At the urging of Educational Minister Ecaterina Andronescu, the Educational Committee of the Chamber of Deputies rejected an amendment to the Law on Accreditation of Institutions of Higher Education submitted on February 21 by Anghel Stanciu, Greater Rumania Party Deputy and Chairman of the Educational Committee. Deputies of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania, the ruling Social Democratic Party, and representatives of the Croatian and the Greek minorities voted against the bill, whereas deputies of the Greater Rumania Party and the Democratic Party supported the motion. Ecaterina Andreescu argued that the Ministry of Education plans to issue a comprehensive bill to remedy the deficiencies of the current accreditation law, including its failure to address the question of language of instruction at newly established universities. If adopted, the bill would have disproportionately affected Hungarian-language higher education in Rumania making accreditation of the Private Hungarian University in Transylvania conditional on including a Rumanian-language section [see report of February 21]. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 1, 2001 and Bihari Napló (Oradea/Nagyvárad), Mar. 1, 2001]

Razvan Teodorescu, Minister for Cultural and Religious Affairs, announced that a bill on preserving the Rumanian language would be submitted to parliament this April. Teodorescu declined to disclose details about the bill under preparation, but indicated the French Language Law as a model. The French Language Law adopted in 1994 mandates the use of the state language in connection with official communiqués and documents, meetings, councils and conferences. A similar bill was submitted three years ago by Rumanian Social Democratic Party Senator George Pruteanu, but was rejected following protest by the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR), which pointed out that the bill would make the use of Rumanian mandatory at DAHR council meetings and congresses as well. The bill also undermines the provisions of the recent Bill on Public Administration [see report of January 18], which, among others, allows minority languages to be used in city council meetings where the proportion of councilors belonging to a given minority exceeds 33 percent. [MTI—Hungarian Telegraph Agency (Budapest), Feb. 23, 2001]

Anghel Stanciu, Greater Rumania Party Deputy and Chairman of the Educational Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, submitted an amendment to the Law on Accreditation of Institutions of Higher Education. Accordingly, newly established universities would be accredited only if they include at least one Rumanian-language section in their future structure. This provision would also apply to affiliated programs of universities, such as entirely Hungarian-language colleges affiliated with the Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj/Kolozsvár, namely the Elek Benedek Teachers’ Training College in Targu Secuiesc/Székelyudvarhely, the Gábor Bethlen Teachers’ Training College in Aiud/Nagyenyed and similar institutions in Oradea/Nagyvárad and Covasna/Kovászna. Clearly aimed at thwarting the accreditation process of the Private Hungarian University in Transylvania [see reports of January 9, 12 and 19], debate of the bill was postponed due to the lack of a quorum as members from the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR), the governing Rumanian Social Democratic Party, and national minority parties walked out in protest. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 22, 2001 and Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Feb.28, 2001]

The Senate rejected a no-confidence motion against the government initiated February12 by the nationalist Greater Rumania Party that also included a demand to repeal the Bill on Public Administration recently passed by the Chamber of Deputies. The Bill provides minority-language rights in public administration in the case of 20 percent or more minority-inhabited localities [see report of January 18]. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 21, 2001]

James Rosapepe, U.S. Ambassador to Rumania cancelled his trip to Cluj/Kolozsvár on account of a protest rally organized by the ultra-nationalist Mayor of the city, Gheorghe Funar. Ambassador Rosapepe was to present a five-star award to the city for its progress in removing bureaucratic obstacles faced by small enterprises, but he decided instead to go to Iasi/Jászvásár, another city involved in the program. Mayor Funar had announced a mass rally against the recently adopted Bill on Public Administration for the same day [see report of February 15]. Although 100,000 were expected, only 4,000 people actually showed for the demonstration that was held on Avram Iancu Square. Participants chanted slogans against the Public Administration Bill newly adopted by the Chamber of Deputies, which allows the use of minority languages in public administration where localities are at minimum 20 percent minority-inhabited [see report of January 18]. The meeting was attended by 50 officials of the extremist Greater Rumania Party (GRP), including GRP President Corneliu Vadim Tudor, who gave an inflammatory speech against the “terrorist organization” of Hungarians [the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR)], pointing out that “Hungarian chauvinism can be tackled only by violent measures.” [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 17, 2001; Buletin Informativ, Embassy of the United States of America (Bucharest), Feb. 16, 2001; MTI—Hungarian Telegraph Agency (Budapest), Feb. 16, 2001 and BBC Monitoring Service (United Kingdom), Feb. 16, 2001]

