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| THE WEEK IN REVIEW 01-07/12/2008 |
| (2008-12-05) |
| Last updated: 2008-12-08 18:12 EET |
The parliamentary elections held in Romania on November the 30th were marked by a low turnout, of less than 40%. The voting was held for the first time in the uninominal system in Romania. The new parliament is made up of representatives of the pro-presidential Liberal Democratic Party (PDL) the left wing Alliance of the Social Democratic Party, (PSD), and the Conservative Party, the right wing National Liberal Party, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, UDMR, plus 18 representatives of the national ethnic minorities. PDL and PSD came in neck-to-neck, getting 166 and 163 seats, respectively, the Liberals got 93 seats, and UDMR 31 seats. The nationalist Greater Romanain Party failed to reach the 5% electoral threshold. President Traian Basescu has convened the parliamentary parties for talks on nominating the prime minister. The president has said the future government will have to observe the will of the electorate and enjoy wide support in parliament.
On December the 1st, Romania ‘s National Day, Romanians around the world celebrated 90 years since all Romanian historic province united into a nation state. Traian Basescu:
”9 decades ago, the union of all Romanian historic provinces in a unitary state was achieved. That is why December the 1st became a symbol of unity and solidarity, as well as a symbol of modernity. The founding of modern Romania has a twofold significance: first of all it marks the right of a nation to choose its own fate. The Romanian nation achieved what other nations too, built on the ruins of empires. It freely voiced its wish to live in a certain way. The Romanian nation wanted Besserabia, Bukovina and Transylvania to join Moldavia and Wallachia. The second element of modernity brought about by the 1918 union is related to democracy. A synchronisation with the European model was achieved in that case, too.”
The National Day was marked by religious and military ceremonies, exhibitions, shows and official dinners, air shows, folk costume parades, fireworks. Just like every year, people went in large numbers to the Triumphal Arch in Bucharest to watch the already traditional military parade, as well as to the so-called capital of the Great Union, Alba Iulia, in Transylvania, where on the Romanians’ Plateau, they wrote number 90 with torches.
The pace of real economic growth in the first 9 months of the year increased by 3.1% as compared to the same period of 2007. The growth rate was of 8.9%. The pace of economic growth in the third quarter of the year stood at 3.4%. The growth rate was 9.1%, figures made public this week by the National Institute for Statistics show. However, economic analysts say the favourable context for a high growth rate has changed, and more likely than not the world financial crisis will impact Romania, too. 2009 will be a year marked by uncertainty, lack of confidence among manufacturers, the President of the National Forecast Commission, Ion Ghizdeanu says. He estimates a drop in consumption and investments, as well as an increase of only 5% in the average salary in 2009. Unemployment at national level will increase by 1-2%. It now stands at 4%. Because of a plummeting demand on the market, many companies have made temporary redundancies.
At the end of its term in office, the Calin Popescu Tariceanu government has decided to increase by 300% the first car registration fee, a sort of pollution fee for all second hand cars and to increase to some 1,000 Euros the bonus paid for scrapped cars which are withdrawn from circulation. The measures are meant to boost new car sales and keep jobs in the local car industry, which is affected by the economic crisis. These measures will take effect as of December the 15th 2008. The government has already postponed the enforcement of the law for boosting the pensions of first and second category pensioners, a law endorsed by the head of state and approved by parliament. The law provides for increasing by 50 and 25% respectively, the pensions of those categories of retired people. 550 million Euros from the state budget will be allotted to cover the increase.
President Traian Basescu has announced that Romania will maintain its troops deployed in Iraq by 2011 or until its allies leave that country. The president made that statement during a video-conference with the Romanian military who carry out missions in theatres of operation in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans. Traian Basescu also said the missions Romania will take part under NATO command in the future will be negotiated by the end of the year. A couple of days ago defence minister Teodor Melescanu said Romania had received a letter from the Iraqi authorities which called on Bucharest to maintain its military presence in that country.
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2025-04-03
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