Romania: The Revolutionary Association for Justice and Liberty of Roma (Asociatia Revolutionarilor Luptatori Pentru Dreptate si Libertate Decembrie 89 a Rromilor din România), including its creation, purpose, and activities, and the treatment of its members by the authorities; the meaning of "Garda Civila" on the membership card; the name of the national President and the names of regional leaders (2010-July 2014)
Information on the Revolutionary Association for Justice and Liberty of Roma was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
Sources state that Balaceanu Marin was the President of the association in 2011 (Canada 25 Sept. 2014; Fundatia 8 Sept. 2014). In correspondence sent to the Research Directorate, a Program Coordinator at The Foundation for an Open Society (Fundatia pentru o societate deschisa), an organization that promotes the development of a Romanian society based on freedom, responsibility and respect for diversity (Fundatia n.d.), states that the association was registered in the national registry of associations in Romania (ibid. 8 Sept. 2014). In correspondence sent to the Research Directorate, an official of the Embassy of Canada in Bucharest provided information indicating that the association was officially registered in 2006 (Canada 25 Sept. 2014). The name of the association appears on a list of 96 names of associations sent to the Research Directorate by the official, and published by the Romanian State Secretary Office for the Recognition of Opponents to the Communist Regime (Secretariatul [or Secretariatului] de Stat pentru recunoasterea meritelor luptatorilor impotriva regimului comunist instaurat in Romania in perioada 1945-1989) (ibid.). The embassy official provided information indicating that, according to the website of the Romanian Ministry of Justice, the association was dissolved in 2011 (ibid.). According to this information, the Ministry of Justice website also contains [translation] "approximately" 13 documents that establish that the association was sued for various unpaid debts: rent; bank loans; and telephone, Internet and cable television bills (ibid.). The embassy official also indicated that the address of the association is Victoriei 216, 1, judetul Municipiul Bucuresti, according to a Romanian business and association directory (ibid.). The Program Coordinator stated that the website of the association, http://arld89.wgz.ro, provides no information about the organization's activities (Fundatia 8 Sept. 2014). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
No information on the meaning of "Garda Civila" on the membership card of the association could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of the Response.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Canada. 25 September 2014. Embassy of Canada in Bucharest, Romania. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate by an official.
Fundatia pentru o societate deschisa. 8 September 2014. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate by a program coordinator.
Canada. N.d. "About Us." [Accessed 9 Sept. 2014]
Additional Sources Consulted
Oral sources: Attempts to contact the following people and organizations were unsuccessful: Asociatia Revolutionarilor Luptatori Pentru Dreptate si Libertate Decembrie 89 a Rromilor din România; human rights lawyer and coordinator, European Roma Rights Centre; Director, Policy Center for Roma and Minorities; Professor in the Department of Linguistics, University of Texas; Association for the Defence of Human Rights in Romania – Helsinki Committee; Roma Women Association in Romania.
The following people were unable to provide information: Professor in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Princeton University; Professor in the Institute of European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies, Carleton University.
Internet sites, including: Amnesty International; Asociatia Revolutionarilor Luptatori Pentru Dreptate si Libertate Decembrie 89 a Rromilor din România; Association for the Defence of Human Rights in Romania – Helsinki Committee; BBC; ecoi.net; European Roma Information Office; European Roma Rights Centre; Factiva; Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l'homme; Forum18; Freedom House; Human Rights Watch; Policy Centre for Roma and Minorities; Roma Women Association in Romania; Soros Foundation Romania (Open Society Foundations); United Nations – Refworld, Integrated Regional Information Networks.