On a tiny island in a lake just outside of Bucharest stands Snagov Monastery which local tradition states is the burial place of Vlad the Impaler Originally founded in the 14th century and later excavated in 1933 the monastery is a seemingly simple place of worship taking advantage of the calm its water-locked isolation brings the story goes that after his notoriously cruel lifetime Vlad Tepes III was buried in the church as per his request prior to his death A number of archeologists and historians have worked to verify whether this tale is fact or simple apocrypha and none have been able to prove that the dictator was ever laid to rest on the island After having dug up some of the site's burial stones all that was found were a mix of horse and human bones but nothing that confirms the possible Dracula's interment Most historians now believe that the Prince of Wallachia was buried in a monastery in the Comana area but this has not stopped the locals from spreading the spurious myth A footbridge has been built to the island and visitors are encouraged to stop by the Snagov Monastery and view the supposed grave the caretakers now charge anyone who wants to take pictures The Romanian government even began plans to capitalize on the church's unverifiable history by building an amusement park in Snagov called "Dracula Park" although development was mercifully canceled in 2006 Does this church in Naples hold the true tomb of Vlad the Impaler the notoriously cruel figure who inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula Local legend says the remains of Father Christmas lie within the medieval grounds Little Zion Church was proven to be his final resting place Though Johnson is not actually buried here an Atlanta-based band sponsored a headstone for him this memorial does not actually claim to mark the bluesman's grave This Scottish graveyard is the final resting place of the man who inspired the character Ebenezer Scrooge The ruins of an abandoned church mingle with the graves at Oaxaca’s General Cemetery the developer of the SunLake Residence complex located on the shores of Lake Fundeni in Bucharest and 10 other buildings in central and ultra-central areas of the Capital has acquired a 15,000 sqm plot of land on the shores of Lake Snagov for a residential development of luxury villas The SunLake Snagov project will consist of more than 30 luxury villas with unique interior design parking space for boats and a watersports club The complex will also benefit from a shopping gallery with a supermarket that will offer direct access both by land and by boat from the Snagov Lake being the first supermarket with nautical access in Romania The market value of the Snagov project is estimated to exceed €20 million “SunLake Snagov will consist of a luxury villa complex featuring a private marina with parking for boats fitness center and other common facilities for the future residents 2 minutes away from the DN1 and 10 minutes from the A3 highway the land is located in one of the best positions on the shores of Lake Snagov both in terms of views – being a hillside plot – where all villas will benefit from a view of the lake and in terms of access – being one of the most easily accessible from the shore of Lake Snagov towards Bucharest SunLake Snagov will also benefit from a water sports club with activities such as water skiing Managing Partner and shareholder of the company stated First supermarket in Romania to offer direct boat access from the lake Due to the large number of boats and the lack of a supermarket that would directly serve nautical enthusiasts and owners of villas in the area with access to the lake SunLake Snagov will also benefit from a supermarket with parking for both cars and boats and owners of villas with access to the lake will be able to do their shopping directly by boat The supermarket will be part of a shopping gallery that will serve both the residential complex and the residents of Lake Snagov With a length of 16 km and an area of approximately 6 km2 Lake Snagov can be considered both one of the most accessible vacation locations and a permanent residence for Bucharest residents who want to live in nature in the proximity of the lake and the Snagov forest Snagov Lake has many attractions such as the national monument Snagov Monastery (dating back to 1408) – located on an island in the middle of the lake Snagov Palace – located on the shores of Snagov Lake as well as horseback riding or golf clubs nearby Park Properties has recently completed the construction works on blocks A and B in SunLake Residence a residential complex of 308 apartments and over 350 parking spaces in the 2nd District of the Capital on the shores of Fundeni Lake and is about to start works on block C the developer has acquired land on the shores of Pipera and Balotești lakes where it will develop the SunLake Pipera and SunLake Homes residential complexes.  Park Properties developer has realized 10 blocks located in central and ultra central areas of Bucharest so far The majority of the buildings developed by Park Properties have been more than 80% sold before completion SunLake Residence is the most ambitious project of the Park Properties investors a residential complex whose construction started in the spring of 2022 and which will consist of 308 apartments of 2 and 3 rooms as well as studios or duplex penthouses of 4 and 5 rooms two with a height of UG+Gf+12F and one building with 2 UG+Gf+18F Park Properties is targeting developments of more than 1,000 residential units over the next few years and accessing new sources of capital to grow the business The Group has acquired several large-scale lakeside sites in Pipera Balotești and other exclusive locations where it plans to continue to develop premium apartment and villa complexes targeting the luxury and affordable luxury segment of the market.     Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Thank you for choosing to be part of the Eurasian Perspectives community The latest blog posts and blog-related announcements will be delivered directly to your email inbox Romania is a country that always brings to mind magnificent castles the brutal king who inspired Bram Stoker's character "Dracula." Romania's cities are a mix of modern and historic buildings as well as stunning architecture. The country naturally has a weirder side and offers unusual attractions to visit Below we explore Vlad the Impaler's possible burial place a castle where he may have been imprisoned the ruins of an opulent casino and a museum that celebrates everything that is kitsch A tiny island lies just off Bucharest and is the home of Snagov Monastery which local legends say is the burial place of Vlad the Impaler who inspired Bram Stoker’s “Dracula.” The monastery dates back to the 14th century and it is unsure whether the brutal and cruel Vlad Tepes III was actually buried there Historians have found human and horse bones on the site but nothing to point to them belonging to Vlad but it is still a fascinating place to visit but is now one of the country’s most beautiful abandoned buildings The casino was commission in 1900 by King Carol I and opened to the public in 1910 It overlooks the Black Sea on the waterfront of the ancient port town but as circumstances in Romania worsened in the 20th century It was used briefly as a hospital in World War II and was at one time a restaurant Paul of Romania is wanted for his role in plot to reclaim royal lands Have you heard the one about the fugitive royal the diamond magnate and the cunning plot to grab royal land worth €145 million From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox It was not a fairy-tale return: they were granted only a ceremonial role and when Paul ran for president in 2000 He transformed his five-storey manor in Bucharest into a "sort of shadow royal court" offering to help him reclaim old royal lands a former chief of staff to a "corruption-plagued" former PM claimed he could help recover Paul's disputed ancestral lands – Snagov Forest and Băneasa Royal Farm if Paul signed over 50 to 80% of the properties to his company it felt like a "golden opportunity to assert his title once and for all" but he found that not all that glitters is gold The prince agreed to the arrangement, "pocketing" the advance within weeks. But it turned out that an Israeli billionaire a mining tycoon with a fortune originally made from African diamonds was the real financier of the plan to reclaim the old royal lands Paul "didn't like" what he heard about Steinmetz, who was Israel's richest man before his business dealings led to charges of bribery and corruption Paul insisted he tried to "get out" of the deal After he received ownership of Snagov Forest and Băneasa Royal Farm and signed both properties over to Truică's company he heard little from his partners and didn't receive his promised share of the sale of the assets He concluded that he was being "cheated" and went to the police in 2015 to file a complaint Romania's highest court convicted in absentia the prince and his conspirators of corruption including a term of three-and-a-half years for Paul The court ruled that Paul had agreed to be part of the plot His wife told the authorities that Paul had flown to Portugal. He