paris, alongside tens of heads of state and government, in a rally against terrorism and in memory of the victims of the recent attacks in the French capital city. Similar marches, in which over 700,000 people took part, were already held on Saturday across France. In a news release, President Iohannis says his presence in Paris is a firm signal for Romania’s willingness to be involved in fighting terrorism and extremism of any kind. On Saturday in Bucharest some 200 people took part, in front of the French Embassy, in an event organised by the Association of French Expats, to observe a minute of silence and condemn the attacks in Paris. The Ambassador of France, François Saint-Paul, thanked the French and Romanian participants for their support and compassion for France and for proving that they share values like freedom and tolerance. Seventeen people were killed on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in Paris—journalists with Charlie Hebdo, police as well as civilians taken hostage in a store. The counter-terrorist operation concluded on Friday, when security forces killed all three Jihadists involved in the attacks.
Paris is today the world capital of the fight against terrorism. Apart from the rally in which over one million are expected to take part, the French city will also be hosting an international meeting on terrorism, which will bring together 11 European interior ministers and the US Attorney General, Eric Holder. The participating countries are Latvia, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden and Great Britain. France Presse comments that, after the mourning, there will also come a time to discuss security systems. On Saturday, the French PM Manuel Valls admitted that there had been flaws in the mechanism of identifying individuals likely to perpetrate attacks.
The Liberal Senator Tudor Chiuariu, a former minister of justice, is being probed into, in a case involving illegal forest restitution. He is accused of influence peddling, money laundering and membership of an organised crime group. According to anti-corruption prosecutors, Chiuariu demanded 2.5 million euros in bribe, in exchange for talking the prefect of Bacau County in the east into returning over 43,000 ha of forest. In the same investigation, the former deputies Viorel Hrebenciuc and Ioan Adam, from the Social Democratic Party, have also been arrested. Also prosecuted are the Social Democratic Senators Dan Sova and Ilie Sarbu, as well as the head of the National Forestry Authority, Adam Craciunescu. The losses incurred by the Authority are in excess of 300 million euros.
Croatians are today electing their president, in a second election round. In the first round, held on December the 28th, the incumbent president Ivo Josipovic won 38.46% of the votes, and his challenger, Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic, representing the Opposition, 37.22%. The Social-Democratic Party, which backs Josipovic, has come under heavy criticism for the long economic crisis in Croatia. Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic has criticised her rival for having failed to persuade the government to implement an ambitious economic reform plan. Croatia has been in recession since 2008, and the country’s public debt accounts for 80% of the GDP. The unemployment rate is 20%, and the worst situation is reported among the youth.
Los Angeles is hosting tonight the Golden Globe Awards ceremony, the second largest gala of the American film industry after the Oscars. This year’s favourite is “Birdman” by the Mexican Alejandro Inarritu, which has the largest number of nominations to the awards, 7, including best comedy of the year, best performance in a comedy and best supporting performance. In the drama category, “Boyhood” by Richard Linklater and “Imitation Game” have five nominations each.
