Romanian Justice Passes Final Decision In Hadareni Case

Hadareni case was finally closed at almost 14 years from the tragic events back there. Mures Courthouse ruled Friday, January 19 in the litigation between the last group of ethnic Romas, rejecting the ethnic Roma action of enforcing some court orders on compensations payable by the Romanian villagers in Hadareni. The conflict in Hadareni (central Romania) burst in the evening of September 20, 1993, following dispute between several Romanian and Roma ethnics. The conflict culminated with Lacatus Ripa Lupian stabbing Craciun Chetan, who subsequently deceased. The local police tried to take actions, but Lacatus and one of his brothers refused to hand over to the authorities. They hide in a house and threatened to kill someone unless they are left alone.

The inhabitants gathered around the house they were hiding and started to throw with stones against it to make them get out and hand over to the police. Two persons in the crow lit a piece of paper and threw it inside of the house, which burst on fire. Lacatus Ripa Lupian finally got out and the people started to hit him. The conflict amplified. Four persons died, 14 houses were put on fire and other four were partially destroyed in Hadareni conflict.

Trials subsequently followed in the criminal as well as civil field. The trials in the criminal field were concluded on November 1999 with sentencing to jail five persons, for murder. Those in the civil field were concluded on February 27, 2004, with the sentence passed by Tirgu Mures Court of Appeals. The ethnic Romas subpoenaed the Romanian state and accused the authorities of having breached several articles from the European Convention of Human Rights.

Pro Europa league appealed the decision of Mures Courthouse, claiming the state disregarded the protection of the right to property. The head of Human Rights Office with PRO EUROPA League, Haller Istvan, told DIVERS: "PRO EUROPA League has monitored Hadareni case since the conflict burst in September 1993, and concluded this is a serious case of human rights breach. The decision of Mures Courthouse on January 19, 2007 on the non-enforcement of a definitive decision passed by the High Court of Cassation and Justice proves Romania disregards the protection of the right to property. The persons who put on fire 14 houses in Hadareni village have not spent a day to prison for their actions and the court ruled they were not supposed to pay a dime for the damage they caused. Moreover, they were rewarded for their actions, as following the media coverage of their "drama", the arsonists opened a bank account where people transferred significant amounts of money," Haller Istvan also said.