Latest news with #IronGuard
The Star
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Romanian Jewish representative criticises president for challenging hate speech bill
FILE PHOTO: People queue in a cemetery as they visit the tomb of Ilie Lacatusu, one of the Romanian Orthodox Church's latest saints, bearing the flag with the insignia of the Iron Guard, one of Europe's most violent antisemitic movements in the 20th century, in Bucharest, Romania April 13, 2025. REUTERS/Andreea Campeanu/File Photo BUCHAREST (Reuters) -A Romanian Jewish legislator said he would return his national order of merit on Friday in protest after the centrist president challenged a bill seeking harsher punishment for antisemitism and hate speech in the country's top court. Romania's parliament updated existing legislation outlawing the celebration of fascist leaders or imagery in June at the proposal of Jewish lawmaker Silviu Vexler, introducing prison sentences for the promotion of antisemitism and xenophobia via social media platforms. The bill also raised jail terms for creating or belonging to racist organisations. Romania had one of Europe's most violent antisemitic movements of the 1930s, the Iron Guard, known for political assassinations and pogroms. The country was also an ally of Nazi Germany until August 1944, when it changed sides. The centrist President Nicusor Dan challenged the bill at the Constitutional Court, saying it raised freedom of speech concerns and arguing it did not include a proper legal definition of fascists or Iron Guard members, which would force judges to interpret the law arbitrarily. The top court has rejected a similar challenge against the bill by hard-right parties. "The impact of the Romanian president's act will directly or indirectly encourage continuing to promote Iron Guard ideology, the leaders of extremist organisations and inevitably antisemitism and all forms of extremism," Vexler said. The presidency did not reply to a request for comment. The National Order of Merit which Vexler said he would return recognises important civil or military services to Romania. Romania cancelled a presidential election in December after allegations of Russian interference – denied by Moscow - in favour of far-right contender Calin Georgescu, who was later banned from running in the May ballot re-run and has since been sent to trial for promoting Romania's wartime fascist leaders. Dan ultimately won the presidential re-run against a hard-right leader who had replaced Georgescu. (Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by Alex Richardson)
Straits Times
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Romanian Jewish representative criticises president for challenging hate speech bill
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox BUCHAREST - A Romanian Jewish legislator said he would return his national order of merit on Friday in protest after the centrist president challenged a bill seeking harsher punishment for antisemitism and hate speech in the country's top court. Romania's parliament updated existing legislation outlawing the celebration of fascist leaders or imagery in June at the proposal of Jewish lawmaker Silviu Vexler, introducing prison sentences for the promotion of antisemitism and xenophobia via social media platforms. The bill also raised jail terms for creating or belonging to racist organisations. Romania had one of Europe's most violent antisemitic movements of the 1930s, the Iron Guard, known for political assassinations and pogroms. The country was also an ally of Nazi Germany until August 1944, when it changed sides. The centrist President Nicusor Dan challenged the bill at the Constitutional Court, saying it raised freedom of speech concerns and arguing it did not include a proper legal definition of fascists or Iron Guard members, which would force judges to interpret the law arbitrarily. The top court has rejected a similar challenge against the bill by hard-right parties. "The impact of the Romanian president's act will directly or indirectly encourage continuing to promote Iron Guard ideology, the leaders of extremist organisations and inevitably antisemitism and all forms of extremism," Vexler said. The presidency did not reply to a request for comment. The National Order of Merit which Vexler said he would return recognises important civil or military services to Romania. Romania cancelled a presidential election in December after allegations of Russian interference – denied by Moscow - in favour of far-right contender Calin Georgescu, who was later banned from running in the May ballot re-run and has since been sent to trial for promoting Romania's wartime fascist leaders. Dan ultimately won the presidential re-run against a hard-right leader who had replaced Georgescu. REUTERS
France 24
02-05-2025
- Politics
- France 24
Far-right neo-Legionary movement looms over Romania's election re-run
Romanians head to the polls on Sunday for a re-run of last November's presidential election, which was annulled following reports of foreign interference. That vote had seen the surprise victory of a previously unknown far-right independent candidate: Calin Georgescu. An isolationist and ultra-nationalist, Georgescu has ties to neo-Legionary groups, which have roots in the pre-war Iron Guard fascist movement. This stance is increasingly resonating with voters in the "sovereigntist" camp, while alarming liberal circles. Though Georgescu's candidacy was later struck down by the Constitutional Court, he is being replaced by George Simion, who has vowed to use every means necessary to propel Georgescu to power. FRANCE 24's Maria Gerth-Niculescu reports.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Romanians court far-right symbolism in run-up to election