was arrested twice, in Greece and Cyprus where he successfully shrugged off Romanian extradition requests on the grounds that conditions in Romania's prisons were inhumane He believed he could be targeted by political opponents in prison, he told The Times of Malta claiming he might have been the subject of an assassination attempt in 2000 when a car drove into his His lawyers disposed of his problem by arguing that two of the Romanian judges who convicted Paul had not been properly sworn in he travelled to Malta where he had been appointed the head of the charitable group the Order of St John of Jerusalem Knights of Malta He was arrested at a €5,000-a-night resort and spent two months in prison before he was bailed He told The Times of Malta that he was kept with seven others in "quite a large room" with a courtyard for exercise "It's very unnerving coming to a beautiful place like Malta and finding yourself enclosed in a prison" He emerged from his time in captivity with his jet-black hair turned white Better news came when a Maltese court refused to extradite him because it was not satisfied he would be safe in Romanian custody. "I'm happy that Malta realised what Romania was trying to do," he told Politico in a phone call outside the court He told The Times of Malta that the arrest warrant had been "used politically" by "politicians and security people" who were "relics" of the Ceaușescu era He accused the authorities of "sabotaging" his legitimate claims to properties that had once belonged to his family But he still has a conviction in Romania and a European Arrest Warrant "hanging over his head" and could yet face arrest in 25 EU member countries A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Best in Travel is here! Discover 2025’s destinations The 30 best countries, cities and regions to visit in 2025 Plan your trip with Elsewhere, by Lonely Planet See where a Lonely Planet Membership takes you Subscribe to our weekly newsletters to get the latest travel news, expert advice, and insider recommendations Explore the world with our detailed, insightful guidebooks Stay ahead of the curve with our guidebooks Uncover exciting new ways to explore iconic destinations Every month, we release new books into the wild Search Search Close search menu Explore Best in Travel 2024 Africa Close menu Countries Antarctica Antarctica Close menu Regions Asia Asia Close menu Countries Australia & the Pacific Australia & the Pacific Close menu Countries The Caribbean The Caribbean Close menu Countries Central America Central America Close menu Countries Europe Europe Close menu Countries Middle East Middle East Close menu Countries North America North America Close menu Countries South America South America Close menu Countries Sinaia's Peleș Castle was once the residence of the Romanian royal family © Dziewul / Shutterstock There’s no shortage of things to do in Bucharest some impressive destinations are within day-trip reach – from one of Europe’s most beautiful castles and Count Dracula’s infamous fort to a tranquil lakeside retreat and misty mountaintops in the Carpathians For the closest escape from an ever-bustling Bucharest, head some 15km northwest to Mogoşoaia Palace Completed in 1702 under the rule of Constantin Brâncoveanu Prince of Wallachia under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire the grounds of the palace make for a tranquil weekend getaway Despite the tragic fate of the prince and his four sons (all beheaded at the order of the Ottoman sultan) his legacy as a celebrated patron of culture has spanned centuries giving rise to the Brâncovenesc style seen on the estate Italian Renaissance and baroque architecture the style is still present today in many churches monasteries and palaces built across Romania during his reign such as the Unesco World Heritage Site of Horezu Monastery Bearing the name of the widow of a local nobleman called Mogoş the palace is part of a larger architectural complex that served as a royal residence and now houses the Museum of Brâncovenesc Art which can be visited Come for a chance to admire the hand-carved doors and vaulted ceilings of this medieval edifice and to stroll around the manicured gardens and a lake Pack a blanket and a picnic basket to fully enjoy an unhurried day on the estate Don’t miss the panoramic view from the balcony of the gate tower and the 17th-century church dedicated to St Gheorghe right outside the gate Getting there: The quickest and easiest way to reach the palace is by taxi, or you can take regional buses R474 and R436 It’s also a popular destination for cyclists A local favourite as a weekend retreat from the hubbub of the capital this is one of the most popular choices for posh countryside villas as well as holiday resorts The forest is the biggest remaining part of Codrii Vlăsiei the large woodland that once surrounded southern Romania including parts of today’s Bucharest During the warmer months, Snagov Lake is particularly enticing with options for swimming, boating, fishing and other water sports. At the northern end of the lake, a small island that’s home to the 15th-century Snagov Monastery holds an unexpected surprise It claims to be the final resting place of Vlad Ţepeş (widely referred to as Vlad the Impaler) the ruthless Wallachian prince who inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula the impressive neo-Renaissance Snagov Palace graces the grounds it’s now used for lavish events and state visits Getting there: As Snagov is more off the beaten path than Mogoşoaia public transport is not as readily available A maxi-taxi from Piaţa Presei Libere can take you into Snagov village A mountain resort at the foot of Bucegi Mountains, teeming with hikers during summer and skiers during winter, Sinaia is historically known as the summer residence of the Romanian royal family. Built in neo-Renaissance style by German architects, Peleș Castle is one of Europe’s most beautiful castles an architectural masterpiece in scenic Prahova Valley on the medieval route that once connected the principalities of Wallachia and Transylvania the interiors are lavishly decorated and feature an impressive art collection You can also visit the smaller Pelișor Castle residence to King Ferdinand and his more popular wife Queen Mary Both can be visited during a 40-minute compulsory guided tour Throughout the year you can take the cable car up stopping at both 1400m and 2000m for sweeping mountain views hiking trails and skiing pistes as well as restaurants go for a walk in Dimitrie Ghica park; it’s home to the elegant Casino and composer George Enescu’s summer residence Getting there: Catch a train from Bucharest’s Northern Railway Station to Sinaia Royal Station; the trip takes around 90 minutes Luring visitors with its aura of mystery and enthralling vampire folklore Bran Castle is a worthy excursion even though it’s a longer trip from the capital it doesn’t fail to impress with its medieval towers and green mountainous surrounds even if the myth created thanks to Bram Stoker’s Dracula is exactly that – just a myth Don’t miss the view of the castle’s courtyard as well as the scenic Bran village from the top. There’s also an open-air Ethnographic Museum showcasing Romanian farmhouses and peasant homes, traditional objects and costumes. Getting there: The easiest way to reach Bran from the capital is with your own wheels. Alternatively, buses run half-hourly from Braşov’s Autogara 2 to Bran-Moeciu de Jos, and the trip takes around 45 minutes. To reach Braşov from Bucharest, take an IC (Inter-City) train from the Northern Railway Station into the Braşov Train Station; it takes around two and a half hours. https://shop.lonelyplanet.com/products/romania-bulgaria-travel-guide-7 About 50,000 participants are expected at this year’s edition of Grillfest a major event close to Bucharest that will bring together 200 chefs from 10 countries Promoted as “the largest barbecue festival in Europe,” the event is held on a 100,000 sqm area at Lagoo Snagov from May 10 to 12 which celebrates the art of cooking with fire and smoke brings to the public the most important players in the meat industry in Romania top representatives of the barbecue market in Romania and ten other countries industry trends and techniques from around the world and an absolute first: the crocodile meat burger The festival will include over 50 stands in 8 different themed areas where roughly 100 tons of barbecue products will be prepared using the most popular techniques from American The program includes live barbecue shows and demonstrations competitions for amateurs and professionals Diana Matei & Taraful Cleante joined the event’s lineup Barbecue fans will have the chance to taste dishes created by famous chefs from Brazil The culinary star of Grillfest 2024 is the crocodile meat burger a Brazilian specialty that will be prepared live in front of the public at the Barbeque Carousel by Chef Paizao Grillfest ambassador and a special guest from Brazil Business Insider SRL is a carrier of data with personal character registered in the “Registrul de Evidenta a Prelucrarilor de Date cu Caracter Personal” with the no Romania-Insider.com is a trademark registered with the help of NOMENIUS and all exclusivity rights are reserved to the owner of Business Insider SRL Any unauthorized use will be sanctioned according to the provisions of trademarks law 84/1998 ‘The hushing up of the weak sides and the exaggeration of positive sides is a characteristic feature of obituary notices today. That, of course, is an unwise custom. We do not wish to follow it. We wish to say only what is true’—thus wrote Stalin in his obituary of early Communist G The dark dictator happened to be right about this and in this article I will therefore attempt to present a nuanced picture of Nagy’s legacy Prime Minister and martyr of the 1956 Revolution was born on 7 June 1896 in Kaposvár and was executed on 16 June 1958 The funeral ceremony for Imre Nagy and his fellow martyrs on 16 June 1989 in front of a crowd of 250,000 people in Heroes’ Square of Budapest was a symbolic event of the regime change and their ceremonial reburial took place in plot 301 of the New Public Cemetery in the capital city Born into a poor, peasant family, he came into contact with the social democratic movement at an early age.