March 31, 1999

Extremists in Rumania are exploiting the Kosovo crisis to draw unfounded parallels between the situation in that province and Transylvania. Radu C. Bot, for example, wrote in the March 30 and 31 issues of Monitorul de Cluj that one of Rumania’s "strategic" disadvantages is that "the problem of Hungarians in Transylvania exists" who "create conflict over Transylvania." Bot concludes that the Yugoslav situation s a "dangerous precedent" for Rumania. Formerly Christian Peasant Party and virulently anti native-language education Senator George Pruteanu expressed his "anxiety" in Cronica Romana that the Kosovo conflict could have negative ramifications on Rumania. "We shouldn’t be surprised," said the Senator, "if the Hungarians in Harghita/Hargita and Covasna/Kovászna Counties started to march against Bucharest like the miners . . . and so we would wake up to NATO planes over our heads." [News Mirror—DAHR MTI Press Service (Bucharest), Mar. 31 and Apr. 1, 1999]

March 30, 1999

A meeting of the Minority Council, representing 17 ethnic groups in Rumania, decided to introduce an amendment to the election law that would increase the number of election districts in which minorities can designate candidates. While all national minorities have the constitutional right to one parliamentary representative in the two chamber body (the Hungarians have more due to their numbers), some groups believe that they could gain an additional 2-3 seats. Minister for Minority Affairs Péter Eckstein-Kovács enumerated the priorities of the Office for the Protection of National Minorities in the upcoming period, namely, adoption of laws on anti-discrimination and minorities, ratification of the Charter on Regional or Minority Languages, formulation of emergency decrees returning additional minority and church assets, and development of a national strategy to improve the situation of the country’s Roma population. The law on discrimination would prohibit all forms of racial, national, linguistic, ethnic and religious discrimination. All bias, exclusion or prohibition which violates fundamental human rights and freedoms would be branded discrimination. The bill under preparation would prohibit verbal, written and physical violation against individuals and groups based on race, ethnicity and religion, and would penalize attempts to forcefully assimilate, transfer people and alter the ethnic composition of a region. Eckstein-Kovács also announced that the Office’s regional network would be expanded and developed while the number of positions in Bucharest will also increase. Gelu Maksutovici, chairman of the Council’s Culture, Religion and Media Committee reported on difficulties faced by the minority groups (those other than the Hungarians and Germans) who do not have their own department at Rumanian National Television. Their programs are broadcast at the least popular hours (noon) on Channel Two which cannot be received in the entire country and are often of poor quality. Maksutovici announced the need for use of the native language on these programs and a greater focus on dissemination of information to these communities. Although the public television was invited to the meeting, no representative was there and the Council therefore asked Minister Eckstein-Kovács to arrange a meeting with the television’s leadership. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Apr. 1 and 2, 1999; News Mirror—DAHR MTI Press Service (Bucharest), Apr. 2, 1999; Magyar Hírlap (Budapest), Apr. 1, 1999]

The Rumanian Ministry of Defense denied allegations in the Rumanian press that the government had allowed Russian aircraft to pass through its airspace supplying Belgrade with arms. Cotidianul reported on March 29 that, according to unconfirmed sources, two Russian and one Belorussian military transport aircraft had flown over Rumania and landed safely in Belgrade on Friday and Saturday, respectively. The Ministry of Defense stressed that neither military nor civilian aircraft have been in Rumanian airspace. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 30, 1999]

Both houses of Parliament voted on members of the audit committee. Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR) nominees Edit Szarka, economist from Oradea/Nagyvárad, and Deputy Prefect of Hunedoara/Hunyad Miklós Segesvár, an attorney, were accepted. [DAHR Bulletin (Bucharest), Mar. 30, 1999]

March 29, 1999

Ethnic Hungarian Mihály Kiss has been nominated to become the Customs Coordinator at Halmeu/Halmi, Satumare/Szatmár County and will be confirmed in the post upon successful completion of the necessary exams. Kiss, who was born in 1968, is a native of Halmeu. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Mar. 29, 1999]

March 27, 1999

In an interview with Romániai Magyar Szó, Satumare/Szatmár County Deputy School Superintendent for Roma Studies József Veres discussed educational developments for the County's Roma children. Appointed by Education Ministry State Secretary József Kötô, Veres is the first to hold this position. He considers it an achievement that school attendance by Roma children — 3,000 of 50,000 first to eighth graders — is above the national average and roughly corresponds to the proportion of Roma in the County. Among the areas still needing improvement, Veres listed lack of adequate numbers of Roma teachers as role models and no Roma-language textbooks. The Deputy Superintendent also reported that beginning the 99/00 school year, five places will be set aside nationwide for Roma college and university applicants in all departments, except law and economics, including at the new Teachers Training College in Satu Mare/Szatmárnémeti which will also have a Hungarian-language section. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Mar. 27, 1999]

