RED Network

YES, under the general definition for discrimination

Qualitative Info

Art.2.(1) of the Governmental Ordinance No. 137 of 31 August 2000 on preventing and sanctioning all forms of discrimination, republished with amendments in the Official Journal No.99 of 8 February 2007: “...discrimination represents any distinction, exclusion, restriction or advantage, based on the race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, social category, beliefs, sex or sexual orientation, age, disability, chronic non-contagious  illness, infection with HIV or the belonging to a disadvantaged category or any other criteria, which has as goal or effect the restriction or elimination of acknowledgement, of use or exercise, in equal conditions, of the human rights and fundamental freedoms recognized by the law, in the domain of politics, economy, society, culture or in any other domain of public life.”

External Url http://cncd.org.ro/legislatie/?language=en

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YES

Qualitative Info

Definition of direct discrimination:

Art.2.(1) of the Governmental Ordinance No.137 of 31 August 2000 on preventing and sanctioning all forms of discrimination, republished with amendments in the Official Journal No.99 of 8 February 2007: “...discrimination represents any distinction, exclusion, restriction or advantage, based on the race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, social category, beliefs, sex or sexual orientation, age, disability, chronic non-contagious  illness, infection with HIV or the belonging to a disadvantaged category or any other criteria, which has as goal or effect the restriction or elimination of acknowledgement, of use or exercise, in equal conditions, of the human rights and fundamental freedoms recognized by the law, in the domain of politics, economy, society, culture or in any other domain of public life.”

Definition of indirect discrimination:

Art.2.(3) of the Governmental Ordinance No.137 of 31 August 2000 on preventing and sanctioning all forms of discrimination, republished with amendments in the Official Journal No.99 of 8 February 2007: “The present ordinance deems as discriminatory those apparently neutral provisions, criteria or apparently neutral practices which disadvantage certain persons, based on the criteria stated at paragraph 1, as opposed to other persons, unless these provisions, criteria or practices are objectively justifiable by a legitimate purpose, and the means of reaching that purpose are adequate and necessary.”

Definition of harassment:

Art.2.(5) of the Governmental Ordinance No.137 of 31 August 2000 on preventing and sanctioning all forms of discrimination, republished with amendments in the Official Journal No.99 of 8 February 2007: “Represents harassment and it is administratively sanctioned any behaviour on the criteria of race nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, social category, belief, gender, sexual orientation, belonging to a disadvantaged category, age, handicap, refugee status, or asylum status, or any other criterium that leads to creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading or offensive environment."

Definition of instruction to discriminate:

Art.2.(2) of the Governmental Ordinance No.137 of 31 August 2000 on preventing and sanctioning all forms of discrimination, republished with amendments in the Official Journal No.99 of 8 February 2007: “The order to discriminate persons on any of the criteria prescribed at paragraph 1 is discrimination according to the present ordinance."

External Url http://cncd.org.ro/legislatie/?language=en

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Yes, the law contains an open-ended list of grounds of discrimination.

Qualitative Info

Race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, social category, beliefs, sex or sexual orientation, age, disability, chronic non-contagious  illness, infection with HIV or the belonging to a disadvantaged category or any other criterium.

The protection against discriminination covers the exercise of all human rights and fundamental freedoms recognized by the law, in the domain of politics, economy, society, culture or in any other domain of public life.

External Url http://cncd.org.ro/legislatie/?language=en

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YES

Qualitative Info

Art.75 point c1 of the Penal Code prescribes the aggravating circumstance for any crime when it is motivated by hate: "committing a criminal offence on the ground of race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, gender, sexual orientation, opinion, political belonging, belief, wealth, social origin, age, disability, uncontagious cronic disease, HIV/AIDS infection."

Special penal law provisions describing criminal offences that may fall under the category of hate crimes are prescribed in Art.247 (Abuse in service by restricting certain rights), Art.317 (Instigation to discrimination), Art.318 (Hindering the freedom of religious denominations), Art.319 (Desecration of graves) of the Penal Code. For the first two criminal offences, the sanctions are with imprisonment ranging from 6 months to 5 years. For the last two they range between a criminal fine or imprisonment from 1 month to 3 years.

The aggravating circumstance was introduced and Articles 247 and 317 were amended to cover all grounds of discrimination expressly covered by the Anti-discrimination Law through the adoption of the Law No.278/2006 for the modification and completion of the Penal Code and other laws.

Emergency Government Ordinance No.31/2002 forbidding organizations and symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature and the promotion of adoration of persons guilty of committing crimes against peace and humanity approved with amendments by Law No.107 of 27 April 2006 adds to the Penal Code other offences of instigation to hatred.

The statute punishes with imprisonment from 3 to 15 years the acts of establishing, adhering or supporting an organization having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature (Art.3).

It also sanctions with imprisonment from 3 months to 3 years the public dissemination or distribution of tracts, pictures or other material having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature, as well as producing or possessing with the aim of disseminating this kind of material (Art.4). The person is exempted when the acts are committed in the interest of art, science, research or education (Art.4.(3)).

The statute also punishes  with imprisonment from 3 months to 3 years the use in public of symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature (Art.5). The person is exempted when the acts are committed in the interest of art, science, research or education (Art.4.(3)).

The same penalty is stated for the promotion of fascist, racist or xenophobic ideology done through propaganda, by any means, committed in public (Art.5). For the denial of the Holocaust or its effects, the penalty is higher - imprisonment from 6 months to 5 years (Art.6).

External Url http://www.anp-just.ro/interna/Codul%20Penal.pdf; http://www.dri.gov.ro/documents/oug%2031-2002.pdf

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NO, just the aggravating circumstance from Art.75 point c1 of the Penal Code and some criminal offences that fall under the category of hate crimes but are specific for certain areas/perpetrators/victims (Art.247, Art.317, Art.318, Art.319 of the Penal Code, and Emergency Government Ordinance No.31/2002 approved with amendments by Law No.107 of 27 April 2006).

Qualitative Info

There is no general definition of hate crime as such, only the aggravating circumstance that applies for any criminal offence, four special penal law provisions describing criminal offences that may fall under the category of hate crimes (Art.247 (Abuse in service by restricting certain rights), Art.317 (Instigation to discrimination), Art.318 (Hindering the freedom of religious denominations), Art.319 (Desecration of graves) of the Penal Code), and criminal offences with regards to forbidding organizations and symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature and the promotion of adoration of persons guilty of committing crimes against peace and humanity (Emergency Government Ordinance No.31/2002 approved with amendments by Law No.107 of 27 April 2006).

External Url http://www.anp-just.ro/interna/Codul%20Penal.pdf; http://www.dri.gov.ro/documents/oug%2031-2002.pdf

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NO, just a provision sanctioning the criminal offence of instigation to discrimination and provisions in a special statute law forbidding organizations and symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature and the promotion of adoration of persons guilty of committing crimes against peace and humanity.

Qualitative Info

Art.317 of the Penal Code sanctions the criminal offence of instigation to discrimination which is defined as: "Instigation to hatred on the ground of race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, gender, sexual orientation, opinion, political affiliation, belief, wealth, social origin, age, disability, uncontagious cronic disease or HIV/AIDS infection is punishable with imprisonment from 6 months to 3 years or with a penal fine."

Emergency Government Ordinance No.31/2002 forbidding organizations and symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature and the promotion of adoration of persons guilty of committing crimes against peace and humanity approved with amendments by Law No.107 of 27 April 2006 adds to the Penal Code other offences of instigation to hatred.

The statute punishes with imprisonment from 3 to 15 years the acts of establishing, adhering or supporting an organization having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature (Art.3).

It also sanctions with imprisonment from 3 months to 3 years the public dissemination or distribution of tracts, pictures or other material having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature, as well as producing or possessing with the aim of disseminating this kind of material (Art.4). The person is exempted when the acts are committed in the interest of art, science, research or education (Art.4.(3)).

The statute also punishes  with imprisonment from 3 months to 3 years the use in public of symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature (Art.5). The person is exempted when the acts are committed in the interest of art, science, research or education (Art.4.(3)).

The same penalty is stated for the promotion of fascist, racist or xenophobic ideology done through propaganda, by any means, committed in public (Art.5). For the denial of the Holocaust or its effects, the penalty is higher - imprisonment from 6 months to 5 years (Art.6).

External Url http://www.anp-just.ro/interna/Codul%20Penal.pdf; http://www.dri.gov.ro/documents/oug%2031-2002.pdf

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NO, just the aggravating circumstance that applies for any criminal offence, including when the motive was racial hatred or racial discrimination.

 

Qualitative Info

Art.75 point c1 of the Penal Code prescribes the aggravating circumstance for any crime when it is motivated by hate: "committing a criminal offence on the ground of race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, gender, sexual orientation, opinion, political belonging, belief, wealth, social origin, age, disability, uncontagious cronic disease, HIV/AIDS infection."

External Url http://www.anp-just.ro/interna/Codul%20Penal.pdf

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YES

Qualitative Info

Emergency Government Ordinance No.31/2002 forbidding organizations and symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature and the promotion of adoration of persons guilty of committing crimes against peace and humanity approved with amendments by Law No.107 of 27 April 2006 adds to the Penal Code other offences of instigation to hatred.

The statute punishes with imprisonment from 3 to 15 years the acts of establishing, adhering or supporting an organization having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature (Art.3).

It also sanctions with imprisonment from 3 months to 3 years the public dissemination or distribution of tracts, pictures or other material having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature, as well as producing or possessing with the aim of disseminating this kind of material (Art.4). The person is exempted when the acts are committed in the interest of art, science, research or education (Art.4.(3)).

The statute also punishes  with imprisonment from 3 months to 3 years the use in public of symbols having a fascist, racist or xenophobic nature (Art.5). The person is exempted when the acts are committed in the interest of art, science, research or education (Art.4.(3)).

The same penalty is stated for the promotion of fascist, racist or xenophobic ideology done through propaganda, by any means, committed in public (Art.5). For the denial of the Holocaust or its effects, the penalty is higher - imprisonment from 6 months to 5 years (Art.6).

External Url http://www.dri.gov.ro/documents/oug%2031-2002.pdf

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NO, only an independent assessment regarding the implementation of the Racial Directive (Directive 2000/43).

Qualitative Info

The independent assessment regarding the implementation of the Racial Directive (Directive 2000/43) was drafted within the European network of legal experts in the non-discrimination field, which drafted similar reports for each Member State of the European Union. The report is called "Report on Measures to Combat Discrimination. Directives 2000/43/EC and 2000/78/EC. Country Report 2009. Romania. It was drafted by Romaniţa Iordache. It presents the state of affairs up to 31 December 2009.