[i] He was drafted into the army in 1915 and a year later was taken prisoner of war on the Russian front He took part in the Russian Civil War as a member of the Red Guard and joined the Bolshevik Party in Irkutsk in 1920 Although his biographies say that he was dismissed from his post and expelled from the party during the Stalinist terror it is perhaps worth pointing out that he was a Chekist (member of the political police) in 1921–22 and then served in the Soviet military counter-intelligence he immediately volunteered to work as an informer for the OGPU called People’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs (NKVD) from 1934 He proudly wrote in his handwritten autobiography in 1938: ‘For a long time, I have been devotedly and honestly cooperating with the NKVD in the struggle to destroy all kinds of enemies of the people.’[ii] In 1944 he returned home as a leader of the Hungarian Communist Party and became Minister of Agriculture in the Provisional Government He was Minister of the Interior from February 1945 to March 1946 and Speaker of the National Assembly from 1947 to 1949 in 1952 Minister of Collection (thus playing a significant role in the ‘attic sweeps’ the forced collection of foodstuffs from farmers) he became deputy to Prime Minister Mátyás Rákosi he was appointed to the Political Committee the narrow governing body of the state party This period of his life is largely overlooked in his biographies. Historian János M. Rainer devotes merely a few sentences to his role as Minister of the Interior.[iii] In reality Nagy had a major role in turning Hungary into a Soviet-style dictatorship The story of the expulsion of Germans is an even darker one.[v] At the meeting of the Council of Ministers on 22 December 1945 Nagy presented the draft of the expulsion law which was based on the collective guilt of the ethnic German population in Hungary the government included as a primary subject for expulsion anyone who had declared himself to be of German mother tongue or German nationality—clearly without any evidence of pro-Nazi views or activities This was done in accordance with the will of the Soviet Chairman of the Allied Supervising Committee (SZEB) a total of about 248,600 cadastral acres of land were transferred from the Germans in Hungary to the Hungarian state the Germans in Hungary owned a total of about 60,400 houses the Hungarian state took 44,750 of these properties (i.e writer Ervin Lázár devoted an entire short story to the expulsion of the Swabians (ethnic Germans) of Györköny an elderly Swabian couple are hidden by the villagers all disturbingly reminiscent on the story of rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust ‘the planned deliberate removal from a specific territory in order to render that area ethnically homogenous.’ One might argue that in a legal sense the deportation of the German population of Hungary could be labelled a genocide or at least an ethnic cleansing The author of these lines does not wish to draw a comparison between the Holocaust and the expulsion of Germans, but merely wishes to note that all genocides and ethnic cleansings have things in common in their brutality and total indifference to humanity. In fact, the famous liberal author, István Bibó clearly compared the expulsion of the Germans to the Holocaust in his contemporary memorandum.[ix] 193 826 people were convicted by the courts for ‘endangering the public supply’ Many of these trials resulted in death sentences Between 1950 and 1953, more than 600 000 farmers left agriculture for good in their desperation, 220 000 of whom left in 1952. ‘Although Nagy supposedly disagreed with this agricultural policy, he faithfully fulfilled his mandate’—notes publicist Gábor Sebes.[x] After the Soviet leadership ordered him to Moscow in early 1955, they became dissatisfied with Nagy, so the MDP expelled him from its ranks, and the National Assembly dismissed him as Prime Minister on 18 April 1955. His party membership was restored on 13 October 1956.[xii] On the day of the outbreak of the revolution he was reinstated in the party’s supreme leadership at the demand of the demonstrators and the next day he was again appointed head of government His actions were initially disappointing because he tried to moderate the demands of the revolution On 28 October he declared a ceasefire,ethnic called for the withdrawal of Soviet troops declared a multi-party system and dissolved the political police on 1 November he declared Hungary’s neutrality and withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact asking for the support of the four great powers and the UN He and his companions were brought back to Budapest in April 1957 His trial began on 9 June 1958 in complete secrecy He denied the charges and refused to admit the jurisdiction of the court the People’s Court sentenced him to death on charges of treason without the possibility of appeal he was executed in the courtyard of the Budapest Prison together with Pál Maléter and Miklós Gimes Their bodies were buried in an unmarked grave Nagy was a highly controversial figure in Hungarian history whose assessment is still a source of intense debates His statue was removed from near the Hungarian parliament in 2018 by the Fidesz government and moved to a remote location amid fierce protests from the left-wing media As a scholar of twentieth-century dictatorships and the Holocaust I find it necessary to note: it is astonishing that a statue of Imre Nagy whose political career was marred by the servile facilitation of a totalitarian dictatorship could have been centrally located for so long Imre Nagy did stand up for the Hungarian Revolution in 1956—for debatable reasons—; but to portray him as a convinced democrat or a hero of Hungarian popular representation and individual freedom would be a serious distortion His role must be treated in its proper place: his merits must not be denied [i] János M Rainer [ii] As cited in: Gábor Sebes, ‘Rövid kurzus Nagy Imréről’, Mandiner.hu (15 Oct. 2018), https://mandiner.hu/cikk/20181015_sebes_gabor_rovid_kurzus_nagy_imrerol [iii] Rainer It should be noted here that biographies of the perpetrators of crimes against humanity on a similar scale do not usually summarise such actions in a few sentences—historians usually devote a whole chapter to the history of their victims [iv] On the role of the PRO see: László Bernát Veszprémy: Kápók a múlt fogságában Náci koncentrációs táborok magyar zsidó funkcionáriusai a népbíróság előtt [v] This and the next few passages are based on the following books: István Fehér Adatok és tények a magyarországi németség történetéből 1989.; Johann Weidlein: A magyarországi németség küzdelme fennmaradásáért: Dokumentáció 1996.; A magyarországi Szövetséges Ellenőrző Bizottság jegyzőkönyvei [vi] Sándor Balogh [vii] Ágnes Tóth Telepítések Magyarországon 1945–1948 között: A németek kitelepítése a belső népmozgások és a szlovák–magyar lakosságcsere összefüggései [viii] Iván Boldizsár I’d like to thank Áron Máthé for calling my attention to this source [ix] Rainer [x] Sebes [xii] This and the next few passages are based on Rainer [xiii] Sebes Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective It was not a business idea from the beginning; it started like a wish to accomplish a passion and to purpose to myself a lifestyle, but soon after I started to calculate the investment needs and the expenses, I decided to start a business around the horses, at least for covering the monthly expenses. If you don’t take into consideration the initial investment in the riding facility (buildings if you diversify at maximum the activity connected with the horses unless you sell in good conditions some horses – the horse trade itself can be more profitable in terms of number of bought and sold horses and in terms of horses’ price made of the most resistant and suitable wood We have a very good access from the main road in the vicinity of the Snagov area and in the way to the Valea Prahovei resorts – so Moreover, we offer in our Riding School the biggest number of school horses, well trained and diversified on student’s level, with the best conditions for training, for both beginners and advanced