March 26, 1999

Minister of Justice Valeriu Stoica will take over prime ministerial functions between March 27 and April 2 following Prime Minister Radu Vasile's heart attack. The Prime Minister is reported in good condition but needs to remain hospitalized. [Népújság (Tirgu Mures/Marosvásárhely), Mar. 29, 1999]

March 25, 1999

The number of signatures on a petition by Targu Secuiesc/Kézdivásárhely residents in the Agache case has reached 6,123, announced Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania Parliamentary Representative from the city, Sándor Tamás, in the Chamber of Deputies. Four ethnic Hungarians, who were sentenced February 15 for allegedly murdering militiaman Agache on December 22, 1989 during the Rumanian revolution, await appeal. [see reports of February 15 and 26]. [DAHR Bulletin (Bucharest), Mar. 25, 1999]

March 24

Brasov/Brassó County Chief Prosecutor Nicolae Vasilescu told Háromszék that the case against 20 leading ethnic Hungarian politicians for purportedly undermining the national security of the state has been closed and those affected will be notified shortly in writing. [See reports of Feb. 27, 26, 23, 18 and 17.] [Friss Újság (Satu Mare/Szatmárnémeti), Mar. 24, 1999]

March 23, 1999

In a vote of 55 to 52, the Senate approved termination of a provision in the local public administration law (Article 51) that allows local councils to promulgate decision in minority-languages in those communities that are 20 percent or more minority populated. Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania protested the decision saying the Senate should repeat the voting. Senate Deputy Chairman Ulm Spineanu scheduled another round of voting for March 29. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár) and News Mirror—DAHR MTI Press Service (Bucharest), Mar. 24, 1999]

In a vote of 80:36, the Rumanian Senate suspended extremist President of the Romania Mare Party Senator Corneliu Vadim Tudor's parliamentary immunity paving the way for the Senator to face 11 charges of libel. Tudor made several unfounded allegations against President Emil Constantinescu and threatened ethnic Hungarian political leaders with reprisals [see reports of February 11 and 8, January 26, November 21 and 24, 1998]. Last week, the Senate approved the lifting of the parliamentary immunity of its members by a simple majority vote instead of the special two-thirds majority required until then [see report of March 16, 1999]. [DAHR Bulletin (Bucharest), Mar. 23, 1999, Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 24, 1999]

Three representatives from German consulates in various Transylvanian cities accompanied Education Ministry director Christine Cosmatu to German-language classrooms in the Satu Mare/Szatmárnémeti German Lyceum and the No. 1 Elementary School in Carei/Nagykároly. The Ministry of Education is continually developing native German-language education as well instruction of German as a foreign language, affirmed Cosmatu, which the German government follows closely. The delegation, which also met with Satumare/Szatmár County School Superintendent Mihail Fodor, found the state of German-language instruction to be improving but noted the lack of qualified teachers thereby requiring the continued employment of foreign guest teachers. [Friss Újság (Satu Mare/Szatmárnémeti), Mar. 25, 1999]

March 22, 1999

The Bucharest Court of Appeals found for the extreme nationalist Greater Rumania Party led by Corneliu Vadim Tudor against the government decree to establish the Petõfi-Schiller Hungarian-German language university. The court’s ruling favored the opposition parties’ motions to totally reject a bilingual institution for the third in three months [see report of December 10, 14 and 17, 1998 and March 16, 1999]. In previous cases, the government appealed the court’s decision. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 23, 1999]

March 20, 1999

Nine years after anti-Hungarian rioting broke out in the city of Tirgu Mures/Marosvasásárhely, the widows of the three ethnic Hungarian victims — Antal Csipor, István Gémes and Zoltán Kiss — were honored by the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR) and received some monetary compensation. DAHR County Press Secretary Noémi Ábrám noted that sadly, nine years after the events, the perpetrators have still not been brought to justice. Transilvania jurnal and National were the two Rumanian-language papers to mark the anniversary. [Népújság (Tirgu Mures/Marosvásárhely), Mar. 20, 1999]