External Url http://non-discrimination.net/content/media/2009-RO-Country%20Report%20LN_final.pdf

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This information is not available.

Qualitative Info

Previous reports indicate that the police and the prosecutor's office has statistics on various criminal offences only regarding cases solved  and not regarding incidents reported or complaints introduced with the police/prosecutor. We could not find indications that this practice changed. This makes it even more difficult to assess whether hate crime cases/incidents are under-reported disproportionately in relation to other crimes.

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Source:

Center for Legal Resources, FRA Complementary Data Collection Report, 30 September 2008, p.9, available at http://www.crj.ro/userfiles/editor/files/RAXEN_2008.pdf (accessed on 14.02.2012)

Center for Legal Resources, ACCEPT, Centrul de Resurse pentru Diversitate Etnoculturala, Romanian NFP “National Data Collection Report - 2006”: RAXEN 7, p.66, available at http://www.crj.ro/userfiles/editor/files/RAXEN_2006.pdf (accessed on 14.02.2012)

External Url http://www.crj.ro/Resurse-interne/

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No thorough evaluation could be found in this regard.

Qualitative Info

The US State Department reports that the police reform continued in 2010: "...the police increased the hiring of women and minorities. According to police statistics, at the end of the year 12 percent of the 54,786-person police force were women and 1.2 percent, including 104 Roma, represented members of ethnic minorities. A project to promote equal opportunities for national minorities for a career in the police structures was implemented in Cluj during the year. Police also used Romani mediators to facilitate communication between Roma and the authorities and to assist in crises. A handbook, Police and Roma/Sinti Population: Good Practices in Building Trust and Understanding, was published during the year as a tool for the implementation of the Action Plan for Roma and Sinti of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)." [1]

However, the Report also quotes NGOs that criticize police intervention in combating hate crimes, such as: The Center for Monitoring Anti-Semitism in Romania "asserted that police investigations of ... [vandalisation of Jewish establishments] were not thorough. (...) Romani groups complained that police brutality, including beatings and harassment, was routine. (...) Several members reported that police and gendarmerie raids took place in public places known to be meeting areas for gay men, and that police behavior was abusive. " [2]

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Source:

1. US State Department, 2010 Human Rights Report. Romania, Section 1.d, available at http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html (accessed on 14.02.2012)

2. US State Department, 2010 Human Rights Report. Romania, Section 6, available at http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html(accessed on 14.02.2012)

•  
•  

External Url http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html

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There is no thorough evaluation in this regard.

Qualitative Info

The US State Department indicates instances when the judiciary has not proved to be effective in combating hate crimes:

• Although the law prohibits the denial of the Holocaust in public and such cases occured, "...there were no prosecutions under this statute during the year. (...)
• No developments were reported in the February 2009 beating and assault on a transgender person in Bucharest or the reported verbal abuse of the same person by taxi drivers in March 2009."

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Source:

US State Department, 2010 Human Rights Report. Romania, Section 6, available at http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html (accessed 14.02.2012)

 

External Url http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html

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YES

Qualitative Info

Art.75 point c1 of the Penal Code prescribes the aggravating circumstance for any crime when it is motivated by hate: "committing a criminal offence on the ground of race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, gender, sexual orientation, opinion, political belonging, belief, wealth, social origin, age, disability, uncontagious cronic disease, HIV/AIDS infection."

External Url http://www.anp-just.ro/interna/Codul%20Penal.pdf

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YES.

Qualitative Info

There is no assessment how often the racist motivation is applied as an aggravating factor of a criminal offence, according to Article 75 point c¹ of the Criminal Code. Starting with 1 January 2009, the prosecution collects this indicator. 

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Sources:

Center for Legal Resources, ACCEPT, Euroregional Center for Public Initiatives, National Data Collection Report – 2006: RAXEN 7, Sections 2.1.3 and A.2.2., available at http://www.crj.ro/userfiles/editor/files/RAXEN_2006.pdf (accessed on 14.02.2012).

Romanian NFP RAXEN8: Data Collection Report 2007, p.20, available at http://www.crj.ro/userfiles/editor/files/RAXEN_2007.pdf (accessed on 14.02.2012).

Center for Legal Resources, FRA Complementary Data Collection Report, 30 September 2008, p.9, available at http://www.crj.ro/userfiles/editor/files/RAXEN_2008.pdf (accessed on 14.02.2012)

General Prosecutor Order No.319/2008 (Ordin Nr.319/2008 al Procurorului general al Parchetului de pe langa Inalta Curte de Casatie si Justitie). 

External Url http://www.crj.ro/Resurse-interne/

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YES

Qualitative Info

Art.247 (Abuse in the service by restricting certain rights) of the Penal Code punishes the restriction, by a public servant of the use or exercise of rights of a person or creating for this person a situation of inferiority on the ground of race, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, gender, sexual orientation, opinion, political affiliation, belief, wealth, social origin, age, disability, non-contagious cronic disease or HIV/AIDS infection with a prison sentence between 6 months and 5 years.

External Url http://www.anp-just.ro/interna/Codul%20Penal.pdf

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YES. The phenomenon as such was moreover signalled, rather than individual cases of perpetrators.

Qualitative Info

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination raised concerns with regard to "the existence of cases where excessive use of force, ill treatment and abuse of power were inflicted by police and public order forces towards people beloging to minorities, in particular Roma." The same concerns were raised in the US State Department's 2010 Human Rights Report on Romania.

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Source:

UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Concluding Observations to Romania, para.15, CERD/C/ROU/CO/16-19, available at http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/ENACARegion/Pages/ROIndex.aspx (accessed on 14.02.2012).

US State Department, 2010 Human Rights Report. Romania, Section 1, available at http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html (accessed on 14.02.2012).

External Url http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/ENACARegion/Pages/ROIndex.aspx

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No parties which expressly assume such an agenda, through their statutes, could be identified. Yet, certain parties have been qualified as extremist in the course of time.

Represented in government/parliament? No

Qualitative Info

One of the regular international assessments with regards to Romania comes from the US Department of State Reports on Human Rights practices. These reports have constantly mentioned the Greater Romania (PRM) Party as an extreme nationalist party. The US Department of State 2011 Human rights report for Romania states that: “During the year the publications of the PRM, headed by Corneliu Vadim Tudor, continued to carry statements and articles containing strong anti-Semitic attacks.” [1]

A 2003 report, making an analysis of right wing extremism in Romania, identifies the three main targets of PRM extremism as being: Hungarians, the Roma and the Jews.[2] In 2000, the party’s leader and symbolic figure Corneliu Vadim Tudor, made it to the runoff of Presidential elections and finally got 33.17% of the votes.[3] The same 2003 analysis of extremism in Romania made the case that, in order to obtain this result, Mr. Tudor largely capitalized on Romanians’ poverty and dissatisfaction with corruption; in essence, that extremism alone would not have gotten him there. [4] Yet, it was also clear that Mr. Tudor’s extremism had not bothered those who voted for him mainly on account of poverty and of being fed up with corruption. Since 2000, Mr Tudor has constantly run in presidential elections. He got 5.56% of the votes in 2009. [5] His party, however, no longer made it to the Romanian Parliament in 2008.[6] It got low scores in the 2012 local elections,[7] but did make it to the European Parliament in 2009.[8]

Perhaps one the most tense moments was in May 2001 when, according to the US Department of State Human Rights Report for Romania for 2001: “…the Israeli Ambassador expressed concern about a book published by a member of the extreme-right "Greater Romania" Party (PRM) which contained two jokes on the extermination of Jews by the Nazis.  The Minister of Justice called for an investigation, the publishing house sent a letter of apology to the Israeli Ambassador, and the PRM leader apologized to the Jewish community.  In August another PRM party representative published a book called ‘The Nationalist’, which included xenophobic and chauvinistic ideas.  The book was condemned widely by the national media and leadership, and the PRM leadership disowned the book.”[9]

Depite retractions, PRM, and its leader, continued along the same lines. The US State Department continued to report for example, in 2007: “During the year, the leader of the extreme nationalist Greater Romania Party (PRM), Corneliu Vadim Tudor, continued to make statements and write articles containing strong anti-Semitic attacks. In a speech on March 23, Tudor denied that any Holocaust activities had occurred in the country. On May 24, the president withdrew by decree the Star of Romania medal from Tudor. Tudor challenged the decree, and on June 26 a Bucharest court suspended its enforcement until the lawsuit was resolved. On April 18, Edward Iosiper, ambassador-designate to Israel, appeared before the parliament for his confirmation hearing. According to press reports, Iosper's hearing had anti-Semitic overtones. Two PRM members of parliament demanded to know whether Iosiper felt ‘Jewish or Romanian.’ They continued this line of questioning without any intervention by other members of the parliament's foreign affairs committee. Iosiper was subsequently approved as ambassador to Israel.” [10]

Mr. Tudor also came to the attention of the National Council for Combating Discrimination for fiercely racist statements against the Roma as well as homophobic statements, in 2005, after an open letter sent by the European Roma Rights Centre to the Romanian Government with regards to the anti-Roma speech in the media and also of politicians, following ECtHR decisions in the Hadareni case (where ethnic violence occured against the Roma). According to the ERRC: “Mr. Vadim Tudor stated that during the 1993 pogrom the Romanians were just defending their ‘honor’ against the ‘gypsy rapists and thieves’ who wanted to ‘slaughter’ them. Mr. Vadim Tudor accused the state authorities of failing to protect the ‘peaceful villagers’ against the ‘bloody anger of a few brutes’. He continued by calling on all Romanians to ‘protect [their] brothers in the wounded heart of Transylvania’ against ‘the gypsy attacks and raids’”. The statement was aired on the Radio and published in one of the PRM publications. [11] The NCCD, through a 2006 decision, found the statements were discriminatory but did not sanction, deciding to take into account parliamentary immunity (Mr. Tudor was Senator at the time), seeing the statements as entering under the umbrella of political speech. [12] The NCCD, also gave Mr. Tudor a warning in 2005 for homophobic statements, namely, according to the media: “We are parents of children. The Romanian people is a people with healthy mores, they are anomalies of nature, I pity them, but let them consummate their sin, if this can be called love (…) in silence. Listen, they should not piss me off, because I’ll impale them and they might like it.” [13]

The party’s statute (last modified in 2010) states that: “it shall not be allowed, within the party, any anti-Semitic and xenophobic position, acting with promptitude and firmness against any manifestations of Holocaust denial” [14]