students, adults and children, no matter the weather or season. Some of them are children in love with animals but especially with horses; some of them are teenagers who like to perform a sport who like to establish relationships with friends of similar ages Others are adults who work quite hard during the day and want to relax at the end of the day and come for a riding lesson or even decide to buy a horse and want to spend with him some relaxing hours once in a while In any case, they are people with an income above the average, but not exactly…millionaires! Another type of clients are the professionals in equestrian sports who train their own horses or other people’ horses the shavings for the box – changed every two days the training done by my riders (employees of the club) vaccines and anti-parasite prophylaxis – every six months because we had a lower number of competitions in comparison with the last year I expect the turnover to be a bit higher in 2016 because we had this year more horses in pension belonging to other owners and because we also offered more riding lessons and had other activities We use cookies for keeping our website reliable and secure providing social media features and to analyse how our website is used The patronal feast of the Romanian Metropolitan Cathedral in Paris which is dedicated to the Holy Archangels Michael was celebrated the previous weekend with an extended program The celebrations commemorated three anniversaries: 170 years since the founding of the Romanian Orthodox community in Paris 140 years since the acquisition of the church of the former “Jean de Dormans-Beauvais” college and 130 years after the church’s consecration The Divine Liturgy held on November 6 at the Romanian Cathedral in Paris was the focal point of the festivities Together with Metropolitan Iosif of Western and Southern Europe Serbian Bishop Justin of Western Europe and four other Romanian hierarchs from the diaspora co-celebrated Bishop Timotei of Spain and Portugal presented the sermon at the Divine Liturgy emphasizing the significance of unwavering faith in connection to the raising of Jairus’ daughter Assistant Bishop Teofil of Iberia delivered the message of the Patriarch of Romania at the conclusion of the ceremony The Assistant Bishop Marc of Neamt also read the message in French “In these solemn moments of a triple anniversary in 2022 we congratulate and bless all the members of this ancient Romanian Orthodox community for the fidelity and dignity with which you endured communist persecution while bearing the heavy cross of exile,” His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel noted “To the new generations of Romanians settled in Paris as well as to all Franco-Romanian families we address you the parental exhortation to constantly profess the Crucified and Risen Christ with humility and gentleness according to the tradition of the Romanian people,” the Romanian Patriarch said in his message of congratulations to the Metropolitan Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolis of Western and Southern Europe Metropolitan Iosif highlighted the international nature of the community that has emerged next to the Paris Metropolitan Cathedral where people from all nationalities have prayed together and continue to do so Metropolitan Iosif noted the participation of delegates from five Orthodox Patriarchates The Metropolitan outlined the history of the six-hundred-year-old place of worship He also referred to the Romanian Orthodox community in Paris which was founded in 1852 under the leadership of Archimandrite Ioasafat Snagoveanul (Josaphat of Snagov) and was primarily comprised of members of the “Society of Romanian (Moldavian-Wallachian) Students.” “Young students are responsible for founding this community the Romanian students in Paris are our predecessors here,” Metropolitan Iosif stated secretary of state at the Department for Romanians Everywhere were also present at the Cathedral’s celebrations The event continued in the afternoon with a concert where young Romanian artists from Paris performed The Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate approved on October 4th the canonization of Eldress Sophia Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew traveled by air to Antalya the Patriarchate of Jerusalem solemnly celebrated the Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women... Archbishop Elpidophoros of America celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Monastery of the Theotokos.. it was announced that two Roman Catholic institutions in Bavaria have decided to jointly.. A car once used by Pope Francis during his 2014 visit to Bethlehem is being transformed into a mobile.. (function() { window.mc4wp = window.mc4wp || { listeners: [] cb) { window.mc4wp.listeners.push( { event : evt callback: cb } ); } } }})(); © 2023 OrthodoxTimes.com - All rights reserved Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website These cookies do not store any personal information Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website Erotic Survival Thriller ‘Bone Lake’ Sets October Theatrical Release Date Five Horror Movies Inspired by Fairy Tales to Stream This Week Multiverse Revenge Thriller ‘Redux Redux’ Acquired by Saban for Theatrical Release ‘Together’ Trailer – Alison Brie & Dave Franco’s Love and Flesh Get Corrupted Rock Climbing Survival Horror ‘The Sound’ Will Release in June ‘The Last of Us Part II’ Character Makes Violent Entrance in ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 Netflix Renews Apocalyptic Sci-Fi Series ‘The Eternaut’ for Season 2 ‘Revival’ Trailer Brings the Dead Back to Life in SYFY Comic Book Adaptation Series Check Into Shudder’s ‘Hell Motel’ from the Creators of ‘Slasher’ [Trailer] Matthew Lillard in Talks to Join Mike Flanagan’s ‘Carrie’ TV Series Director Haylie Duff’s ‘I Am Your Biggest Fan’ Is a Predictable But Watchable Kidnapping Thriller [Review] ‘Rosario’ Review – Family Curse Horror Story Gets Caught in Familiar Possession Trappings ‘The Horror at Highrook’ Nails the Cosmic Horror Blendo Games’ Immersive Sim ‘Skin Deep’ Is Hilarious and Exhilarating [Review] ‘Until Dawn’ Review – Kitchen Sink Creature Feature Fails Its Source Material Let’s Cast a ‘White Lotus’ Season With Stephen King Characters Salem Horror Fest 2025 Opening Night Raises Hell with Ashley Laurence [Event Report] 6 Recent Free-to-Play Horror Games That’ll Give You Nightmares Supernatural Tactical Extraction Shooter ‘Nightmare Frontier’ Comes to Steam This Summer [Trailer] a ‘FAITH’-Inspired Farming Sim Coming This October [Trailer] ‘Clock Tower’-Inspired Survival Horror Title ‘Midnight Special’ Launches May 8 on Steam [Trailer] Body Horror Sim ‘Zoochosis’ Announced for PlayStation Consoles [Trailer] Latest ‘Elden Ring Nightreign’ Trailer Highlights the Game’s Systems [Watch] Roadtrippers is reporting that Erika Stella a student doing her dissertation on Naples’ Santa Maria la Nova Church is convinced that a headstone on a grave belongs to none other than the 15th century Prince Vlad Tepes III the man who was the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula Tepes’ cruelty and domination was very well-documented except for his final days Some say he died in battle while others say he was taken prisoner Some scholars believe that Tepes was the ransomed to his daughter who lived in Naples Researchers noticed that the tomb at the Santa Maria la Nova Church is covered with Transylvanian symbols When you look at the bas-relief sculptures The dragon means Dracula and the two opposing sphinxes represent the city of Thebes the very name of the count Dracula Tepes is written These researchers are asking authorities for permission to open the grave to verify their findings Managing editor/music guy/social media fella of Bloody-Disgusting Shredder as Dracula Joins NECA’s Ninja Turtles X Universal Monsters Toy Line NECA’s “Toony Terrors” Series 10 Features Black-and-White Universal Monsters The History of the Universal Monsters: ‘Dracula’ Rises and Hollywood Horror Is Born [Halloweenies Podcast] Bleecker Street has acquired the US rights to Bone Lake setting an October 10 theatrical release date erotic survival thriller is directed by Mercedes Bryce Morgan (Spoonful of Sugar) and written by Joshua Friedlander (Holly Slept Over) A couple’s romantic vacation at a secluded lakeside estate is upended when they’re forced to share the mansion with a mysterious and attractive couple A dream getaway spirals into a nightmarish maze of sex bringing terrifying secrets to light and triggering a bloody battle for survival Nick Matthews (Saw X) serves as director of photography Trace Thurman wrote in his review out of Fantastic Fest “Bone Lake emerges as one of the biggest surprises of Fantastic Fest operating as an incredibly entertaining thriller that doesn’t skimp on the gore or the laughs It’s a goddamn blast from start to finish.” Bone Lake has been rated “R” for strong bloody violence A bear was seen on Saturday morning in the town of Ciolpani near Bucharest So the authorities issued a RO-Alert warning "The presence of a bear has been reported in the town of Ciolpani stay indoors!" reads the message from the Bucharest Emergency Inspectorate for the population of