According to Minister of Defense Victor Babuic, there is no proof that an "anti-Rumanian, irredentist conspiracy" exists in the country, as alleged in the 1998 Rumanian Information Service Report. Babuic emphasized that "as long as we can’t prove the charges, we are merely spreading rumors." [News Mirror—DAHR MTI Press Service (Bucharest), Mar. 22, 1999]

U.S. President Bill Clinton’s letter to President Emil Constantinescu expressed support for Rumania’s integration measures and the conviction that NATO expansion did not end with the admission of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland on March 12. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 20, 1999]

March 19, 1999

On the fifth anniversary of anti-Hungarian riots in the city, Tirgu Mures/Marosvasásárhely hosted a Week of Tolerance consisting of lectures and events on the subject. During a roundtable discussion on freedom of expression, the press and libel, a surveyor of Rumanian-language press, Vera Campeanu, noted that often it is hostile to minority issues. Campeanu highlighted, for example, Evenimentul zilei's tirade against Hungarians in connection with the opening of the Hungarian Consulate in Cluj/Kolozsvár, as well as Adevarul, which she labeled "champion of anti-Hungarian campaigns" in general. Honorary President of the German Democratic Forum and historian/theologian Paul Philippi began the discussion of bilingualism in public administration by a historic overview of the multi-lingual tradition that once existed in Transylvania. Philippi stressed the need to encourage "learning each others languages," an adage that, unfortunately, usually only minorities endorse. In fact, ethnic Rumanian city council member Berdij Asgian deemed it positive that while 45 percent of the council is made up of Hungarians, they have never requested that the language to be used at meetings. According to a study done by the Ministry for the Protection of National Minorities based on the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, in Mures County, for example, 252 settlements should have multilingual administrations. Other participants during the week include Carl Siebentritt, head of the U.S. Information Office in Cluj and Livia Plaks of the Project on Ethnic Relations. [Népújság (Tirgu Mures/Marosvásárhely), Mar. 25 and 26, 1999]

March 17, 1999

A special session of the Cluj/Kolzosvár city council voted to change several street names, including ones from Hungarian to Rumanian, such as Bem (Bogdan Voda), Galamb (Porumbeilor), Cserörô (Scortarilor), and Herbák János (Matei Besaraba). Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR) representatives voted against the measure which still needs to be approved by the Cluj/Kolozs County Council. Name changes were last brought up at a November council meeting [see report of November 10, 1998], with the replacement of Polish General Bem’s name encountering staunch objection. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 19, 1999]

March 16, 1999

The Bucharest Court of Appeals found for the Ion Iliescu-led Rumanian Social Democracy Party against the government decree to establish the Petôfi-Schiller Hungarian German language university. Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania Education State Secretary József Kötô stated that "the Bucharest court brought not a legal but a political decision . . . which is illegal, contradicts international agreements, the Constitution and Government Decree 36/1997, allowing for an independent, native-language university." Minister for Minority Affairs Péter Eckstein-Kovács confirmed that Prime Minister Radu Vasile has said the government will appeal this latest decision to the Supreme Court. Last year, the Bucharest court ruled on December 10 that the Petôfi-Schiller bilingual university is illegal, finding for the Rumanian National Unity Party on that occasion. The government appealed a week later [see report of December 10, 1998]. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 17, 1999; News Mirror—DAHR MTI Press Service (Bucharest), March 16, 1999]

The Senate approved lifting of the parliamentary immunity of its members by a simple majority vote instead of the special two-thirds majority required until now. The move will enable the Senate to vote next week on revoking the parliamentary immunity of extreme nationalist Greater Rumania Party President and Senator Corneliu Vadim Tudor, who had made several unfounded allegations against President Emil Constantinescu and threatened ethnic Hungarian political leaders with reprisals [see reports of February 11 and 8, January 26, November 21 and 24, 1998]. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 17, 1999]

Pope John Paul’s three-day visit to Rumania in May, his first to a predominantly Orthodox country, will be confined only to Bucharest and exclude Transylvania — home to 1 million Roman Catholics and 1.3 million Greek Catholics — from his itinerary. The Vatican signed an agreement with the Rumanian Presidency, the government, the Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church, finalizing the Pope’s visit which will take place from May 7 to 9. According to the Italian media, the Pope may have omitted Transylvania so as not to risk further tensions with the Orthodox Church, especially in Russia, where relations are strained due to disputes over church properties in western Ukraine. Roman Catholic bishops from Transylvania had appealed to the Pope on February 8 to extend his visit to two major religious sites: the Greek Catholic Blaj/Balázsfalva and the Roman Catholic Sumuleu-Ciuc/Csíksomlyó. "Should the Pope not be able to visit Transylvania, his believers — both groups — who suffered for their faith in, and devotion to, the Pope during Communism would be deeply disappointed," stated the letter. [See reports of February 18 and 13, 1999.] [News Mirror—DAHR MTI Press Service (Bucharest), March 17, 1999; Central Europe Online (London) Feb 17, 1999]