By Luiza Ilie BUCHAREST (Reuters) - On a sunny day in April, hundreds of Romanians queued on the outskirts of Bucharest to visit a tomb bearing a vivid green flag with the insignia of the Iron Guard, one of Europe's most violent antisemitic movements of the 1930s. While displaying Iron Guard symbols was banned in Romania two decades ago, the flag flutters in the breeze over the grave of Ilie Lacatusu, a Guard member canonised by the Orthodox Church last year, every Sunday. Fascist-era symbols dot other Romanian cities, too, such as monuments or streets named after Iron Guard heroes or writers associated with the movement, in a show of resonance that political analysts say is bolstering the far right ahead of Sunday's presidential election. Romania's nationalist far right surged in popularity in a string of elections last year, culminating with little-known pro-Russia Calin Georgescu topping the first round of a presidential ballot in November - before a court cancelled that vote a month later amid allegations of Russian interference. With Georgescu now banned from running again, opinion polls show hard-right opposition leader and eurosceptic George Simion poised to win on Sunday, with some 30% of the vote. Analysts say much of that popularity comes from the ability of hard-right leaders like Georgescu and Simion to harness long-standing grassroots acceptance of wartime fascist figures and their conservative values to stoke voter anger over high living costs and perceived social immorality they blame on mainstream centre-left and centre-right politicians and Western elites. "Everything that has happened in this country has been done against us, especially since our vote was stolen," designer Lucian Datcu, 51, said as he left Lacatusu's tomb earlier this month. He plans to vote for Simion. "We need to try someone else." Like some others seeking solace around Lacatusu's tomb, Datcu shrugs off his Iron Guard past. Ioana Scumpieru, 69, a pensioner who works as a nanny, said that what was important for her was the spiritual experience, not history. "Things go very well for me after I pray at his tomb. It does not bother me," she said. 'NORMALISATION' While no one in Romania advocates violence or antisemitism in public, activists say the electoral trend is worrisome. "Like it or not, an important segment of the population either does not care about (these) toxic values or they embrace them," said Marius Cazan, researcher at the Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania. "The problem with normalising this narrative about the past is that rather than critically examining the movement's toxic parts, it praises it," he said. Formed in 1927 and bolstered by the ensuing Great Depression and the economic toll it inflicted across Europe, the Iron Guard built its following on blaming Jews for the poverty and lack of opportunity enveloping the east European country, combined with deeply religious, anti-capitalist and anti-communist messaging. It was responsible for riots and pogroms, including one in Bucharest in 1941 when more than 100 Jews were killed and some hung on hooks in a slaughterhouse. The Iron Guard was outlawed shortly afterwards. Lacatusu, according to the Wiesel Institute, was a local unit leader in southwestern Romania. Simion, who opposes military aid to Ukraine, is critical of Brussels leadership and supportive of U.S. President Donald Trump, has sidestepped direct questions about the Iron Guard. When asked about it, he told Reuters: "These times are reminiscent of the inter-war period - the rule of law is being broken and political opinions censored. People are not being listened to, they are being defied by those clinging to power." But several of his party's members, Georgescu and other far-right politicians have openly praised Iron Guard leaders and Ion Antonescu, Romania's de facto World War Two leader. Under Antonescu, Romania was an ally of Nazi Germany until August 1944, when it changed sides. A 2004 report found that between 280,000 and 380,000 Romanian and Ukrainian Jews and thousands of Roma were killed by civilian and military authorities in Romania and areas they controlled during the war. Romania, now a European Union and NATO member country, apologized in 2003. A mandatory school class about the Holocaust was introduced last year. But Iron Guard propaganda and acceptance of Romania's far-right leaders have slowly been spreading into the mainstream. Many Iron Guard members and supporters died in prisons under communist rule after the war, many of them priests. They are known as anti-communist fighters and "prison saints," and commemorations in their honour draw dozens of people each year. At some, attendees have flashed the Nazi salute. Some of Romania's most famous interwar writers and thinkers were vocal supporters of the Iron Guard and remain celebrated today as part of the country's identity and heritage. Although honouring fascist figures and symbols in public is illegal, cases rarely get prosecuted. The prosecutor general said only some 20 such incidents got reported on average yearly. "A part of Romanian society is ambiguous about the ... fascist past while another part is fairly radicalised," said Sergiu Miscoiu, a political science professor at Babes-Bolyai University. "For the new ultranationalist parties, what resonates is denouncing globalisation and the foreign elements that (they see as) responsible for everything wrong that is happening." Romania's president has a semi-executive role that includes chairing the council that decides on military aid and defence spending, and can veto EU votes that require unanimity. The country has a pro-EU coalition government.
