Keywords: racial attacks and harassment by skinheads; Roma rights; forced and plannedc evictions; freedom of movement; Roma discrimination
The pages that follow include Roma rights news and recent developments in the following areas: - Physical abuse and other inhuman and degrading treatment by police and other officials in Serbia and Montenegro and Ukraine; - Racial attacks and harassment by skinheads and others in Czech Republic, Serbia and Montenegro and Ukraine; - Death of Roma following substandard medical care in Bulgaria; other access to adequate medical care issues in Hungary; and publication of a report on health status of Gypsy/Travellers in the United Kingdom; - Forced evictions, and planned evictions, in Albania, Greece, Lithuania, Russia, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovenia and the United Kingdom; ERRC complaint concerning housing rights in Italy before the Revised European Social Charter found admissible; and other issues related to the right to adequate housing and freedom of movement in Bulgaria, Russia, Slovakia and Ukraine; - Italian Court finds right-wing political party members guilty of incitement to discriminatory acts in Sinti case; Access to justice issues in Russia; Slovak Minister challenges legality of special measures; United Kingdom government found to have discriminated against Czech Roma during immigration checks; and European Court of Human Rights declares Romanian Romani case admissible; - Anti-Romani sentiment issues in Hungary; - Refugee and IDP concerns in Kosovo and Serbia and Montenegro; - Bulgarian government rejects fund for school desegregation; and school segregation concerns in Denmark, Romania; - Hungarian legislators reject changes to Minorities Act; - United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child reviews Croatia; - United Nations Committee against Torture reviews Greece; and - United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women reviews Spain.
More...Keywords: arca noetica; rotulus of kingdom; postmodernity; arhitectural concept; iconographic programme; Dorin Ştefan; Ioan Popa; Virgil Scripcariu
The church “Saint John (the Baptist, the Theologian and Chrysostom) and Saint Brancovan Martyrs” from Alba Iulia has a special story, unfolded for a whole decade, 2005- 2015, being debated from architectural and iconological point of view in the cultural and ecclesiastic Romanian area, after 1989. Its architecture, drafted by the most important contemporaneous Romanian architect, Dorin Ştefan, was theorized by Augustin Ioan as privileged example of „retrofuturism” concept and falling into archetypal and minimalist trend. The form proposed by the architect wishes to be a resonance box of liturgical mystery, an ecumenical shrine, an arch of converting (arca noetica), a diachronic metaphor of basilican morphologies etc. Realized symbolic synthesis has multiple sources: Brancusian plastic morphologies, Arbore church, an Athonite cell-church, chapel of Corbusier from Ronchamp, a series of minimalist installations. Preparation for embellishment with fresco generated two iconographic projects (Sorin Dumitrescu and Ioan Popa), one diagrammatic and another typological, being chosen the last one, based on a theology of signs connected with baptismal and Eucharistic typology (Baptism and Eucharist, Church Easter). Iconographic programme made by painter Ioan Popa in collaboration with parish priest Jan Nicolae includes an unwound rotulus with images and texts, between mega-scenes depicted between the two minor apses: Anastasis and Pentecost, connected in a rhombus placed over a square with the scene of germination of primordial waters, in the first case, and with that of Throne of Ethimasia, in the second, thus being created, theologically, a connection between protology/ historicity and eschatology, and morphologically, the image of a baptismal font and universal panel.
More...Keywords: Romania; Universal exhibition Paris; medals
The study presents the medals obtained by Romania at the Universal Exhibitions of Paris in 1867, 1889, 1900 and 1937, which are located in the National Museum ďHistory of Romania. These pieces are important because they testify to the progress of our country and its alignment with European life following its great political achievements of the 19th century: The unification of the Romanian Principalities in 1859, the Independence of 1877-1878, the Coronation and the Proclamation of the Kingdom in 1881. These prizes are collective and individual; Over the years, their number will exceed a few miles. Ľ author presents the awards medals, chronologically. During 1867 Romania participated for the first time at the Paris Exhibition under the national pavilion.
