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RADOR: News from Romania, 98-06-26
June 26, 1998
CONTENTS
[01] Solemn Session in Parliament;
[02] Romanian Government Entitled to Issue Ordinances;
[03] Other Senate Proceedings;
[04] Cabinet Meeting;
[05] Helath Minister Dismissed;
[06] PNL Leadership Believes a Hungarian University May Be Set Up;
[07] PD Vicepresident Alexandru Sassu Believes That Laws Should Be Drawn Up
to Support Reform;
[08] PSDR Press Conference;
[09] "The Star of Romania";
[10] Romania's Request to the Council of Europe.
[11] Closing Session of OCEMN Parliamentary Assembly.
[01] Solemn session in Parliament
The senators and the deputies have attended a joint solemn session on
Thursday commemorating the 150-th anniversary of the 1848 Revolution in
Romania along with the Day of Romania's National Anthem. The Romanian MPs
paid their tribute to the '48 revolutionaries pointing out that the 1848
Revolution prepared the way to the Great Union in 1918 and it was essential
for clearly defining the national identity of the Romanian people. The
speakersJhave mentioned that the 1848 Revolution was only the begininning
in Romania's establishment as a single united state and its European
integration process. Romanian President Emil Constantinescu has also
attended the ceremony. RADOR
[02] Romanian Government entitled to issue ordonances
At its session on Thursday, the Romanian Senate has adopted the draft lwa
allowing the Romanian Government to issue ordinances during the MPs'
holiday. 75 senators have voted for the draft law while the senators
representing the opposition Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR)
have left the room as none of the bills they proposed was accepted. PDSR
MPs have also claimed that the Romanian Government was allowed to issue
ordonances on too many issues and some general stipulations could lead to
confusion. PDSR Senator Ion Predescu said the ruling parties were trying to
amend organic laws by issuing emergency ordinances - a procedure which, in
his opinion, violated the Constitution. The Greater RomanJa Party (PRM) has
also joined the PDSR protest, though the party did not appoint a
representative in the mediation commission. RADOR
[03] Other Senate proceedings
With 109 votes for and 7 against, the Romanian Senate has adopted on
Thursday the draft law allowing civil access to former Securitate files and
disclosing the former communist secret service as political police. The
article 22, under debate for some weeks, was adopted according to the
proposal submitted by the legal commission. Consequently, the archives can
be examined by the board of the Council for studies of former Securitate
archives while their custody goes to the institutions that already have
such documents. Senator Constantin Ticu Dumitrescu has left the room and
said he denounced the initiative of the draft law. RADOR
[04] Cabinet meeting
The Romanian Government has adopted on Thursday the draft law concerning
the public pension system and other social securities. The Cabinet has also
adopted the emergency ordJnance allowing the return of all real estates
previously belonging to Romania's national minorities. There are 17
buildings which were confiscated by force or nationalised since 1940.
Another government decision referres to the setting up of a commission to
evaluate the virtual establishment of a Hungarian language teaching state
university. Recent developments in the regions affected by floods in May 20-
June 22 were also under debate. The talks are expected to continue at an
extraordinary meeting next Monday. RADOR
[05] Health minister dismissed
Romanian Government spokesman Rasvan Popescu has announced the Health
Minister Francisc Batany was dismissed following a proposal of Prime
Minister Rad Vasile. Justice Minister Valeriu Stoica was appointed as
acting health minister as he was coordinating all budget-running
ministries. The spokesman informed that all the ministers, Prime Minister
Radu Vasile included, submitted affidavis concerning their relationship
with the former SecuriJate. Youth and Sports Minister Crins Antonescu and
MApN State Secretary Constantin Dudu Ionescu did not submit such documents
as they were travelling abroad. Mr Popescu has also announced the Water,
Forest and Environment Minister Romica Tomescu, now on a visit to Denmark,
was ordered back to Romania in order to coordinate the evaluation of
dammages caused by recent floods. The results are to be examined at an
extraodinary meeting next Monday. RADOR
[06] PNL leadership believes a Hungarian university may be set up
The leadership of the National Liberal Party (PNL) believes there is no
obstacle to prevent the setting up of a Hungarian university in Romania.