U.S. Ambassador to Rumania James Rosapepe will visit major Transylvanian city of Cluj/Kolozsvár on February 17 in the morning, instead of 3.30 p.m., as formerly planned, disclosed Tom Mesa, spokesman for the Embassy. Initially, Ambassador Rosapepe intended to present a five-star award to Cluj for its participation in a program sponsored by the U.S. Embassy, in a public ceremony on Avram Iancu Square. The ceremony would have taken place in the same venue, a half hour before a protest organized by the ultra-nationalist mayor of Cluj, Gheorghe Funar, against the Bill on Public Administration recently adopted by the Chamber of Deputies [see report of January 18]. According to the new schedule, the award—aimed at promoting investment in Rumania—will be presented in the Club of the Local Chamber of Industry and Commerce the same day but in the morning. Mayor Funar called for a demonstration in protest against the Bill as it would provide native-language rights in public administration for minorities in settlements where their proportion of the population exceeds 20 percent, as is the case in Cluj. Referring to a 1991 local council resolution, Vasile Soporan, Cluj County Prefect, pointed out previously that staging mass rallies on Avram Iancu square is illegal since military buildings are located in the immediate vicinity. On February 12, however, Mayor Funar arbitrarily issued a decree overriding the one cited by Soporan. [Krónika (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 16, 2001 and Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 14, 2001]

The Architectural Inspectorate fined Gheorghe Funar, Mayor of Cluj/Kolozsvár, for placing billboards in the center of the city which displayed certain articles from the Rumanian Constitution [see report of February 12]. A fine of 40 million Leis ($1,500) was meted out for the illegal act, since located in the historical center of Cluj, placement of the signs should have been authorized by the Committee for the Protection of Historical Monuments. The signs displayed extracts from those constitutional articles which emphasis that Rumanian is the only official language in the country. Their placement came in response to the Bill on Public Administration recently adopted by the Chamber of Deputies [see report of January 18] providing minority-language rights in public administration in localities 20 percent or more minority inhabited [see report of January 18]. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 14, 2001]

Sándor Tonk, head of the Sapientia Foundation entrusted with laying the groundwork for the Hungarian Private University in Transylvania Foundation told the Hungarian news agency MTI that since its February 2000 inception the Foundation has developed the administrative and infrastructure background necessary to start the process of accreditation. Sándor Tonk disclosed that the Foundation is preparing to launch the institution simultaneously in four localities. Instruction has already begun at the Partium Christian University in Oradea/Nagyvárad, which will ultimately be integrated into the structure of the Hungarian Private University. The accreditation committee visited the Miercurea Ciuc/Csíkszereda division in January [see reports of January 9 and 12], but their decision is still pending. In Targu Mures/Marosvásárhely instruction in information sciences will commence, while in Cluj/Kolozsvár the emphasis will be on postgraduate studies. The Foundation has recently launched two scholarship programs for young scholars and doctoral candidates in order to cover the long-term need for qualified professionals in the university’s teaching staff [see report of February 12]. [MTI—Hungarian Telegraph Agency (Budapest), February 14, 2001]

The Hungarian-language weekly Heti Új Szó of Timisoara/Temesvár is forced to leave its editorial offices in the city’s Hungarian House, announced editor-in-chief János Graur. Its publisher—Reflex Ltd—lost a lawsuit against the building’s current owner—Timpress—which is demanding exorbitant rent. Other local Hungarian minority organizations—such as the Timis/Temes County branch of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania, the Hungarian Youth Organization in Timisoara and the Hungarian Women’s Union—await the same fate. Although the Hungarian House was among 17 illegally confiscated minority properties to be returned to the rightful owners in a July 1998 governmental decree, on April 6, 2000, the Constitutional Court ruled that the decree was unconstitutional when it came to this specific building. The court's argument was that since the building was only partially state-owned at the time the decree was issued, the government had no right to mandate the return of a property not fully in its possession. Consequently, the building remains in the hands of the Timpress Company, headed by Iosif Constantin Dragan, a well-known Western supporter of former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, and financial backer of the Iron Guard's fascist publications. [Krónika (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 13, 2001 and Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Feb. 15, 2001]

Billboards containing extracts from the Rumanian Constitution were displayed in various locations throughout Cluj/Kolozsvár. The selected articles (Art. 13, 16 and 51) emphasize the official status of the Rumanian language in Rumania and the universal application of the law. The move is widely seen as a provocation by the city’s ultra-nationalist mayor, Gheorghe Funar, targeting the Hungarian community. It came on the heels of the Bill on Public Administration recently adopted by one house of the Rumanian Parliament, the Chamber of Deputies [see report of January 18], which provides minority-language rights in public administration in localities 20 percent or more minority inhabited [see report of January 18]. Ethnic Hungarian Deputy Mayor János Boros said that the local council would demand an explanation from Mayor Funar since no money from the city budget was allocated for this purpose. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 12, 2001]

In an interview with the Hungarian-language daily Krónika, Vilmos Táncos, Vice-President of the Sapientia Foundation entrusted with establishing the Private Hungarian University in Transylvania [see report of January 13, 2000] pointed out that the major problem the future university will face is the lack of qualified professors. According to the Law on Accreditation of Institutions of Higher Education, a strict number of professors and lecturers are required to accredit an institution of higher education. To fill the void in Hungarian-language higher education, the Sapientia Foundation has launched two scholarship programs for doctoral candidates and young scholars and research groups, stipulating that the beneficiaries will take part in the educational and scientific work of the future university, disclosed Táncos. [Krónika (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 12, 2001]

