2014 Romanian Presidential Election in Munich

This needs to be read and shared! Romanians abroad were systematically prevented to vote in today's (Nov 2nd, 2014) Presidential Election.

The Government intentionally did everything to slow and hinder the voting process abroad in embassies and consulates, as it is known from previous elections that Romanians abroad overwhelmingly vote against the Socialist Party and its candidate, Prime Minister Dr. Victor Ponta. Even though the number of Romanians abroad vastly increased since the previous elections in 2009, fewer voting sections were organized and paperwork was introduced to slow down the voting process.

I arrived at the Romanian Consulate in Munich at 13:45 and the queue was 1000 person long. After 7 hours of wait, I got inside the consulate at 20:45, minutes before closing time of 21:00. More than 500 people who waited for hours in the cold didn't got the chance to cast their vote. Families with small children, seniors, young people, even pregnant women gathered not only from Munich, but also from Nuremberg (which had its own voting section in 2009) and Regensburg. In such cases, the law provides the possibility to extend voting hours. Though the voting commission requested the extension, the Romanian Election Authority rejected it. For the tens of thousands of Romanians in Munich and the region, there were only 4 voting stamps available and a commission of only 4 people to handle identification!

And the same happened not only in Munich: citizens were also denied their vote in Paris, London, Madrid, Strasbourg, Rome, Turin, New York, Vienna, Valencia, Bologna, Brussels, Dublin, Stuttgart, Chisinau, Berlin, Stockholm and the list goes on.

In the last 3-4 years, the Justice in Romania made significant progress in fighting corruption. Ministers, members of parliament, mayors, dubious business people and even a former Prime Minister were convicted on corruption charges. With these elections the stakes are high, that all this progress might be lost if the Prime Minister Dr. Victor Ponta wins the elections, as he defended many of those convicted.

If this voting obstruction by the Government of Prime Minister Dr. Ponta gets enough coverage in foreign media, there might be enough pressure to address the overcrowded polling stations abroad and to enable all Romanians who wish it to cast their votes. The voting capacity abroad needs to be at least doubled for the runoff in two weeks!

PS: The Doctor title for Mr. Ponta is used sarcastically. Even though his PHD was proven plagiarized, instead of quitting his Prime Minister job, like proven plagiator do in normal countries, Mr. Ponta used his power to change the PHD commission to obtain a favorable verdict.

Credits - Tudor Stoian. Source: here

The truth about Romania and its president

For the first time in years I read a good article wrote by someone who's not romanian -  an article that reflects the reality in Romania.
Well... I don't know who you are and how did you get on my blog, and to put it simply... it doesn't matter.
What matters is that I want is the world to know about this place called Romania and its people, the abuses -  and most important - the abuses made by the highest authorities possible in our country against the people who pay them.


"
Nearly a quarter-century after the fall of the Iron Curtain, the painful cries for “Freedom” can still be heard from people demonstrating in Europe. In Romania, a member of the European Union since 2007, people are still searching for democratic values that have been buried under the despotic regime of the country’s controversial president, Traian Basescu.
Exactly one year ahead of the next Romanian presidential elections, Basescu is regaining his autocratic rule that was weakened by the last year’s referendum in which 87% voted in favour of his impeachment.
Engaged in an internal war against the new government and the political majority, Basescu is now setting his sights outside Romania – maybe in Europe, maybe even across the Atlantic Ocean. There are rumours he will try to secure his political future with the help of his old connections who had helped him remain in power one year ago despite the result of the referendum.  It is maybe the strangest story of a comeback in Europe and one that is more likely in a country like Belarus (Europe’s last remaining unreconstructed Communist dictatorship) than in a European Union Member State. Only a tyrant can so openly defy the people’s will (7.4m of 8.4m Romanians voted for his impeachment) and return to office.
This is how Basescu managed to return to the Presidential Palace following his three-week suspension from the parliament."
 you can the entire article here