PNL First Vicepresident Valeriu Stoica told a press conference on Thursday
that a decisiom could be made when the government would receive the report
on the matter. Mr Stoica however stopped short of announcing a date for the
move as the government did not make its decision yet. RADOR
[07] PD Vicepresident Alexandru Sassu believes thJt laws should be drawn up
to support the reform
The Vicepresident of the Democratic Party (PD), Alexandru Sassu, has
expressed the hope that the extraordinary session in Parliament (between
July 3-6) could allow the adoption of some draft laws which, he believed,
were essential for the reform. At a press conference on Thursday, MrSassu
said laws on public property rights and their legal framework, regional
development as well as the project of the National Housing Agency were
essential for achieving restructuring. The PD leader has insisted that the
setting up of the National Energy Company (the RENEL restructuring
included) was of major importance, and mentioned that the draft law is
delayed despite its submission on June 16. Therefore, Mr Sassu fears that
the law is not supposed to be adopted during the July session. The PD
leader does not rule out the possibility that the government may use its
right of issuing emergency ordinances to hurry up its adoption. RADOR
[08] PSDR press conference
The Romanian Social Democrat Party (PSDR) has expressed its solidarity with
the people in the areas affected by floods. PSDR First Vicepresident Emil
Putin told a press conference on Thursday that each PSDR MP is to pay out
300,000 lei to support the people affected. PSDR supports the proposal by
Romanians' National Unity Party (PUNR) recommending that half of
investments in parliament offices may be given to the victims of floods.
The RRA reports that the PSDR Executive Bureau has ordered its members to
submit affidavis concerning their alleged former Securitate activity by
July 15. Mr Putin has warned that those who submitted fake affidavis were
to be excluded from the party. Referring to recent claims by the Democratic
Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), PSDR believed the setting up
of a Hungarian language speaking state university was unsuitable but a
multicultural university might be the best choice. RADOR
[09] "The Star of Romania"
At its meeting on ThJrsday, the Romanian Government has adopted an
emergency ordinance establishing "The Star of Romania" as the highest
Romanian Order to honour best civil and military services to the State and
the Romanian people. Foreign citizens may also be awarded for their
outstanding contribution to improving cooperation and friendship relations
between Romania and other countries or for exceptional merits in serving
the State and the Romanian people. The Romanian citizens may be awarded
once in a year, on December 1 - Romania's National Day. RADOR
[10] Romania's request to the Council of Europe
The Social Development Fund of the Council of Europe may grant an aid to
Romania in an attempt to cover some of the dammages following recent
floods. The Vicepresident of the Council of Europe's Parliamentary Assembly,
Senator Cristian Dumitrescu has asked on Thursday the Fund's president
Giorgio Ratti to grant Romania a 50 MECU aid (some 75 million dollars) from
its special fund destined to natural disasJers. As the RRA correspondent in
Strasbourg reports, the low interest loan may reach Romania in around two
months and it should be paid back after a five- year pardon. RADOR
[11] Closing session of OCEMN Parliamentary Assembly
The 11-th session of the OCEMN Parliamentary Assembly has ended on Thursday
at the Parliament Palace in Bucharest. Participants included
representatives in the 11 member countries of the Organisation for Black
Sea Economic Cooperation (OCEMN). At the end of the two-day meeting, OCEMN
MPs have adopted some recommandations the OCEMN government board was
expected to examine and approve in the very next future. Most of them refer
to the setting up of a free trade area around the Black Sea and a regional
stock exchange for oil and food products in the Romanian port of
Constantza. The speaker of the Romanian Senate, Petre Roman, told a press
conference that he sent a letter to each head of government in the EU
Member States as well as to the president of the EuropJan Commission. He
has urged the EU and the European Commission to draw up strategies for
developing an economic area around the Black Sea. Mr Roman has expressed
the hope that Romania would be part of the oil route connecting the Caspian
Sea to the Western Europe. The MPs in the 11 OCEMN countries have decided
that the next session of the OCEMN Parliamentary Assembly was to take place
in the Russian town of St. Petersburg between December 8-10. RADOR
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