Romania’s Green Party rejects the nationalist speech of the Liberal leader Crin Antonescu and supports the Romanian MEP László TŐKÉS for the European Parliament’s Vice Presidency

Recently, according to the media, the National Liberal Party’s leader Crin Antonescu stated that none of the Party’s MEPs could give their vote to László TŐKÉS for the position of Vice President of the European Parliament. Antonescu justified his statement by a nationalist speech, bringing into discussion the activity of I. C. Brătianu, the Great Union of the Romanians and the Trianon Treaty.

Mr. Crin Antonescu, President of National Liberal Party

The Green Party from Romania believes that true democratic policies are made in an open, rational and reasonable spirit that shows tolerance, respect and support for minority rights. Therefore, we make an appeal to all political parties to restrain themselves from speeches that bring ethnicity, under a false claim of patriotism, as an “argument” for exclusion or stigmatization.

A nationalist speech is against the liberal philosophy. It is all the more striking and surprising that it is promoted by the leader of a party that claims to come from a liberal tradition, which, through the voice of all its important theoreticians, brings a critic to nationalism. Bringing into discussion the Peace Treaty after the First World War, the Great Union and Romania’s present statehood reveals a type of nationalist speech not only inappropriate to the subject, but also specific to the populism assumed by the parties less frequentable on the European level.

Crin Antonescu’s view on the state expressed in this speech is an outdated one, characteristic of the 19^th century. Nowadays we are still building together in the European Union another type of social-political community: one that asserts itself on a base of civic, economic and democratic values, not nationalist or racist ones. Yet the Romanian Liberal Party does not seem to understand the idea of modernization, coming out with a speech specific to the 19^th century.

Romania needs an authentic democratic construction, based upon the real assumption of values among which diversity, tolerance, respect for the fundamental rights, environment protection, state of law, pluralism are essential.

Timisoara during the Romanian revolution in December 1989

The reverend László TŐKÉS is a figure that played an essential role in the protest initiation of Timisoara which led to the fall of the communist regime in December 1989 and the gaining of liberty in Romania. As a MEP he had a welcome and especially important position, together with Renate Weber and Daciana Sarbu for the prohibition of mining based on cyanides. Romania’s Green Party actively militated in its turn for stopping this type of dangerous mining and saving Rosia Montana, suggesting two Resolutions adopted by the Green Europeans at the Council of Barcelona (2010) and Vienna (2007).

Romanian MEP László TŐKÉS

For our country it would be a great success for the Romanian MEP László TŐKÉS to become Vice President of the European Parliament. The Green Party of Romania will recommend its Green colleagues from Greens-EFA (European Free Alliance) the support Mr. TŐKÉS for this position.

The Green Party from Romania

12^th June 2010

Remus Cernea

Executive President

www.remuscernea.ro

remuscernea.ro@gmail.com

+0040.727.583.594

Claudiu Craciun

Prime Vicepresident

clcraciun@yahoo.com

Silviu Dumitru

Secretary General

silviudum@gmail.com