Ciolpani and Snagov Several intervention teams were sent to the scene a unit of the Ilfov Gendarmerie remained in the area for surveillance Local authorities have also been informed," announces the Romanian Gendarmerie The bear cub did not attack households or individuals This is not the first time a bear has been spotted so close to Bucharest for a bear located in the Scroviștea forest One specimen was filmed in 2023 less than 20 kilometers from Bucharest bears have descended into several towns in the hilly and lowland areas in search of food has been put on trial in a corruption case involving the illegal restitution of the former royal farm Baneasa and a forest in Snagov to Romanian Prince Paul according to a decision of Romania’s High Court Tariceanu will be tried alongside several former high ranking officials from the Romanian state and foreign citizens Israeli billionaire Beny Steinmetz and political consultant Tal Silberstein are also tried in this case together with the owner of Evenimentul Zilei newspaper Dan Andronic and controversial businessman Remus Truica In a nutshell, anti-graft prosecutors claim that Tariceanu was lying when he said that the didn’t know anything about the negotiations that other defendants had about the pieces of land and the forest that should have been restituted to Paul Philippe Al Romaniei. The estimated loss for the state from these transactions amounts to EUR 135.8 million The Senate head is also the co-chair of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats which is part of the ruling coalition in the Government and Parliament alongside the Social Democratic Party (PSD) #alăturideRobert has become a national movement – Q Magazine investigates why a panel of the High Court of Cassation and Justice consisting of Florentina Dragomir Ioana Ilie and Ionuț Matei issued the final court decision in the Băneasa Royal Farm Case The National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) indicted businessman Remus Truică as well as Israeli businessmen Tal Silberstein Benyamin Steinmetz and Moshe Agavi for the illegal restitution of the Baneasa Royal Farm and the Snagov Forest on 18 May 2016 The DNA prosecutors accused them of various acts perpetrated between 2006 to 2013 with a view to obtain highly valuable assets claimed by Prince Paul including the Snagov Forest and the Băneasa Royal Farm The lawfulness of Prince Paul’s recovery of the assets had been validated by several judges in first instance court as well as on appeal but the prosecutors dismissed these civil court decisions as not good Two of these judges were in fact summoned to the DNA and inexplicably ended up declaring years after they had rendered those decisions that maybe they “wouldn’t take the same decision today” one of the judges answered: “I am only human!” •  Remus Truică – 7 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Paul-Philippe al României – 3 years and 4 months imprisonment (no probation) •  Nela Ignatenko (ex-Păvăloiu) – 5 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Dan Andronic – 3 years imprisonment (probation) and unpaid community service for 60 days at Bucharest Integrated Assistance Centre or the General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection of District 3 •  Robert Mihăiță Roșu (lawyer) – 5 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Tal Silberstein (Israeli businessman) – 5 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Benyamin Steinmetz (Israeli businessman) – 5 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Apostol Muşat (former mayor of Snagov) – 4 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Marius Andrei Marcovici – 3 years imprisonment (probation) •  Lucian Claudiu Mateescu – 3 years imprisonment (probation) •  Gheorghiță Dragomira – 4 years imprisonment (probation) •  Corina Teodora Dicu – 4 years imprisonment (probation) •  Ioan Stoian – 4 years imprisonment (probation) •  Niculae Dima – 4 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Nicolae Jecu (former Ilfov prefect) – 4 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Caterina Popa – 4 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Gheorghe Olteanu – 4 years imprisonment (no probation) •  Valentin Delcea – 4 years imprisonment (no probation ) the Brașov Court of Appeal as first instance court in the case sentenced Remus Truică to 4 years imprisonment Paul-Philippe Al României and Nela Păvăloiu to 3 years imprisonment lawyers Robert Roșu and Corina Teodora Dicu company director and former adviser to Călin Popescu Tăriceanu the Brașov Court of Appeal found that for some of the charges “the crime does not exist” and for the others “the crime is not provided by the criminal law” recently sentenced by the High Court of Cassation and Justice to five years in prison for activities that are specific to his profession as lawyer has caused uproar in the legal world and in the Romanian society at large Immediately after the decision of the infamous “black panel” of the HCCJ a huge wave of revolt and solidarity with lawyer Roșu surged on the social media networks and among lawyers who organized protests throughout the country under the #alaturideRobert slogan The National Union of Romanian Bar Associations as well as over 20 local bar associations throughout the country have strongly protested against this unprecedented abuse objecting that a lawyer can never be identified with his client and that performing professional activities in the name and on behalf of a client based on and within the limits of the law and of the normal and proper exercise of the profession can never be qualified as crime the case stirred reactions among magistrates as well Numerous judges and prosecutors expressed concern about the breaches pressures and possible new abuses in the judiciary the prosecutors called as witnesses the very judges who had rendered the final court decisions (one of the pillars of the rule of law) that Robert Rosu as lawyer in the name and on behalf of his clients acted to lawfully enforce.  These judges were made to retract their own decisions by mere witness statements Such prosecutorial “approaches” not only hinder the courts’ ability to deliver justice in the name of the law but also undermine the unadulterated confidence in the act of justice that judges and courts should inspire in society in order to better understand this case and the unprecedented solidarity it created among lawyers in another month of December  – December 2015 – with an abusive search at the headquarters of his law firm an overzealous prosecutor of the famous “elite unit” of DNA Brașov turned Robert Roșu from a dedicated lawyer with a flawless professional conduct detained for a day in prison and thereafter placed under house arrest To complete the public spectacle of abuse and humiliation the lawyer was dragged from Bucharest to Brașov and paraded in front of the TV cameras in handcuffs while European law (Directive (EU) 2016/343 on the strengthening of certain aspects of the presumption of innocence) demands Member States’ public authorities NOT to apply physical restraint (handcuffs cages) in court or in public  unless such measures are required by special security circumstances and in order to prevent the suspect/defendant from evading criminal prosecution or trial It was obvious however that in the eyes of some Robert was NOT presumed innocent a presumption of guilt was cast deliberately on him or certainty among the public that he was guilty as charged by the DNA Why would DNA Brașov investigate a case concerning lands located in Bucharest and Ilfov is certainly one of the many questions without answer in this case the overzealous case prosecutor brought preposterous accusations against lawyer Roșu among which that he was far too convincing in his pleadings and thus intimidated the restitution commission or that he drafted the sale-purchase contract between the parties or that he based all the claims filed for his clients on final and irrevocable court decisions as one would expect for such a harsh conviction the prosecutor indicted Roșu because he did his lawyer’s job too well throughout the five-year trial there were judges who saw the absurdity of the charges a judge of rights and freedoms of the HCCJ found that Robert Roșu had only performed activities usual for any lawyer and released him from house arrest the court of first instance (Brașov Court of Appeal) acquitted Robert Roșu of all charges on the grounds that “the crime does not exist” where the case was not so randomly (that is as a number of legal experts have already pointed out publicly) assigned to the so-called “black panel” Based on the very same evidence as presented at the first instance court recently revealed by LUJU to have never taken her oath of office as judge and thus still a prosecutor at heart and mind) moved from “the crime does not exist” to the completely opposite conclusion based on the same evidence and the same laws for someone to be acquitted in first instance because the crime he was charged with does not exist only to be sentenced to five years in prison on appeal which should not be permitted where a man’s fate is at stake To complete the absurdity and make Kafka turn in his grave in envy lawyer Robert Roșu sued DNA