Straits Times
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Romanians court far-right symbolism in run-up to election
BUCHAREST - On a sunny day in April, hundreds of Romanians queued on the outskirts of Bucharest to visit a tomb bearing a vivid green flag with the insignia of the Iron Guard, one of Europe's most violent antisemitic movements of the 1930s. While displaying Iron Guard symbols was banned in Romania two decades ago, the flag flutters in the breeze over the grave of Ilie Lacatusu, a Guard member canonised by the Orthodox Church last year, every Sunday. Fascist-era symbols dot other Romanian cities, too, such as monuments or streets named after Iron Guard heroes or writers associated with the movement, in a show of resonance that political analysts say is bolstering the far right ahead of Sunday's presidential election. Romania's nationalist far right surged in popularity in a string of elections last year, culminating with little-known pro-Russia Calin Georgescu topping the first round of a presidential ballot in November - before a court cancelled that vote a month later amid allegations of Russian interference. With Georgescu now banned from running again, opinion polls show hard-right opposition leader and eurosceptic George Simion poised to win on Sunday, with some 30% of the vote. Analysts say much of that popularity comes from the ability of hard-right leaders like Georgescu and Simion to harness long-standing grassroots acceptance of wartime fascist figures and their conservative values to stoke voter anger over high living costs and perceived social immorality they blame on mainstream centre-left and centre-right politicians and Western elites. "Everything that has happened in this country has been done against us, especially since our vote was stolen," designer Lucian Datcu, 51, said as he left Lacatusu's tomb earlier this month. He plans to vote for Simion. "We need to try someone else." Like some others seeking solace around Lacatusu's tomb, Datcu shrugs off his Iron Guard past. Ioana Scumpieru, 69, a pensioner who works as a nanny, said that what was important for her was the spiritual experience, not history. "Things go very well for me after I pray at his tomb. It does not bother me," she said. 'NORMALISATION' While no one in Romania advocates violence or antisemitism in public, activists say the electoral trend is worrisome. "Like it or not, an important segment of the population either does not care about (these) toxic values or they embrace them," said Marius Cazan, researcher at the Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania. "The problem with normalising this narrative about the past is that rather than critically examining the movement's toxic parts, it praises it," he said. Formed in 1927 and bolstered by the ensuing Great Depression and the economic toll it inflicted across Europe, the Iron Guard built its following on blaming Jews for the poverty and lack of opportunity enveloping the east European country, combined with deeply religious, anti-capitalist and anti-communist messaging. It was responsible for riots and pogroms, including one in Bucharest in 1941 when more than 100 Jews were killed and some hung on hooks in a slaughterhouse. The Iron Guard was outlawed shortly afterwards. Lacatusu, according to the Wiesel Institute, was a local unit leader in southwestern Romania. Simion, who opposes military aid to Ukraine, is critical of Brussels leadership and supportive of U.S. President Donald Trump, has sidestepped direct questions about the Iron Guard. When asked about it, he told Reuters: "These times are reminiscent of the inter-war period - the rule of law is being broken and political opinions censored. People are not being listened to, they are being defied by those clinging to power." But several of his party's members, Georgescu and other far-right politicians have openly praised Iron Guard leaders and Ion Antonescu, Romania's de facto World War Two leader. Under Antonescu, Romania was an ally of Nazi Germany until August 1944, when it changed sides. A 2004 report found that between 280,000 and 380,000 Romanian and Ukrainian Jews and thousands of Roma were killed by civilian and military authorities in Romania and areas they controlled during the war. Romania, now a European Union and NATO member country, apologized in 2003. A mandatory school class about the Holocaust was introduced last year. But Iron Guard propaganda and acceptance of Romania's far-right leaders have slowly been spreading into the mainstream. Many Iron Guard members and supporters died in prisons under communist rule after the war, many of them priests. They are known as anti-communist fighters and "prison saints," and commemorations in their honour draw dozens of people each year. At some, attendees have flashed the Nazi salute. Some of Romania's most famous interwar writers and thinkers were vocal supporters of the Iron Guard and remain celebrated today as part of the country's identity and heritage. Although honouring fascist figures and symbols in public is illegal, cases rarely get prosecuted. The prosecutor general said only some 20 such incidents got reported on average yearly. "A part of Romanian society is ambiguous about the ... fascist past while another part is fairly radicalised," said Sergiu Miscoiu, a political science professor at Babes-Bolyai University. "For the new ultranationalist parties, what resonates is denouncing globalisation and the foreign elements that (they see as) responsible for everything wrong that is happening." Romania's president has a semi-executive role that includes chairing the council that decides on military aid and defence spending, and can veto EU votes that require unanimity. The country has a pro-EU coalition government. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
