The day of the expressed respect of the ethnic minorities towards the Romanian nation - Romania may get a new official "holiday" with this name if the Parliament in Bucharest accepts the recently submitted draft law calling for it. It is in Székelyland that the Romanian army practices, the Romanian national holiday Trianon and the annexation of Transylvania, and even this...

Of course, the initiative comes from one of the in-laws of the extremist Association for the Unification of Romanians (AUR), which is (also) famous for its anti-Hungarianism. Senator Adrian Cătană, the originator, chose November 24 as the new holiday or memorial day. It is the birthday of Stephan Ludwig Roth (November 24, 1796 – May 11, 1849), Transylvanian Saxon writer, Lutheran minister, teacher, politician, revolutionary, who, according to the draft that can also be read on the AUR website, was an "excellent defender" of Romanians' rights, since he resisted the "assimilation policies" experienced in Transylvania at the time.

In the justification of the draft, the Szeben county senator – who, like Roth, was born in Medgyes – explains: in 1842, the Saxon pedagogue named Romanian as the true official language of Transylvania, while this title was intended for Hungarian.

He writes about this in his pamphlet Der Sprachenkampf in Siebenbürgen. According to Adrian Cătană, Stephan Ludwig Roth , who was sentenced to death for treason in 1849, is "a model of superior sacrifice for the principles of justice and equality" "He was executed because of his democratic convictions, his fight for the rights of Romanians and his respect for Transylvania's ethnic diversity," the draft law describes.

According to which, by recognizing November 24 as the day of the expressed respect of ethnic minorities for the Romanian nation, they would also pay tribute to the memory of Stephan Ludwig Roth, "underlining the importance of mutual respect between ethnicities, promoting cultural diversity and recognizing the contribution of all communities to the history and development of our society". In this way, they would pay tribute to the merits and sacrifices of a leader who fought for equality and respect between different ethnic communities.

By the way, in the recommendation of the Hungarian version of the aforementioned pamphlet by Stephan Ludwig Roth, published by Pont Kiadó in 2021, we can read that

The language struggle in Transylvania - Illumination of where and how was written for the survival of German in Transylvania.

"Stephan Ludwig Roth lives as a martyr in the memory of the Transylvanian Saxons (now greatly reduced in number). Lexicon data: during the revolution and freedom struggle of 1848-49 (...) on the instructions of Lajos Kossuth, the impromptu trial court set up by the Transylvanian government commissioner Csányi sentenced him to death on charges of activities against "the Hungarian homeland, its constitution, civil liberties and independent status". His execution did a lot of harm... - it would be difficult to list who. However, St. L. Roth's pamphlet, born in 1842, is still an exciting read, since "the situation is constantly given", and the Hungarian reader from Transylvania (or other "locality") struggling with similar problems today can experience how he felt and how he reasoned in the same situation. the Transylvanian Saxon. Today's reader can already compare the past century of Romanianization processes with the damned "Hungarianization" (in terms of "from where to where") .

Returning to Adrian Cătană's draft law: according to the Bucharest-based Romanian portal Fanatik.ro, which reports on the initiative, the draft is "problematic" from several points of view.

On the one hand, it can be interpreted as if ethnic minorities do not respect Romanians outside of November 24. At the same time, it is not defined what the members of the minorities should do on this day to show their respect for the Romanian nation.

The wording used in the draft obliges the listed institutions to organize certain events on the official day, while the organization of events related to many similar thematic dates previously accepted in Romania - for example Oltenia Day or Cyclists' Day - is only recommended, not obligatory. However, if Cătană's draft is accepted

all municipalities must organize something, even where there are no minorities.

Fanatik reminds us: this is not the first time that a draft law has been brought before the parliament, which was deliberately developed in order to whip up the mood, playing the card of nationalism.

As an example, they mention setting the day of the Trianon Peace Treaty on June 4, which was also accepted in 2020, on the centenary - but they do not oblige in this either, they only recommend events.

But another AUR representative has already submitted a - not yet adopted - draft law that, in addition to putting everyone in jail, on the national flag day on June 26, would order everyone to go home during the summer vacation,

it would oblige all mayors – of course the Hungarians as well – to kiss the Romanian flag: otherwise they could face fines and even criminal charges.

Source: Krónikaonline.ro

Front page image: Illustration / The Romanians who entered the military cemetery in Úzvölgy by force on June 6, 2019. In the cemetery, the Romanian monument and plot, which was erected in violation of the law, were consecrated in an Orthodox ceremony. Photo: MTI/Nándor Veres.