More...Keywords: Academic Agenda; Institute of Archaeology from Iasi; 2009; Conference Reports; Documentation trips
Academic Agenda: Scientific agenda of the Institute of Archaeology from Iasi in 2009; Conference Reports; Documentation trips
More...Keywords: preaching of Jesus Christ; ecumenism; the Baltic countries;
In this excerpt of the doctoral thesis defended at the Faculty of Theology at the Pontifical Lateran University in 2009, the author, after an analysis of the historical context of the persecution of the Church in Latvia in the years 1940-1991 and the presentation of the figure of Christ in sermons, theological literature and popular piety, offers the perspectives of a new proclamation of Jesus Christ, drawing on the thought of John Paul II and the documents of Vatican II. Contents: 1. The renewal of man in Trinitarian Christocentrism. 1.1. The mystery of the Incarnation: the fundamental theological perspective. 1.2. The Paschal Mystery as the revelation of God's Trinitarian Love and divine sonship of man. 2. «We are called to proclaim Christ» in the communion of Christian life. 2.1. The proclamation of Jesus Christ: the most urgent task of the Church. 2.2. Proclaiming Christ in the communion of Christian life. 3. Unity of Christians as a condition for the effective proclamation of the Gospel. 3.1. The «ecumenical dimension» of the visit of Pope John Paul II in the Baltic countries. 3.2. Some aspects of the current ecumenical situation.
More...Keywords: pre-industrial salt extraction; salt traffic; ethno-archaeology; ancient roads; Schneckenberg tumuli; Wietenberg fortifications; Roman mine;
Extracting clues from the diachronic mapping of fortified sites and tumuli groups, against the background of historical and ethnographic references to old roads and accessible salt resources, we investigated if the mineralogical contrast existent between a rich in salt area from south-east Transylvania and its poor in salt neighbours, had as consequence the emergence of power centres which could have organized and controlled a system of salt transportation and supply.
More...Keywords: Second Vatican Council; ecumenism; Christian Church History; Lumen gentium;
This segment is a collection of essays about the history and the implications of the Second Vatican Council.
More...Keywords: Endangered Democracy; Religion; Balkan; Middle East; Multilingualism; Transylvania; Reformation and Tolerance; Ottoman-turkish womens movement; Hungary
S. Franke: Die gefährdete Demokratie: Illiberale Demokratie – Populismus – Europaskepsis G. Schubert: Was ist ein Ungar? – Selbstverortung im Wandel der Zeit K. Kaser: Andere Blicke – Religion und visuelle Kulturen auf dem Balkan und im Nahen Osten C. Mauerer (Hrsg.): Mehrsprachigkeit in Mittel-, Ost- und Südosteuropa – Gewachsene historische Vielfalt oder belastendes Erbe der Vergangenheit H. Philipp / A. Ströbel (Hrsg.): Deutsch in Mittel-, Ost- und Südosteuropa – Geschichtliche Grundlagen und aktuelle Einbettung M. Nowotnick / F. Kührer-Wielach (Hrsg.): Wohnblockblues mit Hirtenflöte – Rumänien neu erzählen T. Kahl: Natur und Mensch im Donaudelta A. Roth / O. Sopa: Über Siebenbürgen – Bd. 6: Kirchenburgen im Unterwald A. Roth / O. Sopa / T. Şindilariu: Über Siebenbürgen – Bd. 5: Kirchenburgen im westlichen Kokelland und Mediasch L. Iuga / L. Stoia / H. Knall: Mediasch und Mediascher Persönlichkeiten, abgebildet in der Philatelie / Mediaşul şi personalităţi medieşene oglindite în filatelie D. Galter / R. Pârvu / U. Puschnig (Hrsg.): Reformation und Toleranz – Brücken über Jahrhunderte / Reformă şi toleranţă – punţi peste secole T. Bohn / R. Einax / S. Rohdewald (Hrsg.): Vlad der Pfähler – Dracula. Tyrann oder Volkstribun? T. Bohn / A. Gheorghe / C. Paulus /A. Weber (Hrsg.): Corpus Draculianum – Dokumente und Chroniken zum walachischen Fürsten Vlad der Pfähler 1448-1650; Band 1: Briefe und Urkunden; Teil 1: Die Überlieferung aus der Walachei T. Frahm (Hrsg.): Besuch am Rande – Deutsche Bulgarienreisende im 19. Jahrhundert E. Biçer-Deveci: Die osmanisch-türkische Frauenbewegung im Kontext internationaler Frauenorganisationen – Eine Beziehungs- und Verflechtungsgeschichte von 1895-1935 N. Spannenberger / S. Varga / R. Pech (Eds.): Ein Raum im Wandel: Die osmanisch-habsburgische Grenzregion vom 16.-18. Jahrhundert Z. Lengyel (Hrsg.): Ungarn-Jahrbuch – Zeitschrift für interdisziplinäre Hungarologie, Bd. 33
More...Keywords: quality management; ethics; culture; higher education;