Another party, also considered by the US Department of State as extreme nationalist, is the New Generation – Christian Democrat Party, led by George Becali, MEP and owner of a famous Bucharest football Club – Steaua. In 2005, the US Department of State, in its report on International Religious Freedom informed on the fact that: “The extreme nationalist New Generation Party adopted for its electoral campaign a slogan used by the 1930s anti-Semitic Legionnaire Movement: ‘I swear to God to make Romania into a country like the holy sun in the sky.’” [15] The same report for 2007, notes that: “The New Generation Party, which grew significantly in the polls, maintained its 2004 slogan, which was used by the 1930s anti-Semitic Legionnaire Movement.”[16] The Human Rights Practices Report for the same year states that: “In June Georghe Becali, the owner of a soccer team and head of the right-extremist New Generation Party, launched a strong attack against gays in a public address, calling on them not to attend his team's soccer matches.” [17]

Mr Becali is a “regular client” of the National Council for Combating Discrimination, covering various grounds with his statements, not just sexual orientation.[18] A 2012 news report stated that there had been 17 cases against him before the NCCD. [19] Newest statements, when, according to the media, he refused to get a French football player to his club on account of being black, got him the attention and outrage of the international press. [20]

In the June 2012 local elections, Mr. Becali’s party obtained low scores.[21] The New Generation Christian Democrat Party did not make it to the Parliament in 2008. [22] However, Mr. Becali made it to the European Parliament together with Mr. Tudor, on the Greater Romania Party lists.[23] One of the slogans used in the campaign was: “Two Christians and patriots will rid the country of thieves” [24]

Although these parties do not gather significant electoral scores at present, and although the rhetoric can be said to have toned down in the past few years, at least in the case of Mr Tudor, it would be hasty to say that this is due to an evolution of the Romanian electorate and parties towards more democratic values. According to a 2011 Soros study on Romanian electoral behaviours, more specifically within a project on religious behaviour, Romanians are among the most conservative citizens in the EU. Over 80% consider homosexuality and prostitution to represent behaviours which cannot have a justification, while a lower 76% consider the same of the death penalty. [25]

In October 2012, Mr Becali became member of the mainstream party National Liberal Party (part of the Social-Liberal Union - currently the strongest political alliance) and, despite civil society protests, [26] was placed on the parliament elections lists, where he got a deputy seat in December 2012. [27] In February 2013, Mr Becali resigned from the National Liberal party after a court ruling sentencing him to three years imprinsonment with suspension and eight years probation for kidnapping three men who had stolen his car. He did not resign from Parliament. [28]

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Sources:

1. US Department of State,  Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011, Romania, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/index.htm#wrapper (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
2. Gabriel Andreescu, Right-wing extremism in Romania, Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center, Cluj, 2003, pp. 31-33, available at: http://www.edrc.ro/docs/docs/extremism_eng/Right-wingExtremismInRomania.pdf (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
3. Wikipedia, Romanian General Election 2000, available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_general_election,_2000 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
4. Gabriel Andreescu, Right-wing extremism in Romania, Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center, Cluj, 2003, p. 69, available at: http://www.edrc.ro/docs/docs/extremism_eng/Right-wingExtremismInRomania.pdf (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
5. Wikipedia, Romanian Presidential Elections, 2009, available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_presidential_election,_2009 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
6. Wikipedia, Romanian legislative election, 2008, available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_legislative_election,_2008 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
7. Wikipedia, Romanian local election, 2012, available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_local_election,_2012 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
8. Wikipedia, European Parliament election, 2009, (Romania), available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Parliament_election,_2009_%28Romania%29 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
9. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Romania, 2001, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2001/eur/8327.htm (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
10. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Romania, 2007, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2007/100580.htm (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
11. European Roma Rights Centre, Romanian Equality Watchdog Rules Anti-Romani Speech by Romanian Politician is Discriminatory, 14.02.2012, available at: http://www.errc.org/article/romanian-equality-watchdog-rules-anti-romani-speech-by-romanian-politician-is-discriminatory/2513 (Date of access: 28.08.2012).
12. See copy of the decision from 17.01.2006, in Romanian, at: http://miris.eurac.edu/mugs2/do/blob.html?type=html&serial=1141665330633 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
13. The quotes originally in Romanian used for this material have been translated by us. Mediafax, “CV Tudor sanctionat pentru jigniri la adresa comunitatii gay” [“CV Tudor sanctionned for offences to the gay community”], in Adevarul, 25.08.2005, available at: http://www.adevarul.ro/actualitate/CV-Tudor-sanctionat-jigniri-comunitatii_0_59395215.html (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
14. Romania Mare Party Website, Statutul Partidului Romania Mare (cu modificarile aprobate la cel de-al V-lea Congres al PRM) [Statutes of the Greater Romania Party (with the amendments approved at the Vth Congress of PRM)], available at: http://www.partidulromaniamare.ro/statut/prm/statut-prm/statutul-partidului-romania-mare (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
15. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, International Religious Freedom Report, Romania 2005, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2005/51575.htm (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
16. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, International Religious Freedom Report, Romania 2007, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2007/90195.htm (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
17. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Country Report on Human Rights Practices, Romania, 2007, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2007/100580.htm (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
18. For a selection of articles on the topic see: Ziare.com: http://www.ziare.com/articole/gigi+becali+cncd (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
19. ProTV News, Razboi Gigi Becali – CNCD. Europarlamentarul, reclamat la Parchet petru circul ‘Na discriminare!’, available at: http://stirileprotv.ro/stiri/actualitate/chiar-au-tupeu-cum-a-reactionat-becali-cand-a-primit-o-citatie-din-partea-cncd.html (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
20. Sport24.com, “Roumanie: un footballeur recale car noir” in Le Figaro, 21.08.2012, available at : http://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-actu/2012/08/21/97001-20120821FILWWW00362-roumanie-un-footballeur-recale-car-noir.php (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
21. Wikipedia, Romanian local election, 2012, available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_local_election,_2012 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
22. Wikipedia, Romanian legislative election, 2008, available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_legislative_election,_2008 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
23. See a reaction of the prestigious The Economist on the election of the two in the EP in the article: “Scary elections in Eastern Europe. Time to start fretting”, 11.06.2009, available at: http://www.economist.com/node/13832627 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
24. ProTV, Vadim si Becali – “doi crestini si patrioti vor scapa tara de hoti” [Vadim and Becali – “two Christians and patriots will rid the country of thieves”], available at: http://stirileprotv.ro/stiri/politic/vadim-si-becali-doi-crestini-si-patrioti-vor-scapa-tara-de-hoti.html (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
25. Soros Foundation Romania, Romanii sunt printer ei mai conservatori cetateni din Uniunea Europeana [Romanians are among the most conservative citizens from the European union], 2011, available at: http://soros.ro/ro/program_articol.php?articol=310 (Date of access: 28.08.2012)
26. RTV.net, Gigi Becali, ATACAT  de Coaliţia Antidiscriminare: „Un politician misogin, homofob şi rasist” (Gigi Becali, ATTACKED by the Anti-discrimination Coalition: „A mysoginistic, homophobic and racist politician”) 16.10.2012, available at: http://www.rtv.net/gigi-becali-atacat-de-coalitia-antidiscriminare-un-politician-misogin-homofob-si-rasist_48990.html (Accessed at: 27.01.2013)
27. Romanian Chamber of Deputies, Webpage of MP George Becali, available at: http://www.cdep.ro/pls/parlam/structura.mp?idm=27&cam=2&leg=2012 (accessed at: 27.01.2013)
28. Filip Stan, Gigi Becali si-a anuntat in plen DEMISIA din PNL. De ce nu renunta la mandatul de parlamentar, in RTV.net, 18.02.2013, available at: http://www.rtv.net/gigi-becali-si-a-anuntat-in-plen-demisia-din-pnl-raman-membru-afiliat-usl-pnl_66910.html (accessed at: 23.02.2013)

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No parties which expressly assume such an agenda could be identified, but parties identified as extremist in the course of time do exist (see also indicator answering to: "Are there political parties that express racist or xenophobic sentiments/discourse in the form of hate speech or promote an anti-migrant and/or anti-minority agenda?")

Parties Greater Romania Party (PRM) & New Generation

Qualitative Info

The US Department of State 2010 Human rights report for Romania speaks of the “extreme nationalist PRM [Greater Romania Party] headed by Corneliu Vadim Tudor”, which “continued to carry statements and articles containing strong anti-Semitic attacks”. [1]

Another party, also considered by the US Department of State as extreme nationalist, is the New Generation – Christian Democrat Party, led by George Becali, MEP and now Romanian MP, and owner of a famous Bucharest football Club – Steaua. In 2005, the US Department of State, in its report on International Religious Freedom informed on the fact that: “The extreme nationalist New Generation Party adopted for its electoral campaign a slogan used by the 1930s anti-Semitic Legionnaire Movement: ‘I swear to God to make Romania into a country like the holy sun in the sky.’” [2]

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Source:

1. US Department of State, Human Rights Report 2010, Romania, available at: http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/160210.pdf (Date of access: 15.03.2012)
2. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, International Religious Freedom Report, Romania 2005, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2005/51575.htm (Date of access: 28.08.2012)

 

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Yes, it has increased in frequency in the past years especially in relation to the Roma minority. Those making the most debated statements come from mainstream parties, many times in highest-level positions. Romania continues to be a country where granting minority rights, especially if the Hungarian minority is the main beneficiary, stirs debates with nationalistic sentiments still being easy to re-kindle.

Qualitative Info

A detailed presentation of the high-level discriminatory speech is done within the RED Case study on this topic.

Also, it must be said that Romania is a country where granting minority rights, especially if the Hungarian minority is the main beneficiary, is always a topic which easily stirs nationalistic sentiments. A Government ordinance to establish a Hungarian language faculty within the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Tragu Mures (where Hungarian language teaching already existed), was highly contested, and stirred protests and heated debates. This was one of the three reasons of a motion which brought down the Government at the end of April 2012. The drafters of the motion opposed the establishment of this faculty for, among others, “encouraging separatism”. [1]

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Sources:

1. Avocatnet.ro, 30.04.2012, Motion of censure "Stop Government blackmail. So no, never!", http://www.avocatnet.ro/content/articles/id_28591/Citeste-AICI-textul-integral-al-motiunii-de-cenzura-care-a-dat-jos-Guvernul-Ungureanu.html, Date of access: 29.08.2012.

 

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Organizations which promote the leaders of the pre-World War II era Legionnaire Movement  (a nationalist and viciously anti-Semitic movement) have been reported by the US Department of State Human Rights report, which qualified them as "extremist organizations".

Organisations Noua Dreapta [New Right], Professor George Manu Foundation, Party for the Nation, Autonomous Nationalists.

Qualitative Info

The US State Department 2010 Romanian Country Report on Human Rights Practices clearly indicates three organizations as being "extremist organizations": New Right Organization, Professor George Manu Foundation and Party for the Nation. The report describes their activity as sponsoring events, including religious services, symposia, and marches, commemorating leaders of the pre-World War II era Legionnaire Movement, which "attracted small numbers of persons."

