MINELRES: Romania: Ethnic Diversity Briefs, No.30

[MINELRES moderator]

Original sender: Mediafax <divers@mediafax.ro>

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No. 30/ November 4, 2002

DIVERS
- reporting ethnic diversity -

SUMMARY

1. ROMANIANS ARE NOT EXTREMISTS, ACCORDING TO A RECENT POLL
2. ETHNIC MINORITIES TO BE GRANTED MUCH MONEY FROM BUDGET
3. BUCHAREST CONCERNED OF ROMANIAN MINORITY FROM BULGARIA �
4. ... BUT ALSO FROM HUNGARY
5. OVER 70 ROMA HEALTH MEDIATORS EMPLOYED BY HEALTH MINISTRY

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ROMANIANS ARE NOT EXTREMISTS, ACCORDING TO A RECENT POLL
BUCHAREST - A poll released last week reveal that Romanian people do not
manifest a tangible extremist attitude, as a matter of fact the racist
and xenophobe behavior is expressed only in language and attitude. The
poll, released by local Prognosis and Tendencies Resource Center,
indicates that Romanian people succeeded in "filtrating a series of
behavior expressions allowing social inhabitance, thus eliminating the
discriminating intransigent conviction by means of more concessive
approach in terms of human and interethnic relations". In this respect,
one cannot be said about a significant difference between Romania and
the states from West Europe. The poll also indicates that tensed
relations between Romanians and Magyar people are false, the only
intolerant attitude is expressed against Roma people, yet the
discrimination does not reach critical level. (DIVERS)

ETHNIC MINORITIES TO BE GRANTED MUCH MONEY FROM BUDGET
BUCHAREST - The budget, finance and banking Commissions within Romanian
Parliament on Tuesday, October 29, passed initiative to supplement
budget meant for ethnical minorities with an amount of ROL 40 bn (some
$1.2 m). Initially, the Romanian government allotted $153 bn. The
additional amount was reasoned by the need of "adequate implementation
of the programs meant to support the language and tradition values of
the ethnic minorities ". The deputy Iuliu Winkler from the Hungarian
Democratic Federation of Romania (UDMR) explained the MPs the necessary
fund indicated into the budget draft is generally calculated based on
the projects previously submitted by each minority organization. Last
year the ethnic minorities received ROL 54 bn from the state budget.
(DIVERS)

BUCHAREST CONCERNED OF ROMANIAN MINORITY FROM BULGARIA... 
SOFIA - Paying an official visit in Bulgaria last week, the Prime
Minister Adrian Nastase debated the condition of the Romanian minority
in this country, indicating that in Romania all minorities are
represented in Parliament. "We deem that as regards the parliamentary
level also of the social development, there should be certain support
for Romanian and Bulgarian minorities ", added Nastase. According to the
data of the latest census pursued last year in Bulgaria, 10,566 persons
declared themselves as Vlachs, while other 1,088 of Romanian ethnicity.
(DIVERS)

... BUT ALSO FROM HUNGARY
BUCHAREST - Romanian Government is going to persuade the Hungarian
authorities in order to assure presence of ethnical minorities members
within Hungarian Parliament and to modify the electoral Law in Hungary,
so that the elections for local self-governances could no longer be
jeopardized, sources from the Government declared to the press. On
Wednesday, October 30, chief of Romanian All Around Department (DRP),
Doru Vasile Ionescu stated that, due to the lack of firm regulations,
the elections from October 20 in Hungary for minorities' local
self-governances had been viced, most of the elected within these
structures holding ethnicity different from the persons represented.
According to DRP chief, out of the 90 councilors for Romanians'
self-governances in Budapest and other four localities from Hungary,
only 30 are known by the community, the other two thirds of the elected
being of Romanian ethnicity. "We are going to insist near Hungarian
authorities so as to uphold filtering processes so that self-governances
in the country and Budapest could be organized by genuine
representatives of the Romanians. In addition, we deem that some changes
must be operated to the electoral Law from Hungary and also in case of
minorities Law to prevent from leading jeopardized elections ", pointed
out Doru Ionescu. (DIVERS)

OVER 70 ROMA HEALTH MEDIATORS EMPLOYED BY HEALTH MINISTRY
BUCHAREST - Romanian Ministry of Health and Family (MSF) has hired 73
health mediators for Roma communities in the country following that in
short time to be employed the other 59 mediators trained within a
special program. "Health mediators training " is a program deployed by
the Roma organization Romani CRISS as a result of the agreement signed
between this organization, OSCE-ODIHR and the Family and Health
Ministry, which has as purpose training of Roma ethnicity people to ease
access to medical services provided for Roma communities. (DIVERS)

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