March 15, 1999

In an effort to bolster exports and marketing, the Agency for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises — an endeavor initiated by the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania — announced that Government Decree 1798/1998, affecting small and medium size enterprises will go into effect on March 15. The government allocated 20 billion Lei to support participation in domestic and foreign markets, to introduce innovative products, participate in marketing courses and gaining access to marketing-related information. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar 11, 1999]

March 13, 1999

The National Audiovisual Council reversed its earlier decision that every non-Rumanian language program must be subject to Rumanian-language subtitling or synchronization [see reports of March 4 and 1, February 24], saying that live television reports and programs are exempt and only taped programs must be subtitled in Rumanian. This, however, was already the case prior to the Council’s February decision. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar 13, 1999]

March 12, 1999

In an interview to Romániai Magyar Szó, celebrating its 3,000th edition, Honorary President of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania Bishop Lászlo Tôkés called attention to the fact that "a conscious and destructive Rumanian nationalistic policy hinders the government’s [already] weak integration policies and attempts at reforms and democratization." The bishop also warned that the secret police are still imbibed with the ideology of Ceaucescu’s notorious secret police — the Securitate — pervading democratic institutions and parties, and undermining Rumanian society. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Mar. 12, 1999]

The Parliament’s Standing Bureau decided that debate on Government Decree 36/1997, amending the Education Law, will continue in two phases: (1) the 14-member Conference Committee, set up last December to determine whether to allow for a minority-language university, will begin discussing specific articles of the decree, which had been approved by the Chamber of Deputies but rejected by the Senate. In the interim, (2) the Senate Education Committee will debate 148 amendments to the education law submitted by Education Minister Andrei Marga. Deputy Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies Education Committee Ferenc Asztalos stated that "It would be ideal if the two parallel processes ended at the same time so that Parliament could finalize the adopted texts." [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar 12, 1999]

March 10, 1999

The National Minority Council’s Suceva District Office initiated the establishment of a minority council in Bacau/Bákó County, Moldavia, consisting of representatives of Csángó Hungarian, Armenian, Greek, German and Roma minorities. The council’s main objectives will be the creation of an inter-ethnic alliance to promote mutual understanding, the encouragement of humanitarian actions and the exchange of cultural values. [Magyar Nemzet (Budapest), Mar. 10, 1999]

In Sfantu Gheorghe/Sepsiszentgyörgy, the Kelemen Míkes Hungarian-language Lyceum, celebrating its 125^th anniversary, will organize a documentary exhibition in May presenting the school’s history. [Magyar Nemzet (Budapest), Mar. 10, 1999]

March 9, 1999

After a heated debate of the bill on local autonomy and public administration aimed at increasing decentralization, the Senate approved Articles 39 and 43 containing two provisions crucial to minorities: (1) the native-language dissemination of a local council’s agenda before its meeting in communities that are 20 percent or more minority-populated; (2) the optional use of native-languages during a local council’s meeting if minimum one-third of its members belong to a given minority. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Mar. 11, 1999]

The Brasov/Brassó County Prosecutor’s Office summoned for the second time nine Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania representatives who had participated in the September 1998 Cernat/Alsócsernáton conference for allegedly "conducting unconstitutional activities." [See reports of February 26, 23, 18 and 17.] Chief Prosecutor Nicolae Vasilescu promised earlier to end the investigation aimed viewed as intimidation tactics by the ethnic Hungarian community. [Report of February 26, 1999]. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 11, 1999]

Debate on revoking extremist Greater Rumania Party President and Senator Corneliu Vadim Tudor's parliamentary immunity was delayed at the request of Justice Minister Valeriu Stoica who was out of the country. [See reports of February 17 and 11]. [Népújság (Tirgu Mures/Marosvásárhely), Mar. 10, 1999]