The report also states that: "During the year, the extremist press continued to publish anti-semitic articles. The New Right movement and similar organizations and associations continued to promote the ideas of the Iron Guard (an extreme nationalist, Anti-Semitic, pro-Nazi group that existed in the Country in the inter-War period) in the media and on the Internet. Organizations with extreme right-wing views also published inflammatory books from the inter-war period. " [1]

In 2011, the same report describes the situation along the same lines: “Extremist organizations occasionally held high-profile public events with anti-Semitic themes and continued to sponsor events, including religious services, symposia, and marches, commemorating leaders of the pre-World War II fascist Legionnaire Movement. Such events took place during the year in Bucharest and Piatra Neamt, where posters with former Legionnaire leader Corneliu Zelea Codreanu appeared in the streets. (….) During the year the extremist press continued to publish anti-Semitic articles. The New Right movement and similar organizations and associations continued to promote the ideas of the Iron Guard (an extreme nationalist, anti-Semitic, pro-Nazi group that existed in the country during the interwar period) in the media and on the Internet. Organizations with extreme right-wing views also republished inflammatory books from the interwar period.”[2]

NGO efforts to counter this type of initiatives had been rather ineffective, in part because the public authorities do not seem to share the same concerns. In 2006, the NGO Romani CRISS filed a petition against the website www.nouadreapta.ro for discriminatory articles against the Roma, with the National Council for Combating Discrimination (NCCD). The NCCD found discrimination and sanctioned the authors of the articles, but also the Organization New Right for posting the articles on its website. The NCCD found that through the articles in question "the persons belonging to the Roma minority are generically catalogued as violent, aggressive, illiterate, delinquents, etc., identifying the Roma community in its entirety with mafia clans, with prostitution, usurer activities, drug trafficking and other illicit and anti-social deeds, inciting to racial hatred". [3] This NCCD decision had limited impact on the offenders and the general public,  and authorities with a relevant madate did not undertake further visible and effective initiatives to raise awareness on the unlawfullness of such speech.  Moreover, the Prosecutor’s Office (attached to the Bucharest Tribunal) decided not to begin a criminal investigation against New Right and its President for breaches of the Government Emergency Ordinance No. 31/2002 on the ban of organizations with a fascist, racist or xenophobic character and the promotion of the cult of persons guilty of crimes against peace and humanity. The complaint introduced also by Romani CRISS was rejected on the reasoning that “the functioning of numerous organizations legally established, such as: The Legionary Movement, New Right, etc… and the existence of some publications which belong to these, constitutes a reality which cannot be ignored….”. Romani CRISS contested the decision and kept loosing and contesting until it exhausted all internal remedies, after which, in 2008, it brought the case before the European Court of Human Rights. Among its requests before the ECtHR, the NGO asked for “reparatory measures with a general character of a nature to lead to avoiding breaches of this type, including through a specialized compulsory training for all magistrates.” [4]

 

In June 2012, the Simon Wiesenthal Center Report on European extremist movements mentioned Noua Dreapta [New Right] as “a nonelectoral extremist movement modeled on Romania’s fascist Iron Guard. Strongly anti-Semitic, in ideology, it’s noted for violent demonstrations aimed at ethnic Hungarians, homosexuals, Gypsies”. [5] Recently, the New Right decided to form a political branch and register the Nationalist Party. According to its website, it has not yet been registered, while the representatives of New Right claim intentional delays. [6]

 

In January 2013 a group called the Autonomous Nationalists from Timişoara, apparently linked with similar movements in Europe (primarily Germany) but also with a very nationally inspired character from the inter-war period, [7] published on their blog that: “We offer a reward of 300 lei [around 65-70 euro] to every Gipsy woman from the area of Banat, who can prove that she voluntarily submitted to a sterilization surgery in 2013. If they cannot educate their offspring to no longer be a burden on the Romanian society, we offer to them GUARANTEED 300 lei for the voluntary sterilization surgery done in 2013.” The “Elie Wiesel” National Institute for the Study of Holocaust in Romania, the Roma Center for Social Intervention and Studies – Romani CRISS and the Center for Monitoring and Combating AntiSemitism in Romania – MCA Romania issued a press statement vehemently condemning the manifestations of this group, considering such manifestations fall under the criminal legislation and asking authorities to take legal measures for such posts to no longer be possible. Romani CRISS and MCA Romania said they would file a complaint with the Prosecutor’s Office. The statement also detailed the objectives of the group such as: “urgently solving the gypsy problem; conserving the racial genotype, the genetic patrimony inherited from our ancestors, as an integral part of our identity; dismantling the guilt cult connected to the so-called ‘holocaust’ which would have taken place in Trasnistria; putting a stop to teaching in public schools on the 'holocaust' until the objective clarification of that period; total opposition towards multiculturalism and mixing.”[8] After the statement of the NGOs and the Wiesel institute, the police, under the coordination of the Timişoara Prosecutor’s Office, according to the media, was conducting searches and questioning in the case. The blog was deleted as soon as the condemning statement appeared. [9]

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1. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and labor, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Romania, 2010, Section 6, available at: http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html (Date of access: 14.02.2012)

2. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Romania, 2011,, available at: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/index.htm#wrapper (Date of access: 28.08.2012)

3. National Council for Combating Discrimination, Report on the implementation of the race directive in Romania, p. 42, available at:http://www.cncd.org.ro/publicatii/Rapoarte-5/ (Date of access: 15.03.2012)

4. Romani CRISS, Newsletter January-April 2008, p. 4, available at: http://romanicriss.org/RCRISS%20newsletter%20ian-april08.pdf (Date of access: 15.03.2012)

5. Dr. Harold Brackman, European Extremist Movements: Who’s Who and What’s What, a Simon Wiesenthal Center Report, June 2012, p. 14, available at: http://www.wiesenthal.com/atf/cf/%7B54d385e6-f1b9-4e9f-8e94-890c3e6dd277%7D/FINAL_REPORT_619_12.PDF (Date of access: 29.08.2012)

6. Nationalist Party, Tudor Ionescu: “Vom da de pamant cu toate acele partie antinationale si anticrestine cae au adus Romania in colaps [We shall throw to the ground all those anti-national and anti-Christian parties which have brought Romania into collapse]”, available at: http://partidulnationalist.ro/?p=50 (accessed at: 29.08.2012)

7. William Totok, “Cine sunt naţionaliştii autonomi din Timşoara?” [“Who are the autonomous nationalists from Timişoara?”], in RFI Romania, 14.01.2013, available at: http://www.rfi.ro/articol/stiri/politica/cine-sunt-nationalistii-autonomi-timisoara (accessed at: 27.01.2013)

8. The “Elie Wiesel” National Institute for the Study of Holocaust in Romania, the Roma Center for Social Intervention and Studies – Romani CRISS and the Center for Monitoring and Combating AntiSemitism in Romania – MCA Romania, Press statement. The sterilization of Roma women – a serious assault on the fundamental values of democracy, 10.01.2013, available at: http://www.romanicriss.org/PDF/Comunicat%20de%20presa%20sterilizarea%20femeilor%20rome.pdf (Accessed at: 27.01.2013)

9. Liliana Iedu, “Percheziţii în cazul naţionaliştilor ce au anunţat recompensă pentru femeile rome ce se sterilizează” (“Searches in the case of the nationalists who have announced a reward for the Roma women who get sterilized”), in Mediafax, 14.01.2013, available at: http://www.mediafax.ro/social/perchezitii-in-cazul-nationalistilor-ce-au-anuntat-recompensa-pentru-femeile-rome-ce-se-sterilizeaza-10460811 (Accessed at: 27.01.2013)

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Yes, it has. Implementation is not monitored.

Qualitative Info

We could not identify any national monitoring report for the implementation in the year 2012 of the Government Decision No.1221/2011 on the approval of the of the Government of Romania for the Inclusion of the Romanian Citizens Belonging to Roma Minority for the Period 2012-2020. The Commission Staff Working Document accompanying the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on National Roima Integration strategies, states with regards to the Romanian strategy, among others, the following:

Education: "The strategy does not cover completion of primary school by all Roma children. The strategy does not identify clear targets on the educational attainment of Roma and is not founded on an adequate evidence base. A clear link with general programmes targetting disadvantaged groups and educational infrastructure would be neccessary."

Employment: "The target is not comensurate with the size of unemployment (...)The problems of rural areas and disadvantaged micro-regions and segregated neighbourhoods should be addressed specifically"

Health: "The proposed actions are welcome but insufficient in size and scope (...) Detailing a calendar, targets, indicators, and budget are needed to secure the effective implementation"

Housing: "The strategy does not appropriately address access to (social) housing. (...) The strategy could be improved by identifying areas with extremely poor communities and defining targeted measures to address the specificities of the situations"

Structural requirements and funding: "The strategy does not reflect an integrated approach. The strategy would benefit from a clear prioritisation, a closer link between general and specific objectives, directions for actions and actual measures proposed, detailed description of clear targets, responsibilities, budget allocations, as well as of a robust monitoring and evaluation system. In the light of the considerable reliance on Structural Funds to support projects addressing the identified priorities, a significant improvement of the absorption capacity should be a priority."

 

In October 2007, the National Council for Combating Discrimination published the National Strategy for the Implementation of Measures for Prevent and Combat Discrimination (2007-2013). Among priorities and interventions aimed to prevent and combat discrimination more generally, this strategy contains one priority focusing particularly on combating racism - strengthening cooperation with organizations working in the field of sports in order to carry out activities of preventing and combating racism in sports. The NCCD implements various activities promoting equality in several fields, but we could not identify any report specifically dedicated to the implementation of the strategy.

