LETTER FROM
BUCHAREST
10
days that shook Romania
There
is no right or left in Romania’s protests. It is an example of
direct, participatory democracy.
By MARIUS STAN AND
VLADIMIR TISMANEANU 2/10/17, 12:57 PM CET Updated 2/11/17, 10:32 AM
CET
A brief timeline and
summary of events:
Day 1, January 31:
Romanians’ anti-graft fight starts spontaneously around midnight,
after the government’s official journal publishes an emergency
ordinance decriminalizing several corruption offenses. Thousands of
people gather in Victoriei Square in front of the seat of government;
in other cities, thousands more follow suit.
Days 2, 3, 4 and 5:
More and more citizens take to the streets throughout Romania,
putting pressure on the Grindeanu-Dragnea cabinet to annul their
initial decree. Protesters quickly realize that there are a number of
constitutional strategies to pursue and turn their attention to
government ombudsman Victor Ciorbea, the presidency, political
parties, and various juridical bodies. What is striking to
international observers is how mature, well-informed and politically
aware most Romanians appear.
Day 6: Protest
participation hits a new record: 300,000 protesters gather in
Bucharest alone — where demonstrators make news for their
eye-catching choreographic light shows and laser projections. About
the same number take the streets in the rest of the country.
Romanians extend their list of grievances day after day: they don’t
just want the ordinance annulled, they’re calling for the guilty to
resign, for a new government and greater accountability.
Days 7, 8 and 9: It
becomes clearer that the government cannot bear the overwhelming
popular pressure for too long, and it attempts to deploy various
juridical and political strategies to safeguard itself.
Government-friendly TV stations continue to manipulate audiences and
slander anyone involved in the protests.
Day 10: At the time
of writing, the fate of the original ordinance is still uncertain,
but Romanians appear determined to resist heavy snow and blizzards to
maintain the political pressure from the streets. Many expect a new
participation record for the weekend. What emerged five years ago as
a new civic movement in Romania — especially during the 2013
protests against a questionable gold mining project in Roșia Montană
— has continued to grow and identify new causes. To ignore it would
be a mistake.
* * *
BUCHAREST —
Romania’s civic revolution resumed 10 days ago, spontaneously and
unexpectedly. The movement — self-started, non-utopian,
non-ideological and peaceful — doesn’t show any signs of slowing.
And not only in the capital. It seems that the old mole, in this case
the revolutionary spirit of 1989, continues to dig deep.
This protest
movement — the first major pro-EU and pro-Western upheaval in
post-Brexit Europe, and without doubt the largest in Romania’s
history — did not appear out of the blue. It has a great deal in
common with previous rebellions, in 2012, 2013 and 2015. It is a
reassertion of civic courage that is not driven by political parties
but is instead an unabashed expression of civil society in action.
Nevertheless, while
the link to the “lost treasure,” to borrow Hannah Arendt’s
phrase, of Romania’s 1989 revolution is obvious, we are dealing
with something new.
Protests have become
a regular instrument in the hands of citizens of various ideological
backgrounds. Can this new routinization of non-confrontational forms
of civic action lead to a society of social movements? In countries
like Romania, where democratic societies have decided to face their
inner demons head-on, this may very well be the case.
The elements of this
new social structure and civic ethos are still a work in progress,
but in them we can already see the beginnings of direct democracy.
Over the past 10 days, Romanians have tossed around ideas about
citizens’ councils and alternative models of democratic
representation. This movement acknowledges the modern subject’s
inner conflicts and rejects the old revolutionary shibboleths. A
major shift is happening in civil society, and we ought to explore
its dynamics and repercussions.
This latest social
movement is not anti-political. Its target is what Romanians call
“dirty politics.” Understanding the Social Democratic Party’s
political culture — its reactions and reckless resort to
provocations like the emergency ordinance — is an important part of
the puzzle.
The Social
Democratic Party (PSD) is the successor of the National Salvation
Front (FSN), which itself is the unavowed but undeniable successor to
Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu’s Communist Party. Its party
leaders — from founding father Ion Iliescu to Adrian Năstase,
Mircea Geoană, Victor Ponta, present chairman Liviu Dragnea, and his
proxy prime-minister Sorin Grindeanu — have preserved a
neo-Bolshevik way of addressing political reality. They live by the
maxim, “Whoever is not with us is against us!”
That is why these
authoritarian PSD kleptocrats have not entertained the idea of
communicating with the protesters. Instead, Iliescu emerged from
hibernation to support Dragnea. He blamed president Klaus Iohannis
for joining the demonstrations, saying: “Iohannis inflamed the
spirits and created this anarchy.” In times of change and social
unrest, the current government is indulging in deluded scapegoating.
In Bucharest’s
Victoriei Square, one of the main sites of protest, there are no
loudspeakers; there is no pre-assigned dramaturgy. No right or left.
It is an example of direct, participatory democracy.
The language of
protest has been at times funny, sarcastic, poignant and infinitely
inventive. Take the conspiracy theories about George Soros being
behind all anti-authoritarian protests, from the United States to
Hungary, Poland, Romania and Russia. In Bucharest, this is the
rebuttal: “Uncle Soros, wouldn’t it be cheaper to buy the PSD and
close it down?” The verb “a închide” in Romanian has at least
two meanings: “to close down” or “to send someone to prison.”
The main message is
clear: We want to be free! Not since Paris in 1968 and Prague in 1989
has Europe seen a moment of collective emancipation like this one. At
a moment when the Continent is experiencing a dismal slide into
authoritarian populism, Romania’s mass civic mobilization on behalf
of liberal values, accountability, transparency, and the European
project may well be a prologue to similar movements elsewhere.
Over the past few
days, the Western Balkans have witnessed an increase in calls for
anti-corruption measures directly inspired by events in Romania.
Bulgaria and Moldova have also seen demonstrations in solidarity with
Romanian efforts.
We want to avoid
succumbing to wishful thinking, but we can’t help seeing what is
happening in Romania as the start of a new chapter in global efforts
to reinvent politics and root out corruption. What is happening in
Bucharest and tens of other cities across the country is
uncontainable, inexhaustible, inextinguishable civic courage in
action. It should be admired and praised.
At a historical
juncture when populist demagogues are questioning the very future of
the European Union, one of its small bordering countries is saying:
Yes, we belong!
Marius Stan is a
Romanian political scientist, currently a post-doctoral fellow at the
University of Bucharest’s research institute. Vladimir Tismaneanu
is a professor of politics at the University of Maryland (College
Park). They have co-authored numerous books and articles, including,
most recently “A Lenin Dossier: The Magic of Nihilism.”
Authors:
Marius Stan and
Vladimir Tismaneanu
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