Italy One of Five ‘Dismantlers’ Causing ‘Democratic Recession’ in Europe, Report Says

THE GUARDIAN: Civil liberties report warns that Italy along with Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania and Slovakia intentionally undermining rule of law ‘in nearly all aspects’

Italy’s government has profoundly undermined the rule of law with changes to the judiciary and showed “heavy intolerance to media criticism”, in an emblematic example of Europe’s deepening “democratic recession”, a coalition of civil liberties groups has said.

A report by the Civil Liberties Union for Europe (Liberties) said Italy was one of five “dismantlers” – along with Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania and Slovakia – that “intentionally undermine the rule of law in nearly all aspects”. » | Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Monday, March 17, 2025

Giorgia Meloni? One word comes to mind: hypocrisy. – © Mark Alexander

In Romania, the Far Right Has Unleashed a Tide of Hate and Resurrected Our Fascist Ghosts

THE GUARDIAN: Economic uncertainty and polarisation are a potent cocktail that extremist politicians such as Cǎlin Georgescu thrive on

In a forest outside Bucharest, a woman cradled her infant in one arm while raising the other in a Nazi salute. She was one of about 70 people who gathered on 30 November last year to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Corneliu Zelea Codreanu, a leader of Romania’s interwar fascist Legionary Movement and head of its paramilitary wing, the Iron Guard.

Codreanu and his ally, Ion Antonescu – Romania’s virulently antisemitic wartime dictator – were central figures in the country’s Holocaust history. Codreanu was assassinated in 1938 and Antonescu was executed as a war criminal in 1946.

Yet, in today’s Romania, their legacy is being posthumously resurrected as part of the same nationalist pride movement that has driven the meteoric rise of far-right pro-Russia candidate Cǎlin Georgescu. » | Andrei Popoviciu | Tuesday, March 11, 2025

Rick Steves’ Europe: Romania

Sep 29, 2017 | Rick Steves' Europe Travel Guide © 2016 | We'll tour Romania's vibrant capital, Bucharest, with its "Little Paris of the East" architecture and lingering reminders of a brutal communist dictator. Then we'll head into Transylvania, where we'll visit fortified churches, cobbled merchant towns like Sighișoara, and castles made famous by an imported German king and the real-life Dracula. Finally we'll explore Maramureș, where everyday life still feels like an open-air folk museum.

Ceaușescu - Corrupt Dictator of Communist Romania | Documentary

Jan 3, 2025

Romania Court Orders Rerun of Presidential Election First Round | BBC News

Dec 6, 2024 | Romania's constitutional court has annulled the result of the first round of voting in the presidential election, meaning the process will be restarted from scratch.

The first round was won by Calin Georgescu, an almost unknown far-right Nato-sceptic who has previously praised Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The court's decision comes after intelligence documents were declassified, suggesting Georgescu benefitted from a mass influence operation – conducted from abroad – to interfere with the result of the vote.

Far-right Candidate Takes Shock Lead in Romania Presidential Election | BBC News

Nov 25, 2024 | A far-right, pro-Russia candidate has taken a surprise lead in the first round of Romania's presidential election. With more than 99% of votes counted, ultranationalist Calin Georgescu was on 23%, followed by centre-right candidate Elena Lasconi of the Save Romania Union and populist social democrat Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, the pre-election favourite.

The strong showing of Georgescu, who has no party of his own and campaigned largely on the social media platform TikTok, came as the biggest surprise of the election. The latest count suggests Lasconi is narrowly ahead of Ciolacu by around 2,000 votes and will face Georgescu in a final run-off for the presidency on 8 December.

Andrew Tate Charged with Rape and Human Trafficking

Controversial influencer Andrew Tate has been charged in Romania with rape, human trafficking and forming an organised crime group to sexually exploit women.

Read the BBC article here.

Andrew Tate, influenceur masculiniste, mis en examen pour trafic d’êtres humains et viols : Arrêté à la fin de décembre en Roumanie, où il est assigné à résidence avec son frère, Andrew Tate est aussi accusé de violences sexuelles au Royaume-Uni. »

King Charles III's Secret Love Affair... with Another Country | The New Statesman

May 5, 2023 | For decades the King has been making private visits to a tiny village in Transylvania, Romania. This secret "affair of the soul" reveals much about what the King really believes - and what kind of a king he will be. …

Beyond the Wall: Part 1 - The Rise of Germany's Far Right; Part 2: From Germany to Bulgaria, What Happened to Hope? | People & Power

A Long Fight for Gay Rights in Romania

Nov 18, 2019 • This video is about the fight for gay rights in Romania, produced by Luis Jachmann

Being Gay in Romania | Bucharest

Mar 4, 2019 • In Romania, until 2001, you could be locked up in prison simply for being gay. And yet, Florin Buhuceanu kept fighting for equal rights no matter the danger he was putting himself in.