March 5, 1999

In a public letter issued by Bishop László Tôkés and General Superintendent Aladár Szilágyi , the Királyhágómelléki Bishopric of the Hungarian Reformed Church protested a 2 million Lei fine levied by the revenue service for having a bilingual accounting system. Allegations made at the end of February by the Oradea/Nagyvárad-based daily, Vest, coincided with a financial audit of the Bishopric lasting three months. Finding no irregularities, the auditors insisted on continuing their investigation, but the church denied them access citing Government Decree 63/1998 and Law 31/1991. Consequently, the revenue service imposed the fine for use of Hungarian, even though accounting is conducted in Rumanian and Hungarian. The Bishopric voiced grave concern over such severe restriction of native-language use. Even the Ceaucescu or the Iliescu-led regimes did not interefere into linguistic practices of church affairs to this large extent. The letter stated that Provision 29 of the Constitution, granting autonomy to churches vis-à-vis the state, entails native-language use in the internal affairs of churches. That rule is reinforced by both the Law on Religion (177/1948) and a Charter that allows the Hungarian Reformed Church to conduct "ceremonies and official affairs in Hungarian." [Népújság (Tirgu Mures/Marosvásárhely), Mar. 6; Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 5, 1999]

March 4, 1999

Following the vote by the Chamber of Deputies’ Education Committee March 3 [see report of March 3, 1999], Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR) President Béla Markó told the press that the Alliance’s primary objective continues to be establishment of an independent Hungarian-language university. Until such time, DAHR is committed to seeing that preparations for establishing the Petôfi-Schiller Hungarian and German language university laid down in the government decree are realized, Markó added. The president also strongly criticized the National Audiovisual Council’s decision, which went into effect March 2, saying it violates freedom of speech, equality before the law, and constitutional provisions prohibiting ethnic discrimination. Adopting such a resolution is not in the Council’s sphere of authority and, in effect reduces minority-language-programming airtime by half, due to the live translation now required. Consequently, DAHR is determined to see that the decision is repealed. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), and Magyar Hírlap (Budapest), Mar. 5, 1999]

The number of non-tuition places for freshman conducting their studies in Hungarian at the Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj/Kolozsvár will increase from 746 to 838 for the 1999/00 school year. This figure will include those applying for newly established college-level pedagogical training and Protestant theology and history majors. An increase from 996 to 1,518 in the number of total places available for Hungarian-speaking students has been set. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 4, 1999]

March 4, 1999

One of the bilingual road signs was removed in Ciresoaia/Magyardécse, a 95 percent Hungarian-inhabited town in Cluj/Kolozs County. The perpetrator has not been identified. The mayor promised to restore the sign. [DAHR News Watch (Bucharest), Mar. 4, 1999]

March 3, 1999

In a vote of 15:2 with 4 abstentions, the Education Committee of the Chamber of Deputies rejected two separate Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania (DAHR) bills to reestablish an independent Hungarian-language university in Cluj/Kolozsvár. Both bills had been submitted to the committee last summer, one by the DAHR faction and the other by Representatives Konya-Hamar and Mátis from Cluj. Consequently, neither bill stands a chance for adoption by the full house, said Ferenc Asztalos, DAHR committee deputy chairman. [Népújság (Tirgu Mures/Marosvásárhely), Mar. 4, and Magyar Hírlap (Budapest), Mar. 4,1999]

March 2, 1999

Minister for Minority Affairs Péter Eckstein-Kovács met with representatives of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic, Ukrainian Orthodox, Serbian Orthodox, the Armenian and Islamic churches. The agenda included, among others, discussion of the government’s failure to return properties confiscated under communism. In response to inquiries as to why the government decree only stipulates the return of five properties per denomination, the Minister said that the law limits governing by decree to that number, further reinforcing the need to adopt a comprehensive law on the matter. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Mar. 4, 1999]

March 1, 1999

The Legal Committee of the Council of Europe adopted its vice president, Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Rumania Senator György Frunda’s proposal on secret service activities. According to the document, which will debated at the April plenary meeting of the Council’s Parliamentary Assembly, intelligence agencies would have to modify their operations, including, seeking prior judicial approval for telephone wiretapping. [Romániai Magyar Szó (Bucharest), Mar. 5, 1999]

Minister for Minority Affairs Péter Eckstein-Kovács announced that the Office for the Protection on National Minorities is reviewing modes to nullify last week’s National Audiovisual Council decision mandating Rumanian-language subtitling or dubbing of programs [see report of February 24]. According to the Minister there are two possibilities: either the television companies bring the issue before the Public Administration Court or the Council rescinds its decision. [Szabadság (Cluj/Kolozsvár), Mar. 1, 1999]