Fourth day of protests in Romania: Over 100 arrests in Bucharest

Over 100 people were taken to police stations on Monday evening ( January 16 ) during the street protests in Bucharest, writes the Romanian media. Potential rioters were arrested for carrying knives, telescopic sticks, drugs, chains and stones. Around 40 of them were taken to police stations for attempting to block a road in the Unirii Square area. Other Romanian news sources give a total of 170 people taken to the stations. During the Monday evening protest, hundreds of people were searched by the gendarmerie. Some of those trying to reach the protest organized in Universitate Square were carrying several objects considered dangerous in a demonstration, such as knives or screwdrivers, or they didn’t had they ID cards. Around 1,000 people took to the streets Monday in Bucharest, on the fourth consecutive day of protests. The spark for the recent riots in the Romanian capital was the proposed health law, which, if enforced, would have brought changes to the country’s emergency health system. Initially started mid-last week as support demonstrations for former Under-Secretary of State Raed Arafat, the protests soon turned against Romanian President Traian Basescu, demanding his and the Government’s dismissal and early elections. Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-inisder.com