MINELRES: Romania: Bulletin DIVERS on Ethnic Minorities no. 36 (232) / October 9, 2006

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Divers Bulletin no. 36 (232) / October 9, 2006

News

APPEAL IN "HADARENI" CASE, POSTPONED 
JEWISH CEMETERIES UNDERGO DIFFICULT SITUATION 
POLICEMEN TRAINED TO WORK IN MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITIES 
YOM KIPPUR DAY 
MARCH TO FIGHT POLICE ABUSE IN ETHNIC ROMA COMMUNITIES 
"EUROPEAN ETHNIC ROMA" - NEW SHOW WITH AND ABOUT ETHNIC ROMA 
BRIEFING AND ADVISORY CENTER FOR ETHNIC ROMA 
---------------------------------------------------------------

News

APPEAL IN "HADARENI" CASE, POSTPONED 
TIRGU MURES - Mures Court delayed Tuesday, October 3, the trying of the
appeal in "Hadareni" case, filed by the ethic Roma people in the
Mures-based village, against a decision of Ludus Court, which they claim
it was an injustice. The appealed decision annulled the reports on
impounding the goods of Romanians in the village, who were sentenced by
the internal courts for setting on fire 14 houses of ethnic Roma people
during the violent conflict in September 1993. Mures Court delayed the
trial at the request of both parties, as Romanians asked for more time
to get a lawyer and the lawyer of the ethnic Roma people, Meda Grama,
asked for more time to connect the two appealed civil files, which
practically have the same object. The court will rule on October 10 on
the opportunity of connecting the two files. We should mention that
Ludus Court, as court of first instance, admitted the appeal related to
the impoundment, filed by the Romanians in Hadareni and annulled the
reports on impounding their goods carried out on August 10 2005, by
executor Eugen Huruba. The executor's action was based on a decision of
Tirgu Mures Court of Appeals in February 2004, confirmed in May 2005 by
the High Court of Cassation and Justice (Decision no. 1.420/2005).
According to this, the plaintiffs, namely the ethnic Roma people, were
granted material damages totaling ROL1.3 billion and moral damages
totaling ROL580 million, and the payment of damages was to be carried
out jointly by the 11 defendants. During the conflict on September
20-21, 1993, besides the 14 houses set on fire, four persons were also
killed, out of which one Romanian and three ethnic Roma people. Although
part of the houses were rebuilt, and five persons were sentenced to
prison for aggravated murder, 25 ethnic Roma people in Hadareni
addressed the European Court of Human Rights. On July 5, 2005, a first
decision of ECHR in "Hadareni" case stipulated the amiably solving of
the conflict involving 18 persons, who were due to receive aggregate
compensations of EUR262,000 from Romania. The second ECHR decision
passed on July 12, 2005, grants the seven ethnic Romas who have not
accepted the decision of the Romanian government on amiably solving the
conflict, sums ranging between EUR11,000 and EUR95,000, as moral and
material damages. The court in Ludus took into account the two ECHR
decisions on July 5 and July 12, 2005 in "Hadareni" case, which
stipulate the ethnic Roma gave up any material claims to Romania and the
ethnic Roma in Hadareni. Romania?s Ministry of Foreign Affairs submitted
an address to Chetani and Mures city hall giving information on the
decisions of the European Court for Human Rights in Strasbourg, in this
case. The address stipulated the final solving of the case, including
the civil claims to internal courts. 
Author: DIVERS


JEWISH CEMETERIES UNDERGO DIFFICULT SITUATION 
BUCHAREST - Some 98 synagogues and 802 Jewish cemeteries exist in
Romania. Few of the 800,000 Jews living once in Romania remained to take
care of cemeteries. Aurel Vainer, president with Federation of Jewish
Communities in Romania, or FCER, told Radio Romania these cemeteries are
"part of the cultural of Jew inheritance in Romania, being under the
exclusive patrimony of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania.
The legislation in force stipulate no Jewish cemetery is set up without
someone designated to take care of it." Vainer also said the
Federation?s financial input is modest. ?We could not provide a guardian
for each cemetery, reason for which they are under the Federation?s
ownership with someone taking care of them in a form or another. People
who left the country tens years ago and visit the cemeteries are
dissatisfied with the bad condition of these cemeteries. Nobody can deny
this fact. FCER chairman denied the information based on which
cemeteries were sold. "This is a lie. No Jewish cemetery was sold. Small
areas of the cemetery were sold, but these areas underwent a special
condition. They had almost nothing in common with the existent
cemetery," also said Aurel Vainer. He also said ?there is a method to
trace eventual relics. I granted some RON2 billion from 2006?s budget to
repair urgent things, such as broken fences. The Federation has no
financial resources for this program of new cemeteries. We need some $20
or 30 million to set them up. We do not count on the financial promise
of the Romanian state,? said the chairman with the Federation of Jewish
Communities in Romania. 
Author: DIVERS