• Government Decision No.1221/2011 on the approval of the of the Government of Romania for the Inclusion of the Romanian Citizens Belonging to Roma Minority for the Period 2012-2020, published in the Official Journal No.6 bis of 4 January 2012, available in English at http://www.anr.gov.ro/docs/Strategie_EN.pdf (accessed on 16.02.2012).
• Proposals to revise the draft of the Government of Romania for the Inclusion of the Romanian Citizens Belonging to Roma Minority for the Period 2012-2020, available at http://www.romanicriss.org/PDF/Comentarii%20cu%20privire%20la%20Strategie_ONG_final.pdf (accessed on 16.02.2012).
• European Commission, Commission Staff Working Document accompanying the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on National Roima Integration strategies: a fisrt step in the implementation of the EU Framework, Brussels, 21.5.2012, SWD (2012) 133 final, available at: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/discrimination/files/swd2012_133_en.pdf (accessed at: 25.02.2013)
• Art.22 of Order No.286 of 29 August 2007 regarding the approval of the National Strategy for the Implementation of Measures for Prevent and Combat Discrimination (2007-2013) (Ordinul 286 din 29 august 2007 (Ordinul 286/2007) privind aprobarea Strategiei naţionale de implementare a mǎsurilor de prevenire şi combatere a discriminǎrii (2007-2013)), published in the Official Journal No.674 of 3 October 2007, available at http://www.legestart.ro/Ordinul-286-2007-aprobarea-Strategiei-nationale-implementare-masurilor-prevenire-combatere-discriminarii-2007-2013-(Mjc1MDg5).htm (accessed on 16.02.2012).
• National Council for Combating Discrimination website: http://www.cncd.org.ro (accessed at: 25.02.2013)

External Url http://ec.europa.eu/justice/discrimination/files/swd2012_133_en.pdf; www.cncd.org.ro

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In the context of descentralisation, the implication of the local governance in the field of combating racism needs to be strengthened, while at the same time sanctionning in a dissuasive manner local authorities which discriminate.

Qualitative Info

The National Council for Combating Discrimination's National Strategy for the Implementation of Measures for Prevent and Combat Discrimination (2007-2013) does not contain responsibilities for local administration.

The previous National Strategy for Improving the Condition of the Roma (2001-2010) had responsibilities for the administrations at county and local level through County Roma Bureaus (BJRs), Local Roma Experts (Roma health mediators, school mediators, Roma representatives, educators, etc), and Mixed Roma Working Groups. This implementation structure was replicated in the new strategy adopted in December 2011, despite criticism from the civil society and various independent evaluation teams of the previous strategy. One of the points made by these critics was that:

"Too little has been done at the national level to ensure that local authorities understand, accept, and implement the Strategy’s aims. The Strategy itself lacks specific definitions and sets out only very limited guidelines as to the responsibilities of local authorities. More
detailed instructions should have been issued and would be needed to ensure that tasks are carried out and goals are met." [1]

A very serious concern raised in 2009 was that "The attitude of local public authorities is that they are not open to implement projects having Roma as target group." [2]

Furthermore, a series of acts of local authorities involving forced evictions of Roma communities in areas unfit for human habitation actually involve local governance in the position of perpetrators. [3]

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Source:

1. Focus Consultancy, Romania, Assessment of the Roma Strategy Implementation Mechanism. Evaluation Report, p.35, July 2005, available at: http://www.anr.gov.ro/docs/rapoarte/Focus_Final_Evaluation_Report_181.pdf (accessed on 16.02.2012).

2. Agentia de Dezvoltare Comunitara "Impreuna", National Strategy to Improve the Situation of Roma: Communities' Voice, p.56, available at: http://www.agentiaimpreuna.ro/files/publicatii/10-RAPORT_tipar-p-ro.pdf (accessed on 16.02.2012).

3. Amnesty International, Mind the legal gap. Roma and the right to housing in Romania (EUR 39/004/2011), 23.06.2011, available at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR39/004/2011 (accessed at: 25.02.2013) and Unsafe foundations: secure the right to housing in Romania (EUR 39/002/2012), 08.05.2012, available at: http://amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR39/002/2012/en (accessed at: 25.02.2013)

 

 

External Url http://www.anr.gov.ro/docs/rapoarte/Focus_Final_Evaluation_Report_181.pdf ; http://www.agentiaimpreuna.ro/files/publicatii/10-RAPORT_tipar-p-ro.pdf

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YES

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YES

Qualitative Info

Romani CRISS,

Pro Europe League,

Center for Legal Resources,

APADOR-CH,

Policy Center for Roma and Minorities,

“Impreuna” Agency for Community Development,

Civil Alliance of Roma from Romania,

SASTIPEN,

Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center,

Foundation Center of Resources for Roma Communities.

 

The following organizations signed a joint position with regards to the national strategy for Roma inclusion, 2011:

A.C.O.R.D,

Alliance for the Unity of Roma (Alianta pentru Unitatea Romilor), 

"Equal Chances" Association (Asociatia „Sanse Egale”),

Roma Association (Asociatia Romilor),

Roma Association for Migration "R.O.M." (Asociatia Romilor pentru Migratie “R.O.M”), 

Social Democratic Association of Roma from Ardeal (Asociatia Social – Democrata a Romilor Ardeleni), 

"Equal Chances" Roma Association of Tulcea (Asociatia Rromilor '' Egalitate de Sanse '' Tulcea), 

Romani's Chrestian Center (Centrul Crestin al Romilor), 

Technical Assistance Center for Non-profit Organisations (Centrul de Asistenta Tehnica pentru Organizatii Nonprofit), 

Center for the Promotion of Young Roma (Centrul pentru Promovarea Tinerilor Romi),

Romani's Center "Amare Rromentza" (Centrul Rromilor "Amare Rromentza"),

Foundation for the Development of the Civil Society (Fundatia pentru Dezvoltarea Societatii Civile),

Ramses Foundation (Fundatia Ramses),

Roma Education Fund of Romania (Fundatia Roma Education Fund Romania), 

Soros Foundation (Fundatia SOROS), 

Public Policies Institute (Institutul pentru Politici Publice), 

National Union of Roma Communities (Uniunea Nationala a Comunitatilor de Rromi),

Ruhama Foundation of Oradea (Fundatia Ruhama Oradea),

Alliance for Romani's Unity - Braila Branch (Alianta pentru Unitatea Romilor – Filiala Braila),

Association "Roma Access" of Constanta (Asociatia „Roma Access” Constanta), 

Association of "Romascani Roma" of Neamt (Asociatia “Romii Romascani” Neamt), 

Association of Ursari Roma of Iasi (Asociatia Romii Ursari Iasi), 

"Equal Chances for Women and Children" Association of Salaj (Asociatia „Sanse Egale pentru Femei si Copii” Salaj),

"Equal Chances" Association of Salaj (Asociatia „Sanse Egale” Salaj), 

"Equal Chances for Roma and Sinti ADOSERS" Association for the Defence of Human Rights of Salaj (Asociatia pentru Apararea Drepturilor Omului „Sanse Egale pentru Romi si Sinti ADOSERS” Salaj),

Thumende Association of Hunedoara (Asociatia Thumende Hunedoara),

"O Del Amenca" Cultural Center of Prahova (Centrul Cultural „O Del Amenca” Prahova),

"INTER-ACTIVA" Agency for Community Development of Botosani (Agentia de Dezvoltare Comunitara „INTER-ACTIVA” Botosani), 

"Divano Romano" Association of Botosani (Asociatia „Divano Romano” Botosani), 

"Parudimos" Association of Timisoara (Asociatia „Parudimos” Timisoara),

Roma Journalists' Association (Asociatia Jurnalistilor Rromi, Bucuresti),

T.R.U.S.T. Association - Young Roma for Unity, Solidarity and Transparence of Craiova (Asociatia T.R.U.S.T. – Tinerii Romi pentru Unitate, Solidaritate si Transparenta Craiova),

Amare Phrala Association of Cluj (Asociatia Amare Phrala, Cluj), 

Rhoma Heart Ilo Rom Association of Brasov (Asociatia Rhoma Heart Ilo Rom, Brasov),

Nevo Parudimos Association of Caras Severin (Asociatia Nevo Parudimos Caras Severin), 

Romano Suno Association of Cluj (Asociatia Romano Suno Cluj),

Florists' Association of Bucharest (Asociatia Florarilor Bucuresti), 

Alliance for Romani Unity in Romania of Bucharest (Alianta pentru Unitatea Romilor Romania Bucuresti),

Cultural Democratic Union of Roma of Valea Jiului, Hunedoara (Uniunea Democratica Culturala a Romilor Valea Jiului Hunedoara), 

Wassdas Foundation of Cluj (Fundatia Wassdas Cluj),

Ruhama Foundation (Fundatia Ruhama)

2008 Generation Association (Asociatia Generatia 2008), 

Romani Women for Our Childen Association (Asociatia Femeilor Rome Pentru Copiii Nostri), 

Young Romani's Association (Asociatia Tinerilor Romi),

„Zurale Terne”, 

Hope and Trust Association (Asociatia Speranta si incredere).

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No outstanding initiative with a positive impact on anti-racist policies, but an initiative with a positive impact on the way the words "gypsy" (in Romanian "tigan") and "Roma" (in Romanian "rom") will be defined in the new edition of the  Romanian language dictionary to be issued under the supervision of the Romanian Academy of Sciences.

 

Qualitative Info

At the begining of 2011, three non-governmental organizations filed a complaint to the national equality body asking to find discriminatory the way the Roma ethnic group is defined in the Romanian language dictionary by referrence to a word that is no longer accepted at the official level in the region ("gypsy", in Romanian "tigan") and by referrence to a negative meaning of the word "tigan" that was not marked in the dictionary as representing a pejorative meaning of the term ("Epithet given to a person having bad habits"). In June 2011, the National Council for Combating Discrimination decided that no discriminatory attitude (intention to discriminate) could be found, but it recommended the Romanian Academy of Sciences to explicitly mark the pejorative meaning of the word "tigan" in the dictionary in order to avoid negatively affecting the Roma population. Following this recommendation, the Institute of Linguistic Studies "Iorgu Iordan - Alexandru Rosetti" responded positively to the request sent by a large number of Roma organizations to implement the NCCD recommendation and promissed to change the definitions from the dictionary. The new edition of the dictionary has not been issued, yet. 

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Source:

National Council for Combating Discrimination, Decision No.230 of 15.06.2011, available at http://cncd.org.ro/files/file/Hotararea%20CNCD%20230_2011.pdf (accessed on 18.02.2012).

TVR, Petiţie pentru definiţia din DEX a cuvântului "ţigan" (Petition regarding the definition of the word "gypsy" in the dictionary), available at http://tvr.ro/articol.php?id=106798 (accessed on 18.02.2012).

External Url http://cncd.org.ro/files/file/Hotararea%20CNCD%20230_2011.pdf; http://tvr.ro/articol.php?id=106798

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The most recent initiative is of a group of 48 NGOs who criticized the draft of the Government of Romania Strategy for the Inclusion of the Romanian Citizens Belonging to Roma Minority for the Period 2012-2020. One of their criticism concerned the process of consultation for the drafting of this strategy. The points raised in their position paper did not lead to the amendment of the draft that was adopted in December 2011.