In Romania, Hard-Hit by Covid, Doctors Fight Vaccine Refusal

THE NEW YORK TIMES: An anti-vaccine clarion call by leading religious figures, echoed by prominent politicians and social media, helps explain why Romania now has the world’s highest Covid death rate.

The emergency unit of Bucharest University Hospital. Short of beds, the hospital erected a big treatment tent in the parking lot and turned the lobby into a new Covid ward. | Cristian Movila for The New York Times
COPACENI, Romania — As a new wave of the coronavirus pandemic crashed over Eastern Europe last month, devastating unvaccinated populations, an Orthodox Church bishop in southern Romania offered solace to his flock: “Don’t be fooled by what you see on TV — don’t be scared of Covid.”

Most important, Bishop Ambrose of Giurgiu told worshipers in this small Romanian town on Oct. 14, “don’t rush to get vaccinated.”

The bishop is now under criminal investigation by the police for spreading dangerous disinformation, but his anti-vaccine clarion call, echoed by prominent politicians, influential voices on the internet and many others, helps explain why Romania has in recent weeks reported the world’s highest per capita death rate from Covid-19.

On Tuesday, nearly 600 Romanians died, the most during the pandemic. The country’s death rate relative to population is almost seven times as high as the United States’, and almost 17 times as high as Germany’s. » | Andrew Higgins | Monday, November 8, 2021

How to Contain the Spread of Covid amid Vaccine Scepticism in Romania? | Covid-19 Special

Oct 22, 2021 • Nearly 400 Romanians are dying from the virus every day. The health system is collapsing. Ambulances are queuing outside hospitals, already at capacity. Some Covid patients are being transferred to neighboring Hungary for treatment. Romania has one of the highest Covid-19 death rates in the world. What will it take to stop the spread of the virus in a country where thousands are against containment measures, including vaccinations?

Holocaust – Witness: Paula Gris

Holocaust survivor Paula Gris is interviewed on Shalom TV's original series commemorating the Six Million. An educator at the Breman Jewish Heritage Museum in Atlanta, Ms. Gris has been engaged in teaching children and adults since 1981.

Catalan Companies Are Leaving Catalonia and Other World Stories | DW Documentary

Catalan companies are leaving Catalonia because of uncertainty; Famine as a weapon in South Sudan; Conservative party MP's in Germany are pushing for a quota; Fears of a new refugee route to Romania.

Why Is Romania Suddenly in Turmoil? - Inside Story

Around the world tens of millions of people can only dream of an income of $48,000.

Romania's Boiling Point: Outrage over Decree to Loosen Corruption Laws (Part 1 & 2)

Romania: Massive Protests Continue Over Government Corruption Decree

Romania Elections: Leftists Voted Back into Power

Romania's Social Democrats have been voted back into power a year after being driven out by protests over accusations of corruption and lack of accountability.

'Only in the Chimney': Anti-Semitic Carol Causes Uproar in Romania

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Advocacy groups are incensed after a Romanian government-owned channel broadcast a Christmas song glorifying the Holocaust and calling for Jews to be burned. The channel is blaming a local group for the performance.

Outrage has erupted among advocacy groups in Romania after the state channel TVR broadcast an anti-Semitic Christmas song calling for Jews to be burned in a chimney. According to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), the song ran on a Dec. 5 broadcast by the rural-targeted TVR3 channel.

In the broadcast, a choir was shown singing a Christmas song that indirectly glorifies the Holocaust. The song, which rhymes and uses the word "jidovi," a pejorative word for a Jew, includes the lyrics, "only in the chimney as smoke, this is what the 'jidov' is good for."

On Wednesday, Romania's Foreign Minister Titus Corlatean harshly condemned the event and called on the public prosecutor's office and parliament to bring those responsible to justice. Israel's embassy said it was "concerned" about the broadcast. » | tmr -- with wires and reporting by Keno Verseck | Thursday, December 12, 2013