Radicalization in Romania

The Romanian Institute for Evaluation and Strategy has made a research between the 7th and the 9th of
January, on a population of 1.356 people, by using a Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing
method. Unfortunately, the answers don’t reflect acceptant views regarding the society. 46% of the
subjects think that even though they aren’t perfect, Romanians are superior to other people. 72% stated
that marriage between people of the same gender is unacceptable. About 36% of the interviewees
agreed to the statement that Muslims can be generally considered as being dangerous and 44% of them
stated that immigrants must be stopped at the borders of Europe, and 48% that nationalism is a
necessary movement in Romania. 42% of the people state that abortions should be forbidden and 51%
that people with disabilities should be placed in special institutions.

Romanians have started to gain consciousness about the phenomenon of discrimination, without being
more tolerant about it. Over 70% of the interviewed consider that discrimination is an important
problem, and 63% state that this phenomenon happens at a high frequency. On third of the interviewed
ones mentioned being discriminated. The biggest intolerance has been manifested towards homosexual,
gypsies, immigrants, Muslims, people infected with HIV, the ones who have other religions, Hungarians
and Jewish people. This intolerance, as mentioned by the IRES sociologists, comes from the lack of trust,
74% lacking trust in homosexual people, 72% towards rroma people and immigrants with 69%, followed
shortly by Muslims.

Discrimination towards the LGBT community and towards gypsies is a well-known and documented
phenomenon in Romania, towards which the authorities don’t have efficient strategies or sufficient
interest. The main problems of rroma people are poverty, limited possibilities of finding a workplace,
the difficult access to and the lack of education. Two thirds of the homosexual people hide their sexual
orientation because this reduces the level of discrimination and acts of violence. For them, the hostile
atmosphere and the legislation are obstacles hard to pass by, 52% of the interviewees stating that they
wouldn’t accept having homosexual friends.

Another factor that we can base our presentation about radicalization in Romania on is the leading
political party. They don’t elect people in high functions based on their competencies, they personally
choose who is convenient for them, often relatives. The party is also spreading around fake news
through its news channel, Antena 3, and want to slowly disband the press liberty.

The government representatives from Bruxelles voted against the chief prosecutor of Romania's National
Anticorruption Directorate, a position she held from 2013 until she was fired on the order of Justice Minister Tudorel
Toader on 9 July 2018.

PSD against justice

- They change laws through emergency laws, not through changing laws organically
- Changed the ministers twice because they didn’t obey to the wish of the head-chief. In most
cases, the government is changed because of the defeat coming from the opposition, not
internally.
 - Change the laws in the favor of corruption. The ordinance was intended for decriminalisation of
government corruption, and to help hundreds of current and former politicians to escape ongoing criminal
investigations or prison sentences.[34]

- Lack of trust

- Inefficiency

- corruption

70% of the respondents state that they know what hate speech is, usually directed to people coming
from a different ethnical background. Regarding media, people are being polarized and they go the the
channels that support their beliefs. Usually you can predict what is being said on the news, and there is a
low level of trust towards journalists.

The conclusions suggest that the majority of the population tends to be intolerant, afraid of unknown
things and easily accepting nationalistic, homophobic legislations. In this case, there is the risk of
returning to nationalistic parties with extremist tendencies.

- The Hungarian population in Transilvania is getting more autonomy.