Roman far-right groups honor fascist history; political figures link to antisemitic ideologies despite denials.
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Anti-Semitic hate speech has been addressed by new laws, but human rights defenders claim authorities are not enforcing them correctly. Supporters of Romanian far-right groups held a public demonstration near Tancabesti forest on November 30th to commemorate Corneliu Zelea Codreanu, whose assassination there occurred 87 years ago; these groups hold annual commemorations at his burial site and march in legionary uniforms. Despite the presence of police vehicles at this year’s event, no arrests or proceedings were initiated. Romanian media has closely followed collaborations between George Simion’s AUR party and legionary movements, noting that Simion and his associates frequently referenced legionary ideas. For instance, Sorin Lavric, an associate of Simion, criticized the constitutional rule allowing anyone to apply for Romanian citizenship regardless of ethnic or religious background, suggesting restrictions based on origin, referencing historical instances where 200,000 Jewish Romanians lost their citizenship under the Goga-Cuza government in 1938. In 2022, Calin Georgescu called for honoring Codreanu’s memory, leading to a meeting between him and George Simion, after which Simion distanced himself from anti-Semitic statements; however, the Elie Wiesel Institute criticized this distancing as a “bluff,” stating that the Israeli ambassador’s initiative undermined the fight against antisemitism. Two years later, George Simion supported Calin Georgescu’s campaign. Currently, AUR is the strongest opposition party in Romania, with support near 40% according to INSCOP polls. An August survey by Avantgarde found that 24% of respondents disagreed that legionary, anti-Semitic, and anti-Hungarian organizations operated as criminal enterprises, while 17% were undecided.
