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As in previous years, on Tuesday evening the Municipality of Brasov (Brașov/Brassó, Romania) greeted Hungarians with red-white-green decorations on the occasion of the State Foundation Day. The gesture, however, provoked fierce anger from nationalist Romanians, Krónika, a Hungarian-language Romanian news portal, reports.
The mayor’s office of the county seat announced earlier in the day that the town hall of Brasov would be illuminated in red, white and green in the evening in honor of the Hungarian national holiday. The giant letters of the Romanian name of the city (Brașov) on the Tâmpa (Cenk) hill overlooking Brasov were also illuminated. According to a post on the municipality’s social networking site, the gesture is intended to recognize the contribution of the Hungarian community in Brasov to the city’s development over many centuries.
The mayor’s office recalls that
Brasov is not only an important economic and cultural center, but also a model city of good understanding between the three ethnic groups living there.
The office points out that the city was made up of the Romanian community of Șcheii Brașovului (Bulgarszeg), the Hungarian community of Blumăna (Bolonya) and the Saxon community of Brașovul Vechi (Óbrassó). It also mentions that the celebration of the foundation of the Hungarian state is an important event for Hungarians in Transylvania and Banat, including the 11,000-strong Hungarian community in Brasov.
The Mayor of Brasov, Allen Coliban, who, after taking office four years ago, for the first time in 2021, has established this form of homage to Hungarians. The politician from the Save Romania Union (USR) party, who also greets Hungarians on March 15, said that on August 20 in Brasov “we will celebrate diversity and mutual respect together.”
He noted that
the symbolic gesture was an expression of the municipality’s respect for the Hungarians who “contribute to the cultural richness of the city.”
“We are lucky to live today in Brasov, a model of peaceful coexistence in a Europe of freedom and inclusion. Anyone who tries to stir up discord or tension between ethnic groups would do well to come to Brasov, where they can learn about multiculturalism and how mutual respect can build a better future for all. God bless you, Hungary! God bless the Hungarian community in Brasov!” wrote Allen Coliban, and concluded his message with a greeting in Hungarian: “We wish you all a happy holiday!”
The portal notes that the mayor was defeated in the June 9 local elections by the joint candidate of the governing coalition, George Scripcaru, who will take office in September. Some people in the comment section have expressed their displeasure with the gesture to Hungarians, but their numbers are negligible.
However, there was a flood of comments on the mayor’s Facebook page on the post announcing the red-white-green decorations.
Dan Tanasă, who is notorious for his anti-Hungarian rants and his court cases against Hungarian national symbols, could not leave the “celebration” of the founding of the Hungarian state in Brasov without a word. “Only some dark servants can think up and put into practice such a thing,” wrote the MP of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) in his comment to the post.
His comments were welcomed by many, but others called on him not to incite hatred between Brasov’s citizens of different nationalities. Tanasă does not seem to have learnt the lesson from the people of Brasov in this year’s municipal elections, when they made it clear that they did not want him, the news portal recalls. The extreme nationalist politician ran for mayor of the city on June 9 under the AUR banner, but was soundly defeated: he received 4,303 votes, representing 3.94% of the votes cast.
Via Krónika, Featured image: Facebook/Primăria Municipiului Braşov (Brasov Mayor’s Office)