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RADOR: News from Romania, 98-12-10
December 10, 1998
CONTENTS
[01] Hearings before Commissions in Parliament;
[02] PUNR Conditions;
[03] PRM Central Commission Meeting;
[04] A Delegation Representing the Magistrates Association in Romania on a
Visit to the Palace of Cotroceni;
[05] President Constantinescu Has Been Invited to Timisoara;
[06] Government-Trade Unions Negotiations;
[07] UNICEF Report on Children Around the World;
[08] Retired People's Protests;
[09] Romania Between Brussels and Washington;
[10] Diplomatic Agenda;
[11] Romanian Defence Minister on a Visit to Ukraine;
[12] Romanian-Spanish Contacts on Defence Policies;
[13] Statement by Peter Kopecky, the Slovak Ambassador to Romania.
[01] Hearings before commissions in parliament
The commission for economic affairs in the House of Deputies gave a hearing
on Wednesday to Tourism Minister Sorin Frunzaverde in connection with
discrepancies in the Ordinance 32 on privatising tourist commercial
companies, and Ordinance 88 on privatising commercial companies as
stipulated in the Law 44/1998. The Tourism Ministry is preparing a strategy
designed to ensure the privatisation of tourist commercial companies.
RADOR
The hearing of three future Romanian ambassadors have been taking place on
Wednesday before the foreign affairs commission in parliament. The three
diplomats include Alexandru Cornea appointed as ambassador to Yugoslavia,
George Ceamba, the new Romanian ambassador to Turkey, and Pavel Platona,
the new ambassador to Armenia. The hearing of Petru Constantin, appointed
as Romania's ambassador to Tunisia, is expected shortly. Another hearing
has been taking place before the commission for defence affairs; division
gen. Florentin Popa, secretary general with the Industry and Trade Ministry
and former state secretary with Romania's National Defence Ministry (MApN)
was asked to provide details about the army's strategic weapon deliveries
to Iraq. RADOR
[02] PUNR conditions
The Romanians' National Unity Party (PUNR) is expected to resume its
protests unless the Majority in parliament will consider the Opposition's
proposals. PUNR deputy Ioan Gavra has made the announcement at a press
conference on Wednesday. He said his party's leadership was praising the
existing dialogue betrween the Majority and the Opposition, but it
expressed the regret that it was not the House of Deputies' speaker who
called for dialogue. Referring to the moratorium the prime minister was
proposing, Mr Gavra said the PUNR was waiting for the legal priorities, but
it did not expect any achievement in the next six months. On the other hand,
the PUNR calls on the government to admit the failure of its governing
programme and present the parliament with the 1999 Budget to be approved by
December 20 at the latest. RADOR
[03] PRM Central Commission meeting
In a communique issued to the media, the Press Office of the Greater
Romania Party (PRM) says the party's Central Commission met early in
December to establish the requirements the PRM cadidates should meet to run
for the next elections: the age, the IQ, the activity and experience within
the party. The commission has also examined the morals and the candidates'
personal abilities to address largest audiences. All these principles are
to be approved by the PRM's Co-ordination Committee and by the party's
president. RADOR
[04] A delegation representing the Magistrates Association in Romania on a
visit to the Palace of Cotroceni
At the Cotroceni Palace on Wednesday, Romania's President Emil
Constantinescu met delegates of the Magistrates Association in Romania. The
president of the association, Mrs Maria Coca Cozma, said the president was
to be provided with direct and accurate information about the activity in
the field as he should become acquainted with the problems the magistrates
were facing. The delegates stopped however short of making any comment
about the meeting. RADOR
[05] President Constantinescu has been invited to Timisoara
The Mayor of Timisoara, Gheorghe Ciuhandru, said he contacted the Cotroceni
staff to plan the visit of President Emil Constantinescu to Timisoara on
December 16-22. Gheorghe Ciuhandru said the president should visit
Timisoara because, "two years ago, he promised to unveil the truth about
the Revolution in December 1989". In his statement on Tuesday, the mayor
said that December 17 was the most coveninent day for a presidential visit.