Qualitative Info

This draft strategy was strongly criticized by a number of 48 organizations of the civil society with regards to both procedural and substantive aspects, such as:

- only an initial stage of consultations took place and there is a need for extensive consulations within the Government, with the local administrations and the civil society,

- the structure and mechanism proposed for implementation of the strategy is similar to the mechanism of the old strategy which, according to the NGOs, proved to be outdated and ineffective,

- the lack of a transparent process of implementation of the strategy and cooperation with the civil society,

- the way the target groups and the socio-economic and cultural problems were defined and addressed by the strrategy,

- the way indicators and objectives are formulated, especially lack of measurable indicators.

Besides these general aspects, the NGOs also make concrete proposals to improve objectives and interventions from the draft strategy.

---

Source:

Proposals to revise the draft of the Government of Romania for the Inclusion of the Romanian Citizens Belonging to Roma Minority for the Period 2012-2020, available at http://www.romanicriss.org/PDF/Comentarii%20cu%20privire%20la%20Strategie_ONG_final.pdf (accessed on 16.02.2012).

External Url http://www.romanicriss.org/PDF/Comentarii%20cu%20privire%20la%20Strategie_ONG_final.pdf

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YES. Four more active ones are described below.

Qualitative Info

Romani CRISS has a long tradition in providing legal assistance and representation before the national equality body, courts and other public authorities of Roma people victims of discrimination or racist violence and crimes.

Pro Europe League has been involved in providing legal assistance and representation before the national equality body, courts and other public authorities of Roma people victims of discrimination or racist violence and crimes, especially from Targu Mures county or the neighbouring region.

APADOR-CH is one of the main human rights organizations in Romania. They provide legal assistance and representation at the national level and before the European Court of Human Rights in cases of human rights violations, including for religious minorities, victims of ill-treatment in custody, etc.

Center for Legal Resources has a strategic litigation component within its anti-discrimination programme.

 

External Url http://www.romanicriss.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=3&Itemid=9; http://www.proeuropa.ro/drepturile_omului.html; http://www.apador.org/en/index.htm; http://www.crj.ro/EN/

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Efforts towards anti-racism and cultural sensitivity are being reported, but there is a need for structural changes and deeper interventions mainstreamed within the educational system of the police forces.

Qualitative Info

The US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report on Romania states that: "Police reform continued during the year, and the police increased the hiring of women and minorities. According to police statistics, at the end of the year 12 percent of the 54,786-person police force were women and 1.2 percent, including 104 Roma, represented members of ethnic minorities. A project to promote equal opportunities for national minorities for a career in the police structures was implemented in Cluj during the year. Police also used Romani mediators to facilitate communication between Roma and the authorities and to assist in crises. A handbook, Police and Roma/Sinti Population: Good Practices in Building Trust and Understanding, was published during the year as a tool for the implementation of the Action Plan for Roma and Sinti of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)."

---

 

Sources:

US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report. Romania, Section 1.d, available at: http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html (accessed at 18.02.2012).

External Url http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html

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No evidence of police professional associations that promote and endorse anti-migrant/anti-minority agendas and discourse could be found.

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NO

Qualitative Info

There is no definition/sanctioning of ethnic profiling.

The principle of non-discrimination, including on the gorund of ethnic origin, is one of the general principles that govern police's activity, according to Article of the Police Code of Ethics and Deontology.

External Url http://www.mai.gov.ro/Documente/Cariera/Cod_etica.pdf

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The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination raised concerns.

Qualitative Info

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in its Concluding Observations to Romania from 2010 stated its concerns about "existing police and justice personnel's practices of racial profiling (art.5):[...] The Committee also recommends that the State Party eliminates the practices of racial profiling conducted by the police and justice personnel and to provide the Committee on the next report complete data about the numbers of complaints introduced and prosecutions initiated and sanctions ordered against such practices."

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External Url http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/ENACARegion/Pages/ROIndex.aspx

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No information on the topic could be found.

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The comparison cannot be made for lack of statistical data from the police.

 

Qualitative Info

The General Police Inspectorate do not yet collect statistical data segregated to look at ethnicity/race/religion of either the victim or the perpetrator and they do not collect data segregated on the relevant articles for racist incidents and crime of the criminal code and other criminal provisions. [1] The General Prosecutor's Office, collects segregated data relevant for instigation to discrimination, hindering the freedom of the cults and the aggravating circumstance of discriminatory ground offences included in the criminal code as well as data on crimes under Government Emergency Ordinance 31/2002 on the ban of organizations and symbols with a fascist, racist or xenophobic character and the promotion of the cult of persons guilty of crimes against peace and humanity. [2]

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Sources:

• 1. Ministry of Administration and Interior, General Police Inspectorate Address No. 56404/30.08.2010 to the Centre for Legal Resources
• 2. Public Ministry, Prosecutor’s Office to the High Court of Cassation and Justice Address No. 1403/C/8430/2010 from 12.08.2010, to the Centre for Legal Resources

 

External Url http://www.crj.ro/Resurse-interne

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Such evidence can be infered from conclusions to general reports, and in relation to the Roma minority

Qualitative Info

US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report refers to "reports from nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the media that police mistreated and abused detainees and Roma, primarily through excessive force and beatings." The report also mentions lack of information on the status of investigation regarding excessive use of force by the police against Roma people that occured on previous years (2008, 2009).

A 2007 field research carried out as a result of a cooperation between OSCE/ODIHR and the Romanian police had a series of recommendations for improving the police handling of their job in Roma communities, among which:

"In areas with large Roma communities, officers should have better knowledge and understanding of Roma specificities and challenges they face;

Strong enforcement of legal provisions and supervision by higher levels of the police is required;

Reform and adequately implement legislation and procedures regarding the use of firearms. A review of the use of firearms over the last several years would assist in analysing whether national legislation is adequate and if it is properly implemented...

Consider alternative ways to enforce law and fulfill police responsibilities with a minimum of force and of firearms...

Independent review mechanisms for investigation regarding police matters;

Ombudsman's office to be more active at looking into police interventions..."

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Source:

US State Department, 2010 Human Rights Report Romania, 1.c, available at http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html (accessed on 18.02.2012).

OSCE/ODIHR, Field Visit on Police and Roma Relations, Romania, 12-15 November 2007, pp.8-9, available at http://www.romanicriss.org/raport%20vizita%20osce%20final.pdf (accessed on 18.02.2012).

External Url http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html; http://www.romanicriss.org/raport%20vizita%20osce%20final.pdf

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No such evidence was made public in 2011 regarding migrants/minorities, however reports mentioned pretrial detainees (irrespective of ethnic background) complaining to human rights NGOs that police beat them during pretrial investigations.

 

Qualitative Info

The US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report on Romania mentions that "Pretrial detainees complained to human rights NGOs that police beat them during pretrial investigations." However, these complaints were not made in relation to discrimination by public authorities.

Source:

• US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report. Romania, Section 1.c, available at http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html (accessed on 18.02.2012).

External Url http://romania.usembassy.gov/2010_rhr_en.html

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Lack of data regarding complaints of racial discrimination and shortcomings in the effective use of mother tongue in judicial procedures by national minorities can be inferred.

Qualitative Info

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination identified in its 2010 Concluding Observations to Romania two aspects related to national minorities' access to justice. First, the Committee raises concerns with regards to the Government's not providing enough information on the complaints filed, prosecutions, court decisions and sanctions imposed in cases of racial discrimination, although the Government reported many legal avenues available for an alleged victim of racial discrimination. Second, the Committee recommended the State to take measures to ensure that the right to use mother tongue in judicial procedures at all levels is effectively implemented, including through the training of interpreters.

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Source:

UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Concluding Observations to Romania, 27 August 2010, CERD/C/ROU/CO/16-19, pp.5-6, available at http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/ENACARegion/Pages/ROIndex.aspx (accessed on 18.02.2012)

External Url http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/ENACARegion/Pages/ROIndex.aspx

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There was no study done on this topic in Romania.

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Big trade-union confederations have started to implement European Social Fund financed projects in the areas of social inclusion and equality of chances.  Most of them  include training and information campaigns, some job creation or services. In general, ESF in Romania does not finance rights defense litigation types of activities. No information regarding discrimination cases supported by trade-unions in courts of law could be found.

Qualitative Info

Examples of projects implemented by trade-union confederations or in partnership which also aim to support minorities:

The National Trade-Union Block is implementing a project called Incubators of Social Enterprises in the Bucharest-Ilfov region whose main goal is to develop the social economy in Romania, through the creation of social enterprises having in view the integration and reintegration on the labour market of persons who come from among vulnerable groups. Among the stated target groups one can find: persons with disabilities, persons belonging to minority ethnic groups (formulated like this, it can also mean Romanian ethnics in areas with majority population coming from a national ethnic minority), immigrants and refugees. [1]

“Impreuna” Agency for Community Development is implementing an ESF financed project called: The empowerment of Roma women on the labour market. The partners are: Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Protection, National Confederation of Free Trade-Unions from Romania – Fratia (Brotherhood), the National institute for Scientific Research in the Field of Labour and Social Protection. Among the activities, one can find: the development of the capacity of social partners, through the training of 80 trade-union leaders, representatives of NGOs and relevant institutions in the field of participatory and mobilizing management; creating an inter-professional network to work with and for Roma women made of the persons trained, and which will have as goal the promotion of equality of chances for vulnerable groups.

 

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Sources:

 

Website of the Project Incubators of Social Enterprises in the Bucharest-Ilfov region, available at:  http://www.intreprinderesociala.ro/ro/obiective-proiect (Accessed on 30.01.2012)

Website of the Project The Empowerment of Roma Women on the Labour Market, available at: http://www.privestemaasacumsunt.ro/?page_id=28 (Accessed on 30.01.2012)

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Some trade-unions state that they support migrant workers.