and the Romanian State for abusive detention measures and won one thing is certain: an innocent man sits now in prison A man who trusted the Romanian judiciary is waiting for justice to be done Pastor Martin Niemöller’s warning comes to mind “First they came for the Communists and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist Then they came for the Socialists and I did not speak out because I was not a Socialist Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew Then they came for me and I wanted to speak out and to protest but there was no one left to hear me and to speak out for me.” now it’s time for them to come for the lawyers it’s time for them to take away everybody’s right of defence In an attempt to bring light to this case as soon as possible Q Magazine publishes excerpts from the statement given by lawyer Robert Roșu as defendant before the first instance court on 2 November 2018 It’s time for lawyer Robert Roșu to speak now Ever since the establishment of the law firm I’ve dealt with the administrative and organizational management of the litigation department I practiced as a lawyer in litigation and arbitrations I represented the Romanian State in international arbitrations as member of the legal team in cases such as EDF v where we obtained that the Romanian State was spared damages of approx I am the author of several articles published in various specialized publications; in 2015 I published a book on insolvency and bankruptcy at the Monitorul Oficial publishing house (the Official Journal of Romania) I was also a member of the legal team assisting the Ministry of Justice in the project analysing the impact of the New Civil Code and the New Code of Civil Procedure I have represented clients in hundreds of litigations and arbitrations and my work in pro bono cases is well-known I provided legal assistance in support of the victims of the Montenegrin accident and for the families of the victims of the Colectiv Club fire in accordance with the principles of the legal profession in full compliance with the law and the professional ethics even as they are described in the indictment report are specific to the legal profession; in essence I am being accused of having certified a contract of having drafted and filed two notifications to public institutions and of having assisted or represented the client before courts The DNA specialists prepared an accounting and financial report for the period 2006-2015 which shows that I did not carry out any professional or financial activity other than that of lawyer that I earned income exclusively from my legal profession that I have no financial or contractual relationship with the other persons in this case or with companies owned by my clients I would like to emphasize that all my activities were carried out as a lawyer of Țuca I did not enter into any private legal assistance contracts with any of the parties and it was the law firm which was authorised to act by the clients alongside many colleagues from the law firm More than 60 lawyers worked in these cases for the client Al României Paul Philippe and for Reciplia SRL and most of the legal assistance contracts or powers of attorney can be found in the case file I am confident that the court investigation will reveal the truth and I would like to remind that the HCCJ’s judge of rights and freedoms held in his 11 March 2016 resolution that none of the evidence produced by the prosecution by that date indicates that I would have perpetrated any crime and that all my activities were carried out in full compliance with Law No I would underline at this point that from that date of 11 March 2016 and up to 21 May 2016 no new evidence was produced as far as I am concerned therefore I deem that all the conclusions of the judge of rights and freedoms who released me without any restrictive measure are still correct today 25,500 pages that accompanied the indictment report having reviewed all the legal arguments used over the years by me and my colleagues in defending the clients I am still certain that those legal arguments are correct and I am firmly convinced that I would proceed today in the same manner as far as my arguments are concerned according to my conscience and my professional skills Since it is being alleged  that some of the arguments that my colleagues or I used were incorrect I would like in addition to describing the facts as known to me to make a few brief considerations of civil law in direct rebuttal of the charges brought against me Surely no one can say today that Al României Paul Philippe is not the grandson of Carol II that he has no right to inherit him or other members of the royal family with whom he is tied by kinship These matters have been ruled upon by numerous court decisions especially by the Court of Appeal and the High Court of Cassation and Justice I was interested to study the court decisions existing in the case file as well as other final and irrevocable court decisions regarding Al României Paul’s claims both in cases on which I worked with my colleagues and in other cases in connection to which I did not carry out any legal work over 45 judges who determined on the rights that the indictment report now considers non-existent that Paul Philippe is an inheritor of Carol Mircea Grigore but also of his aunts and uncles on his grandfather’s side: Nicolae it has been determined that the assets of the royal family of which he is a member were seized by the Romanian State abusively which has already been found absolutely null and void by the Romanian courts 954 of 14 February 2012 completed the exequatur procedure of the Lisbon 1955 decision I also recall that the Lisbon decision ruled that Mircea Grigore is a son of Carol II with all the rights deriving from this capacity and that this decision was subsequently recognized in France an exequatur was initiated in Romania to recognize this decision the prosecution’s argument is that Paul Philippe could not have been regarded as Carol II’s heir prior to 2012 when the exequatur procedure was completed in Romania because we are dealing with a decision on matters of civil status when it is found that the defendant is the father of the plaintiff’s child the father acquires said parenthood status from the child’s birth and not from the date that court decision is passed It is juridically incorrect to say that Paul Philippe became Carol Mircea Grigore’s son and Carol II’s grandson at the age of 54 we have court decisions that looked into these arguments I refer here to the very decisions taken in connection to the Snagov property where the courts ruled that the Lisbon decision is a legal fact that cannot be ignored and that the completion of the exequatur procedure cannot establish rights for the claimants but rather I have noticed that the prosecution in support of its charges criticizes the lawfulness of all the notarial documents that Paul Phillippe used in the procedures These documents are inheritance certificates certificates attesting to his capacity as heir These documents have been concluded by 8 Romanian notaries public and 5 foreign notaries public and lawyers The prosecution considers absolutely each and every one of these documents to be fabricated even though not a single one of these notaries public was heard and in violation of the legal provisions which set forth that authenticated documents enjoy a presumption of lawfulness and can only be found null by a civil law court (given that under Romanian law there is no ipso jure nullity or conventional nullity) my colleagues and I started from the presumption that these documents are lawful and to this day I have no doubt as to their lawfulness the HCCJ stated that lawyer Robert Roșu has no right to even question their lawfulness I will now describe the facts as I know them in hopes of helping to establish the truth in this case the description of the facts put forth by the prosecution is either erroneous or fails to take into account events that are extremely important The first contact that my colleagues and I had with the client Reciplia SRL was on 20 September 2006 when we were presented with a rights assignment agreement that had already been drawn up and we were told that previous negotiations for an assignment of these litigious or patrimonial rights had been conducted between OL the first agreement for assignment of litigious rights was signed I met Paul Philippe 5 minutes before the signing of the agreement and the signing was also attended by OL my colleagues and I had zero input in the negotiations in the pecuniary values established as obligations I certified this agreement under number 277 of 21 September 2006 in accordance with Article 3 of Law 51 – a professional activity that is absolutely normal and consists in certifying the parties’ identity their signatures and the contents of the document a legal assistance contract was concluded with Reciplia in accordance with the laws and regulations which contract also covered the certification of the first agreement and all subsequent legal work related to the due diligence report and what followed An interdisciplinary team of 15 lawyers prepared the due diligence report solely based on the documents made available by lawyer OL who had managed