POLICEMEN TRAINED TO WORK IN MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITIES 
CLUJ-NAPOCA - Center of Resources for Ethno-Cultural Diversity, or CRDE,
and General Inspectorate of Romanian Police - Institute to Research and
Prevent Crime, developed during October 2005 - September 2006 the
project "Promotion of a good governing in multicultural communities.
Access and participation of ethnic minorities to public life." The
program was supported by the European Union through PHARE programme ?
Civil Society and had a budget of EUR36.870. It aimed to promote a good
governing of the multi-ethnic communities and the improvement of the
minorities? access to public life. Some 63 police officers within the
structures of analysis and crime prevention, criminal and public order
investigations ? proximity police department with counties Arges, Bacau,
Botosani, Braila, Bucharest, Cluj, Constanta, Galati, Giurgiu, Gorj,
Ialomita, Iasi, Ilfov, Maramures, Mehedinti, Mures, Neamt, Olt, Prahova,
Teleorman, Vaslui, and Vrancea, as well as 8 pupils with Police Agents
school ?Septimiu Muresan? in Cluj-Napoca took part in training
activities on promoting the principles of a good governing in the
communities they are part of. Each participant benefited from three-day
training, debating issues such as communication in multi-ethnic
communities, management of intercultural conflict, ethno-demographic and
cultural matters of ethnic Roma communities in Romania, role of media in
causing and preventing conflicts. The participants had the chance to
develop a strategy on preventing discrimination and improving the
relationship of the local communitarian police. Other four meetings took
place within the project in Cazanesti, Ialomita county,
Caciulata-Calimanesti, Valcea county, in Panciu, Vrancea county, and
Cugir, Alba county, on identifying the problems faced by the members of
the communities and on finding solutions to these problems. An aggregate
of 280 persons of over 48 communes with joint ethnic population
throughout counties Alba, Arges, Bihor, Brasov, Buzau, Calarasi, Cluj,
Constanta, Covasna, Gorj, Ialomita, Iasi, Sibiu, Vaslui, Vilcea, Vrancea
attended the debates. A briefing campaign for high-school pupils who
belong to ethnic minorities, aiming to encourage the youngsters to
choose a career in the police is also part of this project. The project
continues a previous collaboration between the two partners, which
included a similar training session during 2003 and 2004 for policemen
in the other geographic areas countrywide. Based on the experience
accumulated through this project as well as by police actions in ethnic
Roma communities, this issue should be given further attention such as:
? advocacy activities along the leadership structures of the Romanian
Police so that the issue of a good governing in multi-ethnic communities
becomes a systematic concern, institutionally undertaken; ? continuation
of briefing campaigns among youngsters who belong to ethnic minorities
as regards the academic opportunities and career in Romanian Police to
increase the number of representatives among police structures; ?
monitoring cases of police intervention in multi-ethnic communities,
especially the ethnic Roma ones and those liable to human rights
infringement; ? continuation of activities to enable the local
communication of the multi-ethnic community to solve problems and to
create a trustworthy and knowledge framework. 
Author: DIVERS


YOM KIPPUR DAY
BUCHAREST - Jews in Romania celebrated Yom Kippur Day on October 2,
Radio Romania broadcast station reported. This was the holiest day of
the year for Jew believers, a day of forgiveness, a day of recollection,
a day God listens to Jews prays, and gets closer to His people. Aurel
Vainer, president with Federation of Romanian Community in Romania, ?in
mosaic religion, the most important holidays are those originating a new
year. We have entered in the New Year 5767. The Jews pray for the year
to come to be a good, healthy, happy, peaceful, and fruitful year. The
Rosh Hashana days focus all the attention on God, who starts an analysis
to decide on the year to come. From the day one to day ten, namely the
Yom Kippur Day, day of forgiveness ? "yom" means day in Jewish, "kippur"
means forgiveness. This is a sort of last battle to recognize all our
sins, all things against Jewish religion and we ask God for forgiveness.
This day is exclusively dedicated to a direct meeting with God, through
the synagogue and the temple. The Jews meet God in Coral Temple in
Bucharest. The eve of Yom Kippur or om Kippur starts with a prayer
called Kol Nidre, involving the entire community next to the singer and
the chorus. ?Before coming to neila, to the synagogue, the Jews fast,
for Yom Kippur to go at the synagogue without eating, drinking; the
believers stay some 10 or 12 hours in the synagogue and listen to a
special prayer. 
Author: DIVERS