The aim of this paper is to discover the main issues regarding the quality and ethics in higher education, including the nexus between them. It is based on a case study on The Faculty of Economics and Business Administration (FEAA) within the “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University (UAIC) in Iasi, Romania. The results indicate that it is essential to promote ethical values. Organizations in higher education implement clear quality and ethical standards, transparent procedures and openness in communication to increase accountability, promote mutual trust and support among members of the organization, along with transparent analysis of ethical issues and dilemmas that mark the existence of organizations. Due to the competitive and turbulent nature of higher education, even the best organizations will start experiencing performance problems if they are not willing or able to innovate and introduce change. Future research should focus on the concept of performance in higher education and the relationship between ethical and quality aspects.
More...Keywords: organizational culture; higher education; leadership; change; ethics;
The aim of this paper is to analyse the functioning of a faculty from different insiders’ perspectives on academia, based on organizational culture. ‘Insiders’ in this case are academic leaders, evaluators, and students. Universities are complicated social organizations with characteristic cultures. On the one hand, academic freedom, critical thinking, and autonomy are protected values and, on the other hand, changing environmental conditions exert powerful impact on the primary functions of universities. Understanding of organizational culture is not a panacea to all problems in higher education. A deep understanding of culture, for example, will not automatically increase enrollments or increase quality of teaching or decrease corruption. This case study is employed for the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration (FEAA) within the “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University (UAIC) in Iasi, Romania that faces the challenges of transition to democracy and free market economy. The findings of this paper suggests a close link between organizational culture and quality in state higher education.
More...Keywords: contributory negligence; contributory act of the victim; objective ascription; permissible risk; lawful alternative behaviour; unprotected risk;
The present study has set its aim to present the cases in which the victim’s simultaneous behaviour has a contribution to the result, as both victim and offender were somehow interacting at the origin of the initial risk. The main concern of the analysis is the Romanian courts’ view on this matter. In the first part of the article, the omissions and shortcomings found in judgments, that can lead to unlawful convictions, are uncovered. Moving on, the author concludes by stating that the solution is to be found in causation, relying on the objective ascription theory, which could and should be applied in courts. Using the tools offered by this modern theory, namely the permissible risk, the lawful alternative behaviour and the so-called unprotected risk, judgments should take into account the victim’s contribution and apply a cause of criminal impunity for the offender. The last part of the study also offers a series of reform proposals concerning the Romanian legal regulations.
More...Keywords: Transylvania; Wallachia; political relations; Sigismund Báthory; Michael the Brave;
The aim of this paper is to present new historical sources concerning the political relations between the Transylvanian Principality and Wallachia, respectively between Prince Sigismund Báthory and Voivode Michael the Brave at the end of the 16th century. Out of these sources, the first document is well-known among the historians, and contains the pact and alliance concluded on May 20, 1595 between Sigismund Báthory and Michael the Brave, according to which Wallachia acknowledged the suzerainty of Prince Báthory. However, this version of it, has not been published so far. The second document, which is dated also on May 20, 1595 is unknown, and therefore of paramount significance, to scholars, foregrounds the appointment of Michael the Brave as Voivode by Prince Báthory on the throne of Wallachia vita ipsius durante. In the same document the Prince established the incomes of the Voivode and granted his own (i.e. Michael the Brave’s) estates in Wallachia to the Voivode and his legitimate male heirs. The texts of these two documents were preserved in a formulary of the Transylvanian princely chancellery from the end of the 16th century. The last document, which is known by historian through a Latin resumé, is published in extenso for the first time. This mandate of institution (litterae introductoriae) from April 4, 1596 concerns some estates in the Doboca county, which were donated by Prince Báthory to Michael the Brave, Voivode of Wallachia and princely counselor.