Qualitative Info

The National Trade-Union Block states on its website that it offers assistance and counseling services for immigrant workers in Romania for labour purposes, regardless of whether they are members of the trade-union or not, if they encounter work-related problems. [1] Also, the Confederation has implemented, in partnership with the NGO ARCA – Romanian Forum for Refugees and Migrants a project called Union representation for immigrant workers in Romania. [2]

According to media articles, at the end of 2010, Cartel Alfa National Trade-Union Confederation asked decision makers that Romania ratify the UN Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and Members of their Families, invoking the fact that the economic crisis has seriously affected migrants and their low level of protection. Speaking in general, the trade-union confederation also invoked racist and xenophobic attacks against the migrants in the countries where they live. [3] As of February 2013, Romania has neither signed, nor ratified the Convention. [4]

 

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Sources:

1. National Trade-Union Block website available at: http://www.bns.ro/wps/portal/Acasa/Piata-Muncii/Servicii-Imigranti (Accessed on 30.01.2012)

2. Union representation for immigrant workers in Romania project presentation available at: http://www.intreprinderesociala.ro/_docs/reprezentare-sindicala.pdf (Accessed on 30.01.2012) and project website: http://imigrantinromania.ro/wps/portal/Home/home/!ut/p/b1/04_Sj9CPykssy0xPLMnMz0vMAfGjzOLdjFwC3b3dDQ3cLcwNDDx9vdxdvZ1djQwMTYEKIoEKDHAARwNC-sP1o8BKTPxCjY1C3UKDA_2MXA08TYMNLYMCQw1MXM2gCvBY4eeRn5uqX5AbYZBl4qgIANFkGfo!/dl4/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/ (accessed at: 25.02.2013)

3. Oana Craciun, “Trade-unionists are asking for the ratification of the UN Convention for the protection of migrants / Sindicalistii cer ratificarea Conventiei ONU pentru protectia emigrantilor” in Evenimentul Zilei, 22 December, 2010, available at: http://www.evz.ro/detalii/stiri/sindicalistii-cer-ratificarea-conventiei-onu-pentru-protectia-emigrantilor-916489.html (Accessed on 30.01.2012)

4. See Status of Ratifications of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families, UN Treaty Collection website, available at: http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-13&chapter=4&lang=en (Accessed on 25.02.2013)

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The level of migration to Romania is quite low and no research regarding the issue of segregation between migrant groups and majority population could be found.

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No indication of segregation as recorded in reports could be found.

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Yes. Various studies related to Roma communities show such evidence.

Qualitative Info

Despite the fact that no statistics are available, various studies related to the Roma minority have provided evidence of segregation as a rather common reality [1]. Either at the locality centre or at the outskirts (at times close to environmental and heath hazards or even separated by walls from the rest of the community), forcefully relocated by authorities or out of necessity becoming part of a ghetto, such communities are described by poverty, precarious conditions, overcrowding and uncertainty of tenure; all increasing vulnerability.

Furthermore, it is the authorities themselves that often segregate or worsen the conditions for the Roma. An eloquent example are the activities of the Baia Mare local authorities throughout 2011 and 2012 affecting the poorest Roma communities through the building of a wall to separate a community living in a social block from the rest, forcefully evicting and demolishing, relocating Roma communities to buildings of a former chemical factory which have drawn world attention and condemnation, but with no effect on improving the situation of the Roma or meaningful sanctions and condemnation at national level. [2]

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Sources:

1. For an overview of the types of situations encountered see: Delia-Luiza Niţă (Center for Legal Resources), Housing Conditions of Roma and Travellers, Romania, March 2009, pp. 35-36, available at: http://www.crj.ro/Housing-Conditions-of-Roma-and-Travellers/ (last accessed:17.02.2012) and Amnesty International, Mind the legal gap. Roma and the right to housing in Romania (EUR 39/004/2011), 23.06.2011, available at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR39/004/2011 (accessed at: 25.02.2013) and Unsafe foundations: secure the right to housing in Romania (EUR 39/002/2012), 08.05.2012, available at: http://amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR39/002/2012/en (accessed at: 25.02.2013)

2. Materials on the situation in Baia Mare and reactions to it can be found at: Andrei Trif (2012) ‘Intoxicaţie în masă printre locatarii blocului social amenajat la Cuprom Baia Mare’ (‘Mass intoxication among the inhabitants of the social block of flats arranged at Cuprom Baia Mare’), eMaramureş, 2 June 2012, available at: www.emaramures.ro/Stiri/67195/ULTIMA-ORA-Intoxicatie-in-masa-printre-locatarii-blocului-social-Cuprom-Baia-Mare (accessed at: 25.02.2013) and Bogdan Eduard (2012) ‘Exclusiv EVZ: Auschwitz-ul de la Baia Mare. 2000 de romi mutaţi în Uzina Morţii de primarul Cherecheş “Chimicul’ (Exclusive EVZ: the Auschwitz from Baia Mare. 2,000 Roma moved from the Death Plant by mayor Chereches, the “Chemical”), Evenimentul Zilei, 4 June 2012, available at:  www.evz.ro/detalii/stiri/exclusiv-evz-auschwitz-ul-de-la-baia-mare-2000-de-romi-mutati-in-uzina-mortii-de-primar-984719.html (accessed at: 25.02.2013)  Romani CRISS, Şanse Egale and Asociaţia Umanitară Împreună (2012) ‘Scrisoare Deschisă’ (‘Open Letter’), Bucharest, 3 June 2012, available at: www.romanicriss.org/PDF/Scrisoare%20deschisa%20Baia%20Mare%20evacuari%20si%20incident%20substante_2012.pdf   (accessed at: 25.02.2013); US Embassy to Bucharest (2012) ‘US Embassy Statement on the Roma Housing Situation in Baia Mare’, 6 June 2012, available at: http://romania.usembassy.gov/policy/media/pr-06062012.html (accessed at: 25.02.2013) Council of Europe, Commissioner for Human Rights, “Romania: Commissioner concerned about the relocation of Roma in a toxic building”, Strasbourg, 7 June 2012, available at: www.coe.int/t/commissioner/News/2012/120607BaiaMare_en.asp (accessed at: 25.02.2013); Radu Marinaş (2012) ‘Roma relocation scores Romania mayor a major vote win’, Reuters, 14 June 2012, available at: www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/14/romania-roma-idUSL5E8HE6F020120614 (accessed at: 25.02.2013)

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Roma minority

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Yes, in the case of the Roma.

Qualitative Info

Aside from various reports drafted along the years and also looking at Roma housing, a 2011 Amnesty International report documented the situation of various Roma communities in Romania from the perspective of the right to housings with all its facets. The report argues that Romania has an inadequate legal framework in the area of housing, not incorporating international human rights standards. According to AI, this legal gap and inadequacy, combined with the existence of pervasive discrimination against the Roma “has led to widespread violations of the right to housing, including forced evictions, and resettlement of families and communities in conditions that fall far below international standards”. It also argues that local authorities are not held accountable and that the victims have limited or no access to justice and remedies. In 2012, Amnesty International issed another brief developing a checklist for neccessary legal changes and focusing on the case of a Roma community forcefully evicted from the city centre in the middle of winter 2010 to the outskirts of Cluj Napoca municipality next to the city garbage collection site but also next to a larger, pre-exiting segregated and extremely impovrished Roma community living in shacks.

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Source:

Amnesty International, Mind the Legal Gap, Roma and the right to housing in Romania, June 2011, available at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR39/004/2011/en/5f9becde-66e9-4262-bb3a-ff1c3681046d/eur390042011en.pdf (last accessed: 19.02.2012); Amnesty Iternational, Unsafe foundations: secure the right to housing in Romania (EUR 39/002/2012), 08.05.2012, available at: http://amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR39/002/2012/en (accessed at: 25.02.2013)

External Url http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR39/004/2011/en/5f9becde-66e9-4262-bb3a-ff1c3681046d/eur390042011en.pdf, http://amnesty.org/en/library/info/EUR39/002/2012/en

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No data on segregation could be found. The state educational system does not regulate distinct schooling of migrants.

Qualitative Info

According to Government Ordincance 44/2004 on the social integration of foreigners who have obtained a form of protection or a right to stay in Romania, as well as of citizens of states member of the EU and the EEA, Article 10, minors who have obtained a form of protection (the article does not refer to children with a right to stay but the subsequent detailed methodology regulated through Minister of Education Order 5.925/2009) benefit for the duration of a school year of a free Romanian language innitiation course. During the course, they can attend other school activities without being officially recorded. After the one year language course they are tested and enrolled in the corresponding grade.

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Yes.

Qualitative Info

According to the research report  "One school for all?: access to quality education for roma children", "in Romania, Roma segregation is the most widespread phenomenon of ethnic segregation. There are two types of ethnic segregation: de jure segregation – the consequence of a local or national government decision, and de facto segregation (residential segregation resulting from the demographic concentration of an ethnic group in an geographical area). Residential segregation may be due to the so called “white flight” trend where in families with high socioeconomic status flee an impoverishing area, thereby the learners from a low socioeconomic background become overrepresented. In this trend, the socioeconomic status is often linked to a specific ethnicity. A third type of school segregation, based on academic attainment, is sometimes practiced and it consists in separating “good” students or students who have attended early childhood education from the other children. The risk of accruing multiple vulnerabilities (minority group, low socioeconomic level, abridged cultural capital) is quite high for the Roma, which means that this type of segregation may in fact overlap with ethnic segregation." [1]

According to the research "Participation, scholar absenteeism and discrimination experience of the Roma in Romania" supported by the UNICEF representation in Romania, close to 60 % of the Roma children who attend preschool go to segregated kindergartens (where over 50% of the children are Roma), and 11,7% of the Roma children are in all-Roma kindergarten groups.

Segregation is more accentuated in primary school, where 64,5 % of the students learn in segregated classes, while the percentage of secondary school students is 53% (maybe because the percentage of Roma students in Gymnasiums is lower). In primary school, a percentage of 9,8 % learn in classes in which all the students are Roma, and at Gymnasium level the percentage is 9,5 %.

Segregation trends in classes are more pronounced in rural areas, where 68,6% of Roma children learn in segregated classes in comparison with a percentage of 47,6 in rural areas. Roma children coming from families in which the Romani language is spoken 64 % of them learn in segregated classes by comparison with 48,3 % of children who speak the Romanian language in the family. This fact can be explained by residential segregation, more pronounced in the case of the Romani language speakers, but also by a more severe discrimination of the traditional Roma.

The questionnaires were administered in the period of December 2009-January 2010, to a sample of 985 Roma adults having at least a child who abandoned the school, and to a sample of 979 Roma adults whose all children attended primary or secondary school. There were selected 56 compact Roma communities from 30 Counties and from Bucharest municipality. [2]

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Sources

[1] Duminică, G., Ivasiuc, A. (2010) One school for all? : access to quality education for roma children : research report , available at http://www.unicef.org/romania/One_school_for_all_pt_WEB.pdf (Accessed on 21.12.2011)

[2] Surdu, L. (coord.) (2011) Participare, absenteism şcolar şi experienţa discriminării în cazul romilor în Romania (Participation, scholar absenteeism and discrimination experience of the Roma in Romania), Bucureşti, Vanemonde, available also at http://www.unicef.ro/&files/ghid_absenteism.pdf (Accessed on 21.12.2011)

External Url http://www.unicef.org/romania/One_school_for_all_pt_WEB.pdf

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NO

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Yes.