all Prince Paul’s files between November 2005 and  September 2006 and had all these documents which analysed 15 assets out of the over 40 assets indicated in Decree 38/1948 This was a complex and difficult work for the law firm that had only been established a year and a half before and which at that point did not enjoy the reputation that the prosecution unjustifiably claims The findings of the due diligence report were positive; nothing in the report indicated that Prince Paul did not have the rights he claimed and the chapter concerning the Snagov Forest provided that the risk for Prince Paul not to take possession of the Fundul Sacului property was minimal considering the court decisions which had been rendered up to that point and the county commission decisions already issued under the law the report indicated that the asset had undoubtedly been part of Carol II’s estate and that administrative procedures were required while at that time the file was with the entity that held the asset neither my colleagues nor I had any lawyer-client professional relations with Prince Paul He was assisted or represented at all times by Mr Under the agreement concluded on 1 November 2006 Prince Paul undertook to grant powers of attorney to the law firm for representation purposes exclusively in connection with the restitution proceedings because under their agreement the parties owned percentages of those rights I never had any doubts as to the lawfulness of that agreement many lawyers participated to the drafting or signing of such agreements and the agreements I never witnessed any discussion of illicit character any question from the latter about the concrete manner in which certain restitutions were carried out; at the time of the signing I was not aware of the specific stage of the litigation for very many files when Prince Paul sold to Reciplia SRL the part of the Băneasa Farm that had been recovered represented by Țuca Zbârcea & Asociații became involved in court disputes against one another that materialised in dozens of notifications and lawsuits (this can be verified on the courts portal) which implied mutual accusations between the parties as to how the rights and obligations under the 2006 agreement had been fulfilled and observed Never throughout these proceedings or in any of these documents did any of the parties mention that any unlawful acts would have been committed during the restitution proceedings or that the 2006 agreement or the subsequent addenda would have been fraudulent arrangements or merely a method to create an appearance of lawfulness which in and of itself confirms that those agreements were lawful and valid Although I was asked about these lawsuits during the criminal investigation and they are mentioned in the prosecutors’ procedural documents the indictment report makes no mention of these disputes Another important event was the resolution not to prosecute issued by DNA in connection with the restitution of the Snagov Forest a matter that I was not aware of at that point I was not aware of any investigations related to either the Snagov Forest or the Băneasa Farm where another resolution not to prosecute was issued in 2013 my colleague GT obtained a favourable decision from the Bucharest Tribunal and which implicitly declares the partial restitution of the Băneasa Farm as lawful I had no contribution to the handling of that case whatsoever During the 7 years in which I was part of the Țuca Zbârcea & Asociații legal team that was professionally involved in those cases I never had any doubt or uncertainty as to the lawfulness of the procedures that my colleagues or I carried out and my professional belief was repeatedly reinforced by the dozens of favourable court decisions I always believed that the arguments I used are correct and I do so to this day I believe that there is no ground to move a commercial dispute among the signatories of certain contracts to the realm of criminal law I will briefly discuss now the repossession of the Snagov asset I am accused of having sent two written notifications asking the competent authority to grant possession to the client while it is known that the law expressly imposes on the  authority an obligation to grant possession of the asset nor my colleagues had any contribution to the preparation of the administrative file I never went to the headquarters of the public authority I never met any public official from Snagov Townhall At the time when I sent the two notifications the Ilfov County Commission had issued decisions the Buftea District Court had also issued Decision No 4 years before I even had any contact with this case –  which decision ascertained the existence of Paul Philippe’s rights with respect to an area of 10 ha of the Snagov Fundul Sacului Forest and 7/2004 of Ilfov County Commission had been finalised on the merits I shall also submit this decision to the case file 5 courts of law and 11 judges had established that Paul Philippe’s claims in relation to this real estate were lawful and I still do not have any doubt on the lawfulness of this proceeding and the lawfulness of the repossession and I mean here exclusively the legal matters in the administrative or litigious restitution case file I am not aware of any other matter outside the legal matters I will not analyse those court decisions here give just one example in relation to decision No I saw certain judges were heard as witnesses and questions being asked whether it is lawful for a court decision to be given in a motion seeking to have a right ascertained where a motion to realize the right is always available in such matters A constant jurisprudence was formed  in 2003-2006 according to which once the special restitution laws were passed an ordinary claim of property based on Articles Nos 480-481 of the Civil Code became inadmissible a motion for ascertainment was perfectly grounded an inconsistent jurisprudence appeared in relation to this matter which caused the General Prosecutor to submit a final appeal in the interest of law on 4 October 2007; in that final appeal in the interest of law the General Prosecutor stated  that the motion to realize the right is inadmissible The very same person who signed that final appeal in the interest of law as General Prosecutor is now the prosecutor who signed this indictment as lawful and grounded and I cannot understand why the Prosecutor’s Office held one view in 2007 It has been argued that the two notifications would have constituted a justification for the authority to grant possession But the  granting of possession was in reality an obligation imposed by law with an expressly provided term of 60 days so I do not believe that any public official needed any justification to meet his obligations I have to say a few words about the prosecution’s argument in relation to Decision No 1/1941 of the High Court of Cassation and Justice This document was brought to the knowledge of the Țuca Zbârcea & Asociații lawyers after August 2007 as a result of it being submitted by AV in an ongoing dispute Zbârcea & Asociații briefly analysed this document and concluded that several possibilities existed: either to raise the unlawfulness of the abusive takeover act issued by the Legionary State of Antonescu or to file a separate motion to have the nullity of this act established by the court The conclusion reached by our team of lawyers was that any type of endeavour would be dismissed as inadmissible it was a document void of any legal relevance which I shall further expand upon in writing I emphasise that this so-called decision has absolutely no connection to the Băneasa Farm asset as it referred exclusively to the Snagov Forest and there is no document subsequent to this decision to show that the State would have managed or possessed this  asset prior to Decree No was found null by the Arad Tribunal in a court case of Mr Although this document has no legal relevance I emphasise so as to be exhaustive on this matter that I was not aware of its existence when I sent the notifications or at any time prior to the completion of the repossession As to the restitution of an area of the Băneasa Farm I am accused of sending letters and notifications to the ICDPP in the two meetings of the board of directors of 2 September 2008 and 26 September 2008 memorandum or notification to the ICDPP in connection to Paul Philippe Several memoranda accompanied by documents were indeed sent by Prince Paul’s lawyers prior to 2007 and I only sent one letter including the development site plan and I attended the two meetings of the board of directors The prosecution puts forward many legal arguments in an attempt to demonstrate the unlawfulness of this restitution Allow me to reply to all these  arguments in writing Paul Philippe demonstrated his capacity as heir by civil status documents and by certificates attesting his capacity as heir the entire documentation kept on the administrative file being submitted by the ICDPP to the case file There are no doubts that the asset was the property of Carol II which was found null by Romanian courts of law there are over 15 documents in the case file that indicate that the asset was the property of Carol II Not even the Communist State denied this matter Another