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The President of Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR), Deputy Prime Minister Kelemen Hunor, stated on Friday that aggression of any kind cannot be justified, "neither if it is expressed in a narrow circle against a journalist, nor if one desires hanging politicians because they hoisted the Szekler flag", told Agerpres.
"Recently, a journalist from Romania was threatened with death. Our position is clear and unchanged for the last 32 years: regardless of who it is, a citizen, a politician, a journalist, a public figure of any kind, we consider it unacceptable and we firmly reject any aggression against them!" Kelemen Hunor wrote on Facebook.
The UDMR leader said that he expects the same position from the others, noting that often verbal aggression is followed by physical aggression.
"We expect the same attitude and position from others. Because when it comes to verbal aggression, which is often followed by physical aggression, there is no room for negotiation! Aggression of any kind cannot be justified. Even if it is expressed in a narrow circle against a journalist, even if one desires to hang politicians for hoisting the Szekler flag", Kelemen Hunor also wrote.
The Romanian Broadcasting Society took a position on Friday, through a press release, in the case of the statements of a Hungarian politician in Sfantu Gheorghe made about the Public Radio employee Paraszka Boroka.
"In his message, he says: 'you can see Paraszka Boroka, you can hear her on Radio Targu-Mures. Well, if the Hungarians are not able to hang such people, to eliminate them from among themselves, let's not be surprised that we have reached where we are'. The politician added: 'we are witnessing the gypsyization of Szeklers and the Hungarian people'. The assessments were made during a meeting organized in Sfantu Gheorghe, where the Hungarian politician was present. An audio recording broadcast by a journalist present at the meeting in Sfantu Gheorghe proves the fact that, in addition to the xenophobic assessments towards the Roma and the Jewish community, the name of the Hungarian journalist, employed by the Romanian Broadcasting Company, is also mentioned," the release states.
The Romanian Broadcasting Society considers the above-mentioned comments as "a serious attack against the basic norms of democracy, the rule of law", adding that "statements that appeal to racial purity are unacceptable in a democratic and tolerance".
"The Romanian Broadcasting Society strongly condemns in these difficult times, any extremist and manipulative behavior that propagates and incites violence and expresses its disagreement with this type of approach. Fighting for equidistance, impartiality and correct information, in accordance with the mission to publish, in the spirit of defending journalistic ethics and freedom, as well as a credible and relevant source of news, the Romanian Broadcasting Society wishes to firmly condemn and discourage biased and extremist attitudes and continues to be part of the camp for the defense of truth and values described in the Romanian Constitution", the press release also says.
At the same time, the Criminal Investigations Service within the Mures County Police Inspectorate announced on Friday an investigation in the case of the statements attributed to a representative of the Hungarian formation Mi Hazánk, regarding the "hanging" of a journalist with Radio Targu Mures.
The criminal investigation police were alerted after the Romanian-language press took over an article from the Telex.hu publication, in which a politician from the extremist group Mi Hazánk allegedly said, regarding the journalist Parászka Boróka on Radio Targu Mures, that if "Hungarians cannot hang such people, cannot eliminate them from among themselves, then it is no wonder that we ended up where we ended up".