Qualitative Info

The Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center's Report on the implementation of The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in Romania makes assessments and provides information on minority media and on minority media professionals. We have made a selection of relevant information below. The information can be contextualized by reading the report, whose link is provided under Source:

 

 

"Endeavours to promote inter-ethnic dialogue and the correct presentation in the press of themes related to ethno-cultural minority communities have been made especially by non-governmental organizations. The Press Monitoring Agency – Catavencu Academy (www.mma.ro), the Centre for Independent Journalism (www.cji.ro), the Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Centre, which initiated the Divers.ro project, have all implemented over the years relevant projects in this field. The experts of these organizations consider that in the last years significant improvements have been made in presenting minority issues in the Romanian language press. An important role in this aspect is played by both amendments of legislation and the integration in the Romanian language editorial teams of more and more minority ethnics who are able to convey a relevant perspective on the life of ethnic communities." [1]

 

"[...] a significant contribution is made by organizations of national minorities, which in most cases have made possible the participation of some members of the ethnic minority at journalism courses but also at languages courses in the country in which the respective language is the official language."

"Associative structures of journalists which are users of a minority language exist only for the Hungarian language press, Romanian Union of Hungarian Journalists (Uniunea Jurnaliştilor Maghiari din România) and recently an association of Romani journalists. In these organizations are discussed aspects related to deontology, priority themes of communities and sometimes are organized courses for journalists." [2]

 

"At university level (undergraduate) financed by the state, Babes-Bolyai University has within the Faculty of Political, Administrative and Communication Sciences a Journalism Department with training in German (9 places) and Hungarian (12 places). There are also special places for minorities at the Journalism Faculties of some public universities, but in these cases the training is realized in Romanian. For example Andrei Saguna University from Constanta allocates a place at the Journalism Faculty for students from the Turkish ethnic group. More universities allocate supplementary places for Roma students." [3]

 

The members of the Administration Councils of the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Society and the Romanian Television Society “ are voted by the Parliament, and one member of each board is nominated by the national minorities’ parliamentary groups. In the same spirit, if regional studios also have programmes in national minority languages, their Directing Committees will have in their composition representatives of the producers of such programmes.” [4]

 

"The programmes produced in Bucharest by the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Society  [SRR] are created by specialized editorial teams, the editorial team of the Hungarian and German programmes is located in the SRR’s headquarters, which produces Hungarian and German programmes which are afterwards adopted by the Târgu-Mureş, Cluj and Timişoara regional radio stations. The editorial team of Hungarian and German programmes weekly creates 380 minutes of Hungarian programmes and 370 minutes of German programmes. Programmes in national minority languages are also produced and broadcasted by Cluj, Constanţa, Iasi, Resita, Târgu-Mureş and Timişoara regional radio stations. In producing these programmes, the editors consult with representatives and minority organizations. There are also collaborations with public stations from Hungary, Slovakia, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia for the common producing of some programmes." [5]

 

"It is relevant to mention [...] the current situation of journalists who produce press materials in minority languages.[...] a small  number of producers of the minority languages programmes are employed by SRTV [Romanian Television Broadcasting Society]. This is due both to the fact that the acceptance of the personnel scheme is made at central level and to the small number of users of some languages. There is a huge difference between the situation of minority languages programmes which were present in the TVR program schedule before 2008, where there are trained employees with working experience, and that of newly introduced programmes with the creation of TVR3. In these cases the programmes are realized by collaborators which are not trained in audiovisual press. So, if we talk about the need for training of human resources from the editorial team, two aspects must be kept in view: the professional developing in the journalistic field and a very good mastering of the respective language." [6]

 

 

 

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Source:

[1] Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center (2009) Report on the implementation of The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in Romania, Chapter on Media, page 6, available at http://www.edrc.ro/docs/docs/carta/Report-Lang-Charter-MM-final-ENG.pdf (20.02.2012.)

[2] Idem. [1] page 20

[3] Idem. [1] page 20-21.

[4] Idem. [1] page 2

[5] Idem. [1] pp. 15-16

[6] Idem. [1] page 19-20

 

External Url http://www.edrc.ro/docs/docs/carta/Report-Lang-Charter-MM-final-ENG.pdf

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There is no study compiling quantitative data, but some information on public discriminatory speech is available.

Qualitative Info

The Romanian equality body, the National Council for Combating Discrimination (NCCD) in its report on the implementation of the race directive, included a chapter on the way discrimination on the ground of ethnicity, race and nationality is being reflected in the media.

The NCCD speaks of situations where people with notoriety have been at the centre of discriminatory incidents and the media consequently had a high interest in the specific topics as well as of the attitude of the media towards specific issues connected to minorities, and mentions that the Roma minority takes the biggest part of the attention.

With regards to the Roma, the report states:

“The endeavors which part of the press has made in view of eliminating or at least diminishing the discriminatory attitudes to which ethnic Roma are being victim have been reduced in their impact precisely because of articles which have promoted existing stereotypes.

In other word, the appeal to tolerance which the written press has made on various accounts has been practically annulled by the presentation of the Roma ethnicity in terms such as ‘thieves’, ‘poor people’, ‘beggars’. We find numerous accounts where the Roma continue to be presented in connection with having perpetrated some crimes (human trafficking, marriages between minors or blackmail). The explanations which journalists offer with regards to the discriminatory attitude towards the Roma ethnicity are limited to underlining the apparent incapacity of the latter to take over and respect elementary social norms.”

The report gives more specific details and examples, and also gives a few examples related to the Hungarian minority, especially in the context of sports events and thus sports media.

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Source:

National Council for Combating Discrimination, Report on the implementation of the race directive in Romania, 2003-2010, p. 98, available at: http://cncd.org.ro/files/file/Raport%20D43_2000_CNCD_final.pdf (Accessed on 14.03.2012)

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Incidents have been recorded, yet no statistics are available

Qualitative Info

Such incidents are sanctioned through law as well as through specific sport disciplinary regulations, yet no clear statistics are available, and neither are there analyses looking at the extent of the phenomenon and its actual sanctioning. Incidents have been recorded, reported and some sanctioned, also by the Romanian equality body – National Council for Combating Discrimination. [1]

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Source:

1.European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, Racism, ethnic discrimination and exclusion of migrants and minorities in sport: A comparative overview of the situation in the European Union, October 2010, p. 34 and p. 43, available at: http://fra.europa.eu/fraWebsite/attachments/Report-racism-sport_EN.pdf (21.02.2012)

 

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Discriminatory incidents are sanctioned through law as well as through specific sport regulations, there are incidents which have been sanctioned in practice, yet no quantitative data is publicly available.

Qualitative Info

According to Law 4/2008 on the prevention and combating of violence on the occasion of competitions and sports games as amended through Law 10/2012:

- Art 10 (1) e) r) (2) b) 2^1 – the organizer of sports competitions or games has the obligations not to allow the use of public communications systems to incite spectators to violence, to destruction or to the denigration of the image of participants to sports competitions and games; to forbid the display within the sports arena of symbols, slogans or texts with an obscene content or which incites to the denigration of the country, to xenophobia national, racial, class or religious hatred, to discrimination of any kind and to violence regardless of the support on which they are displayed. Persons who have such materials on them should not be allowed access to the sports arena, these objects should be seized and the forces maintaining order should be called upon to take the necessary measures. Yet all the obligations under paragraphs 1 and 2 are not obligatory for the organizers of sports competitions with a low degree of risk.

- Art 36 – using racist, fascist or xenophobic symbols in the sports arena, spreading or owning in order to spread such symbols is considered a crime as well as promoting the cult of persons guilty of crimes against peace and humanity or of promoting a fascist, racist or xenophobic ideology through propaganda, done through any means, within the sports arena both punishable in accordance with Government Ordinance 31/2002 forbidding organizations and symbols with a fascist, racist or xenophobic character and the promotion of the cult of persons guilty of crimes against peace and humanity as amended (prison sentence from six months to five years and three months to three years respectively). Those perpetrating such acts are forbidden access to sports competitions or games for a period between one and three years.

Internal sports regulations also exist in Romania, the Romanian Football Federation having probably the most detailed ones. Chapter 54 of the 2011 Disciplinary Regulations is called Racism and reads as follows:

" 1. Anyone who publicly discriminates or denigrates someone else in a defamatory manner on account of race colour, language, religion, sex, ethnic origin or who commits another contemptuous deed of such character, will be suspended for 6 games at all levels, in the case of players and trainers and for four months in the case of officials. In addition, the club to whom the perpetrator belongs shall be sanctioned with having games organized without spectators from two to four seasons and a sports penalty from RON 45,000 to RON 60,000 (approx. EUR 10,225 to 13,636). If it is the case of an official, the penalty will be from RON 65,000 to RON 80,000 (approx. EUR 14,770 to 18,181). The same sanction is applicable in the case where a person has a xenophobic, offensive behaviour or who harasses another person on such grounds.

2. If the spectators display inscriptions containing racist slogans or are guilty of other racist or offensive behaviour in a game, the jurisdictional body will apply a sanction from RON 60,000 to RON 70,000 (EUR 13,636 to 15,900) to the club the respective spectators have supported, the club having to play the following official game without spectators. If the spectators cannot be identified as the supporters of one of the clubs, the host club will be sanctioned correspondingly.

3. Any spectator who is guilty of the deeds shown under paragraphs 1 and 2 above, will be sanctioned with forbidding the access to the stadium for at least two years.

4. According to the circumstances, the disciplinary body can apply also other sanctions to the responsible club, such as: forbidding the organization of games on its own stadium from two to ten games, loosing the game through forfeit, losing 2-6 points or the exclusion from the competitions.

5. Any type of propaganda of extremist ideologies is forbidden before, during and after the games, under sanctions foreseen under paragraphs 1 and 2 above.

6. The sanctions applied on the basis of this article can be reduced or even annulled if the respective player or club prove that there has been no guilt or a minimal guilt in the deed or if other serious reasons justify it, such as, in particular, the deeds which have been intentionally provoked in order to cause the sanctioning of the player or the club according to this article. The procedure of evaluating attenuating circumstances will be the one foreseen in these regulations. " [1]

It difficult to imagine what attenuating circumstances might justify the kind of behaviour sanctioned in this article. Paragraph 6 might actually open a way to impunity.

Cases registered and sanctions applied either by the Romanian Football Federation or the Romanian Equality Body (National Council for Combating Discrimination) have been recorded, yet, not up to date statistics are available. An EU Agency for Fundamental Rights reporting on data for Romania up to 2008 , stated that sanctions are not applied consistently and that maximum fines are not applied. [2]

No publicly available data could be identified with regards to the implementation of Law 4/2008.

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Sources:

1. Romanian Football Federation, Disciplinary Regulations 2011, available at: http://www.frf.ro/regulamente (21.02.2012)

2. European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, Racism, ethnic discrimination and exclusion of migrants and minorities in sport: A comparative overview of the situation in the European Union, October 2010, p. 34 and p. 43, available at: http://fra.europa.eu/fraWebsite/attachments/Report-racism-sport_EN.pdf (21.02.2012)

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