60 ethnic Hungarian Csángó children are improving their native language knowledge in unofficial classes held in private homes in Pustiana/Pusztina, a Csángó Hungarian-inhabited locality in Bacau/Bákó County. Similar instruction was already launched in the Cleja/Klézse Community Center in September 2000, where 60 children and 15 adults study Hungarian literature, history and computer science. Such measures have been necessary as the Bacau County School Board refuses to establish Hungarian-language classes in local schools despite several requests from parents and Csángó organizations [see reports of September 14 and 25, 2000]. [HTMH Observer (Budapest), Feb. 14, 2001]

The National Committee for the Study of Securitate Archives (CNSAS) unanimously found that Bishop László Tőkés, Honorary President of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania, had not collaborated with the Securitate, the Rumanian secret service under communism. Following accusations in the press, Bishop Tőkés himself requested an examination of his Securitate files. Bishop Tőkés, whose resistance against dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was the spark that set off the Rumanian revolution, previously filed libel charges against Allison Mutler, journalist for the Associated Press, who in an 1998 article reported that Tőkés had admitted to cooperating with the Securitate. That case is still pending. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 10, 2001]

In an interview with the Rumanian News Agency Mediafax, Constantin Buchet, member of the National Committee for the Study of Securitate Archives (CNSAS), admitted that CNSAS had been mistaken regarding Lajos Rákóczi, a former Parliamentary Deputy from the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR). A few days before the November 2000 parliamentary elections, CNSAS released information that Rákóczi had signed a collaboration agreement with the Securitate, former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu’s dreaded secret police. After he lodged an appeal, the CNSAS established that Rakóczi’s name had been inadvertently added to the list of Securitate collaborators but the Committee had failed to publicize this error. Rákóczi, who was a DAHR Deputy for 8 years, held a press conference in Oradea/Nagyvárad on February 9 stating that DAHR lost approximately 16,000 votes in Bihor/Bihar county as a result of this oversight. The Rumanian press pointed out that among all political parties in Rumania, DAHR is the only one that dismisses its officials for former secret police collaboration. [Bihari Napló (Oradea/Nagyvárad), Feb. 10, 2001 and MTI—Hungarian Telegraph Agency (Budapest), Feb. 11, 2001]

Rumanian Constitutional Court Judge Gábor Kozsokár told Krónika that the body rejected the objection lodged by the extremist Greater Rumania Party against Law on Restitution of Private Property adopted January 18. The Law, drafted by the former government coalition, mandates the restitution of properties illegally confiscated between 1945 and 1989 from individuals [see report of January 16]. [Krónika (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 8, 2001]

The National Committee for Academic Evaluation and Accreditation (CNEAA) postponed the decision regarding the accreditation of the Hungarian Private University in Transylvania [see report of January 13, 2000] since the legal committee of the CNEAA had not drafted a report on the issue yet. Confusion concerning the legal background of the accreditation is caused by the failure of the current Accreditation Law to address the question of the language of instruction in newly established universities. [see reports of January 12]. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Feb.7, 2001]

The mayors of four major cities (Ioan Ghise: Brasov/Brassó, Gheorghe Funar: Cluj/Kolozsvár, Petru Filip: Oradea/Nagyvárad, Constantin Simirad: Iasi) and representatives from four others (Deva/Déva, Timisoara/Temesvár, Ploiesti and Craiova)—most having significant minority populations—issued a statement protesting two provision of the Bill on Public Administration recently adopted by the Chamber of Deputies [see report of January 18] of the Parliament, namely, the temporary suspension of mayors from their posts if criminal proceedings are launched against them, and the use of minority languages in administrative proceedings in localities 20 percent or more minority inhabited. Ethnic German Mayor of Sibiu/Szeben Klaus-Verner Johannis left the Brasov meeting where the statement was drafted after declining to sign it. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Feb.6, 2001 and Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 6, 2001]

Once the Bill on Public Administration [see report of January 16] is adopted, localities that are at minimum 20 percent minority inhabited will be allowed to post bilingual signs, said Dénes Seres, Rumanian Senator of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania. In Salaj/Szilágy County, for example, 95 percent of the eligible local councils (a total of 37 villages) posted them in 1997 when a government decree—subsequently overturned by the Constitutional Court—was enacted. to this effect. At issue are the remaining four localities (which include the county seat Zalau/Zilah. and Simleu Silvaniei/Szilágysomlyó), controversial in nature, since the census figures indicated only a 19.6 percent Hungarian population since predominately Rumanian-inhabited villages were merged with the municipalities. The Cluj/Kolozsvár based daily Szabadság has reported that bilingual signs have disappeared from the confines of several villages in Salaj County. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Feb. 2, 2001]