MARCH TO FIGHT POLICE ABUSE IN ETHNIC ROMA COMMUNITIES 
BUCHAREST - Ethnic Roma Center for Social Intervention and Studies, or
Romani C.R.I.S.S. and the Ethnic Roma Center "AMARE RROMENTZA", member
of the Ethnic Roma Civic Alliance, started a protest on October 9, hour
11, against police abuses in the ethnic Roma communities. The protest
was organized in the light of the last police and DIAS forces abuse in
the Reghin ethnic Roma community, which caused over 30 victims. The
protest will celebrate the Day of Holocaust, by commemorating the ethnic
Roma victims of Deportation to Transdniester. The protest will take
place on route Victoriei Avenue (Ministry of Administration and of the
Interior) ? Avenue Regina Elisabeta ? Square Mihail Kogalniceanu, where
people will stop for some 30 minutes for documents-reading (a statement
on Reghin case and another on the Holocaust) followed by a press
conference. 
Author: DIVERS
summary

"EUROPEAN ETHNIC ROMA" - NEW SHOW WITH AND ABOUT ETHNIC ROMA 
BUCHAREST ? Press Monitoring Agency, or AMP and TVR1 scheduled a show on
the ethnic Roma minority in Romania. "Rom European" is broadcasted on
Sunday, at 11 o'clock and debates ethnic Roma issues allover Romania,
answering questions such as: Who are ethnic Romas? Why are they
different from the majority? Why do they make trouble? Why people say
they make trouble? What happens with discrimination? Is discrimination
fair? Is it worth? What is really happening? The show?s host Ciprian
Necula, project coordinator with AMP and expert in ethnic Roma problems,
says the show's title is not inspired, and suggested Romania's upcoming
accession to the European Union: "We prove that all the Government did
and said means nothing to the Europeans. Ethnic Roma to join the EU
since January 1 are living in the third world, and the EU will have its
share of third world people. ?Necula managed to convince a television
about the necessity to seriously approach ethnic Roma issue and ?not
through culturally-perverted shows at other TV stations?. Each edition
of the shows deals with a certain problem and gives answers to viewers?
questions. Rom European presents this ethnic group and provides a new
perspective upon people we got used to call ethnic Roma. The shows
debates issues such as the civil status of ethnic Roma, school
segregation, marriage before legal age, ethnic Roma customs, race
discrimination in Romania, etc. Despite of the fact the shows have few
guests invited, experts in ethnic Roma issue and authorities will be
invited. ?We avoid slogans and making politics,? Necula said, stressing
upon his interest in fighting structural prejudice and to transform the
show ?in a barometer for public policies on ethnic Roma in Romania?.
Necula stressed upon the fact this is not a new idea, as ethnic Romas
have many shows dealing with their problems in other countries.
Moreover, ?the show is a personal project since we entered the ethnic
Roma movement,? Necula said. The show aims to fight prejudice in the
mainstream media by presenting realities longtime disregarded by
mainstream journalists. Moreover, the show was financed by Open Society
Institute and Mihai Gheorghiu with Emotion Films, and executive producer
of the show. TVR is the best media channel for such a show, the public
station with the best rating and the best coverage. "The public station
has not broadcasted shows on ethnic Roma, about the ethnic Roma...
proportionally with the number of ethnic Romas in Romania. TVR enables
the ethnic Roma to hold the people in charge responsible for their
precious status," Necula said. 
Author: DIVERS


BRIEFING AND ADVISORY CENTER FOR ETHNIC ROMA 
BUCHAREST - The official opening of the first ?Briefing and Advisory
Center for Ethnic Roma? takes place Thursday, October 5, within the
General School no. 30 in Bucharest. The project is developed by
Association of Ethnic Roma Women in Romania, in partnership with the
city hall of sector 2 Bucharest. 
Author: DIVERS


DIVERS - News bulletin about ethnic minorities living in Romania is
edited every week by Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, with the
financial support of King Baudouin Foundation, Belgium and Ethnocultural
Diversity Resource Center. Partial or full reproduction of the
information contained in DIVERS is allowed only if the source is
mentioned. You can send messages and suggestions regarding the content
of DIVERS bulletin at Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, at the
e-mail address:
marian@birn.eu.com

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