More...Keywords: Aniversări; centenar;
Aniversații anului 2010 sunt cercetătorii: Steluța Pârâu, Viorel Boldureanu, Avram Cristea, Valer Deleanu, Raimonde Wiener, Cornel Arion, Valer Butură și Ilarion Cocișiu.
More...Keywords: aeronautics; Traian Vuia; Aurel Vlaicu; Henri Coandă; George (Gogu) Constantinescu; Ion Paulat; Radu Stoika; Paul Cornu; Grigore Brişcu; George de Bothezat; Elie Carafoli; INCREST; IAR-93; IAR-99;
The paper presents a history of Romanian aeronautics. Going beyond the pioneering period of the famous designers of Romanian aircraft (Traian Vuia, Aurel Vlaicu and Henri Coandă), we subsequently enter into other areas - hydroplanes, helicopters. Not long after the end of the First World War, in Brasov, the production of the most well-known and performing aircraft at that time - IAR-80, an intense participant in the clashes during the Second World War, began. After the War, the production was halt and then resumed in 1968, but previously (1949-1968), the university research in this domain was significant. The new model, IAR-93 has received permanent support, being set up several new production units, but some decisions of forced assimilation of some benchmarks were not good. After 1990, the realization of this plane ceased, being physically destroyed a series of almost new devices. In the second part of the paper, the problem of pilot training and the development of training aircraft is addressed. The article ends with an overview of the aerodynamic tunnels made and used in the Romanian aeronautical research activity.
More...Keywords: History; Urban History; History of Croatia; Urban Elite; Medieval Gradec (Zagreb); Prosopograhy; Town Offices;
This research focuses on those Gradec citizens who were elected to administrative functions since these were held by the richest and most distinguished citizens. They constituted the political elite of the city as there was only a thin line between the economic, social and political elites in Gradec. This paper deals with many aspects and elements that played a role in the formation of the urban elite, elements such as family ties, wealth, moral values, piety, education and membership of the nobility.
More...Keywords: city centers; Wallachia; 19th century; communication systems; Râmnicu Vâlcea; Caracal; Slatina; Târgu Jiu;
This is a further study of the one started in the ’90s, in which I was trying to define, through indirect methods, the plausible place and form of early urban centres of the Romanian territories outside the Carpathians. On that occasion, using a diverse and approximate historical mapping, I was preparing a starting point for further research. To be specific, I provided some case studies in which the main commercial space was outlined by transit roads and other main architectural landmarks. This present study is more accurate and stable, because it uses a verified mid 19th century cartography, that has the merit of having drawn the plans of the cities prior to possible systematizations, starting with the second half of the 19th century. Therefore, considering their appearance and evolution, these plans provide information for all historical paths. The case studies, more elaborate than in the 90s, have as topic a number of Romanian cities from the Southern Carpathians, less studied from this aspect: Râmnicu Vâlcea, Caracal, Slatina and Târgu Jiu. The delimitation, organization and relation with the urban context of the central areas (with commercial functions, to a large extent) of the nineteenth-century cities, allows to deduce, using other sets of information, the place and the way in which the early organizations of these cities appeared, indicating, implicitly, areas of future archaeological research that would aim at their exact restitution.
More...Keywords: literary criticism; political theory; contemporary literature;
This section contains a number of reviews, presenting a variety of books, both literary and theoretical, signed by young Romanian literary critics.
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