argument used by the prosecution refers to the legal nature of the land and its location in an attempt to demonstrate that the asset would be outside the built-up area and/or agricultural land and Besides the constant jurisprudence from the High Court of Cassation and Justice showing that the solution is to redirect the case to the competent court I personally counted 7 or 8 documents dated prior to 1948 which show that the asset was located within the Băneasa Township The documents mention “belonging to the Băneasa Township” there are two town planning certificates in the case file showing that the lands are located inside the built-up area is being ignored and allegations are still being made that the land might have been located outside the built-up area agricultural assets located inside the built-up area are subject to Law No 10 provides at Article 8(I) that “agricultural lands already claimed under Law No which obviously does not apply to the case at hand applicants possessing such a town planning certificate are not bound to produce additional evidence because the town planning certificate is a mandatory administrative act it is argued that the asset would have been public property and as such not available for restitution unless first transferred to the State’s private property under the procedure set forth in Law No There is a vast jurisprudence from the High Court and from the ECHR which shows that the assets abusively taken over by the State irrespective of their legal status: public property by virtue of the restitutio in integrum principle To think otherwise is to accept that the State may abusively expropriate the private property of an entity or person by means of an administrative act and then transfer that private property to the public property of the State to the effect that the person concerned would never be able to reclaim it I met the representatives of the ICDPP exclusively during the meetings of the board of directors of 2 September 2008 and 21 September 2008 which I attended on the basis of powers of attorney any employee of the ICDPP outside these formal meetings of the board of directors During the meeting of the board of directors of 2 September I had two limited verbal interventions: I said that the land was located inside the built-up areaon the takeover date because it belonged to the Băneasa Township which is fully evidenced by the documents in the case file and I also said that the identification by way of GPS is not necessarily conclusive since I knew from previous judicial experiences that it could provide erroneous data and I deemed that an expert report for the identification of the land would be useful These were my only verbal interventions during this meeting of the board of directors as is in fact recorded in the minutes of the meeting I attended this meeting of the board of directors based on Article 25(2) of Law No which clearly provides that the authority is under an obligation to invite the applicant to assert his viewpoint I firmly reject the accusation that I would have attended the meeting with a view to influencing with my own please note that Article 38(2) of the law provides that the public institution commits a misdemeanour punishable by a fine of up to RON 5,000 if it fails to invite the applicant and hear his viewpoint During the meeting of the board of directors of 21 September 2008 after I had consulted with my client over the telephone O requested that certain experiments that were in progress according to the ICDPP’s current activity be completed to allow for such experiments to be completed This is also recorded in the minutes of the meeting This is my analysis of the facts and events of which I was aware according to my professional expertise and my professional conscience I had the obligation and the right to protect the client the obligation and the right to put forward his legal viewpoint arguments in order to coherently present his rights according to the interpretations which I assigned to the law I am obligated under the law to subject the law and the jurisprudence to radical criticism on the understanding that sometimes the courts of law and even the Constitutional Court in their practice undergo jurisprudential shifts and this often happens at the lawyers’ insistence to lay out the truth before the judge The deontological accusations laid against me are primarily aimed at the lawyer-client relationship and implicitly they fall within the remit of the bar association of which I am a member and not all deontological breaches trigger criminal liability; there exist disciplinary liability I have never been subject to any disciplinary investigation not to mention any other kind of investigation The independence of the lawyer and of his/her reasoning are necessary conditions for the exercise of the client’s right of defence and the ex post factum scrutiny from any authority can only have discouraging effects on how lawyers exercise their profession These are also the conclusions of many ECHR judgments which even state that the lawyer is under the obligation to defend his/her client zealously (Radobuljac v that the lawyer’s arguments must not be subject to such critical scrutiny as long as they are not offensive and are pertinent to the case (to this effect “The National Union of Romanian Bar Associations (UNBR) deems unacceptable that lawyers be subject to criminal repression for the advice given and pleadings made in their capacity as representatives The huge discrepancy between the two court decisions concerning lawyer Robert-Mihăiță Roșu reveals the weaknesses of the system with serious consequences on the credibility of justice The Permanent Commission supports any measure that the Bucharest Bar Association will take with a view to actively protesting including by refusing to participate in the court sessions of the panel that ordered the conviction of the lawyer for the advice and representation he gave in the exercise of his profession.” –The National Union of Romanian Bar Associations “In observance of the independence of justice and reaffirming that all citizens are equal before the law the Council of the Bucharest Bar Association maintains its position […] that the exercise of the legal profession within the limits of the law is not and cannot be qualified as a violation of the law.” – Bucharest Bar Association “The darkest day of my life was the day when Robert was convicted the tears of despair and the unanswered questions As will pass the final days of a horrible year a year thrown in the Rahova prison with him As hopefully will pass the recent threats and warnings to stop making such a fuss And the determination that we shall walk with Robert all the way to have this justice done.” – Lawyer Florentin Țuca “Our enemies are the abuse and the injustice of whom I am certain many are outraged and ashamed after reviewing the documents in this case since they have been humiliated in this case and the written reasoning of the decision handed down by the HCCJ on 17 December.” – Lawyer Gabriel Zbârcea everybody’s message was: What can I do to help? Maybe it is the days of the end of December that make the Romanian people become sympathetic and fight for principles and ideals.” – Lawyer Radu Chiriță a country pretending to have the rule of law eminent in his profession (which profession happens to be that of a lawyer) has been sentenced to prison for doing his job Carry our cross in hopes that the next Romanian citizen to be indicted by some prosecutors and convicted by the judges for doing his job will not be us?” –Lawyer Gabriel Biriș “Sitting around and watching this manoeuvre in silence would mean for us not to realize that our bubble may be sitting on a powder keg… I do not understand the deafening silence of the magistrates’ associations faced with the fact that two judges were summoned by DNA to be told by the prosecutor that the court decisions they had given were wrong the judges who ruled in the appeal and maintained those court decisions were not summoned as well Was it because they would have said that the first instance court decision was indeed grounded and lawful?” – Adina Daria Lupea “The pressures put on the lawyers over time the breach of the legal provisions governing the right of defence as well as minimising the lawyer’s role in the Justice System to the point of humiliation are likely to completely annihilate any Romanian citizen’s right to a fair trial.” – Romanian Lawyers’ Association for Dialogue and Solidarity A lawyer defending his indicted client can at any time be considered to be his client’s accomplice or a coparticipant in an organized crime group But that happened at the peak of the Soviet Communist era Or so they say… He did not take any bribe He just exercised his profession and charged a fee.” – Sebastian Bodu În lipsa unui acord scris al QMagazine pot fi preluate maxim 500 de caractere din acest text Este obligatorie citarea sursei www.qmagazine.ro și cu precizarea „Citiţi integral pe www.qmagazine.ro” emailul și site-ul web în acest navigator pentru data viitoare când o să comentez Δdocument.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()) Acest site folosește Akismet pentru a reduce spamul. 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