RADOR
[06] Government-trade unions negotiations
The prime minister has called on the main trade union confederations to
give up strike actions and protests in the next six months when the
government was expected to carry out its anti-crisis programme. The trade
union leaders have agreed in principle, though they questioned the
government's courage to really take tough reform measures. Starting on
Tuesday with the leaders of the Alfa Cartel, Meridian and CNSRL Fratia
(ed.n. "The Brotherhood"), the talks at the Victoria Palace have continued
on Wednesday when participants included leaders of the National Trade Union
Block (BNS) and CSLR. A government spokesman said Prime Minister Radu
Vasile was ready to discuss the moratorium with the Opposition as well, the
Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR) included. RADOR
[07] UNICEF report on children around the world
In its annual report, the UN Children Fund (UNICEF) says that hundreds of
millions of children are unable to live a decent life because of poor
educational facilities. The UNICEF says an educational revolution should
start to allow a growing number of people the access to information and
scientific research based on high technology. This large scale intervention
would need 7 billion dollars, less than the US spendings on cosmetics. A
press conference, organised by the UNICEF delegate to Romania at the
Scientists' House in Bucharest, is expected to tackle the same topic.
RADOR
[08] Retired people's protests
The National Federation of the Retired People and the "Unirea"
Confederation have been picketing on Wednesday the building of the Health
Ministry in protest against the way the ministry was tackling the problems
of the elderly people. The retired people request a 75 per cent
compensation for medicines and ask the ministry to give up the initial
prices. RADOR
[09] Romania between Brussels and Washington
While back from Brussels on Wednesday, Romanian Foreign Minister Andrei
Plesu said the ministerial meeting of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council
was "Romania's last chance to reiterate its NATO accession arguments before
the Washington summit". Mr Plesu pointed out that Romania expected the
Washington summit to accelerate the programme already established at the
summit in Madrid. "All the indications are that the Washington summit will
consider the NATO expansion as one of the main issues under debate", Mr
Plesu added. He said that, despite rumours among NATO allies insisting that
no nomination would be made concerning the next round of NATO's expansion,
discussions were still going on, and a final decision was expected in
January. RADOR
[10] Diplomatic agenda
Carmen Podgoreanu, the spokeswoman with Romania's Foreign Ministry (MAE),
has announced the agenda of the Romanian diplomats in the next few days:
MAE Director General Cristian Diaconescu is to attend a new round of
Romanian-Bulgarian talks in Sofia on Thursday and Friday aimed at
establishing the sea borders between the two countries. MAE State Secretary
Elena Zamfirescu is to lead the Romanian delegation attending the fourth
conference on peace-keeping in Bosnia and Herzegovina due in Madrid on
December 15-16. Mrs Podgoreanu said "Romania's participaqtion in the
conference was the natural consequence of its persisting efforts to ensure
stability and good neighbourhood in the region". RADOR
[11] Romanian defence minister on a visit to Ukraine
While on official visit to Kiev on Wednesday, Romanian Defence Minister
Victor Babiuc met Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchima. Ukrainian Defence
Minister Oleksander Kuzmuk has also attended the meeting. Oleksander
Martinenko, the press officer of the Ukrainian Presidency, said minister
Babiuc's visit was aimed at establishing the bilateral co-operation
programme which was expected to include the set up of joint subunits,
batallions possibly. As Romania and Ukraine were both affected by recent
floods in the Carpathian region, such a batallion will participate in
operations designed to eliminate the damage. Ukrainian minister Kuzmuk said
another batallion would participate in peace-keeping operations. The
meeting between the two ministers also focused on recent developments in
the Black Sea area and the nestrian conflict. RADOR
[12] Romanian-Spanish contacts on defence policies
On December 9-12, the head of the Defence Policy Department with Romania's
National Defence Ministry (MApN), State Secretary Constantin Dudu Ionescu,
is due in Spain following an invitation by admiral Francisco Torrente
Sanchez, Director General for defence policies with the Spanish Defence
Ministry. The Romanian-Spanish joint commission is expected to meet and
finalise the annual plan of military co-operation for the next year.
RADOR
[13] Statement by Peter Kopecky, the Slovak ambassador to Romania
The Slovak ambassador to Romania, Peter Kopecky, has attended a press
conference in the Auditorium Hall of Romania's National Museum of Art on
Wednesday. Referring to the Romanian-Slovak relations, Mr Kopecky said they
were good by tradition and provided a good start for further development.
The two countries share similar foreign policy interests and they are
supporting each other in such international bodies as the UN, CEFTA and the
Central European Initiative. The Romanian foreign minister and the prime
minister are expected to visit Slovakia early next year while President
Emil Constantinescu is due in Bratislava shortly. The Slovak ambassador has
provided details about the governing programme of the new government who
came to power in September 1998 as well as details concerning the social
and political situation in the country and excerpts from the Declaration of
the Slovak Republic's National Council on the country's EU integration
strategy. RADOR
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