György Frunda
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György Frunda (born July 22, 1951, in Târgu Mureș, Mureș County, Socialist Republic of Romania) is a Romanian jurist, politician, and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), he has been a member of the
Romanian Senate ) is the upper house in the bicameral Parliament of Romania. It has 136 seats (before the 2016 Romanian legislative election the total number of elected representatives was 176), to which members are elected by direct popular vote using party-list ...
for Mureș County since 1992, and was twice the UDMR's candidate for the office of
Romanian President The president of Romania ( ro, Președintele României) is the head of state of Romania. Following a modification to the Romanian Constitution in 2003, the president is directly elected by a two-round system and serves for five years. An indi ...
(in 1996 and 2000). Since 1992, Frunda has been a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
(PACE), serving as president of the delegation since September 2004, and sitting with the
European People's Party The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Ch ...
(EPP). A member of the Constituent Assembly in 1990–1992, he served on the commission drafting the
Romanian Constitution The current Constitution of Romania is the seventh permanent constitution in modern Romania's history. It is the fundamental governing document of Romania that establishes the structure of its government, the rights and obligations of citizens, ...
. On December 18, 2004, György Frunda was awarded the
Hungarian Republic Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
's Grand Cross of the Order of Merit by President Ferenc Mádl.Profile at the Romanian Senate site
retrieved July 6, 2007
He is married to a physician, and has fathered two daughters.


Biography


Early life and career

He was born to ethnic Hungarian parents in Târgu Mureș, and is a member of the
Reformed Church Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Cal ...
. His father Károly (known in
Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...
as ''Carol'') was a member of the resistance movement in opposition to the Communist regime: in 1956, he joined
Ioan Faliboga Ioan is a variation on the name John found in Romanian, Bulgarian, Russian, Welsh (), and Sardinian. It is usually masculine. The female equivalent in Romanian and Bulgarian is Ioana. In Russia, the name Ioann is usually reserved for the cler ...
and other young people in organizing clandestine committees that took inspiration from the Hungarian Revolution.Nicolae Balint, "Ungaria, 1956. Ecouri mureşene" ("Hungary, 1956. Mureș County Echoes"), in '' Magazin Istoric'', November 2007, p.30 He was arrested in January 1958, and sentenced to 12 years in prison, but was set free by the general amnesty of 1964. Frunda completed secondary studies at the Papiu Ilarian High School in the city in 1970, before enrolling at the University of Cluj (the present-day Babeș-Bolyai University), where he completed Law studies in 1974. In 1991–1992, he took postgraduate classes at the
Salzburg Seminary Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
and the ''Future of Europe'' classes in London. Between 1975 and 1995, Frunda worked as a
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
in his native city, operating a private law practice after 1996. Following the
1989 Revolution The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Nat ...
, he joined the newly created UDMR and represented it in
Chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
, serving as Secretary of the Committee for Drafting the Constitution and a member of the Chamber's Judicial Committee. He successfully ran on UDMR lists for the Senate in the 1992 election, serving as Vice President of its Judicial Committee and envoy to the PACE after 1993. He was appointed PACE Rapporteur for Lithuania in 1995, and became Vice President of the EEP's Parliamentary Group in 1996 (reelected in 2000 and 2004).


1996–2000

Running in the 1996 presidential election, which were eventually won by the Romanian Democratic Convention's
Emil Constantinescu Emil Constantinescu () (born 19 November 1939) is a Romanian professor and politician, who served as the President of Romania, from 1996 to 2000. After the Romanian Revolution of 1989, Constantinescu became a founding member and vice president ...
, Frunda was supported by the UDMR and received 761,411 votes (6.02% of the ballot).''Political Transformation and the Electoral Process in Post-Communist Europe: Romania – Election Results''
, at the University of Essex; retrieved July 6, 2007
Commenting on the electoral debates of that year, analyst Tom Gallagher contrasted the rhetoric of incumbent President Ion Iliescu, who had become noted for his polemic views regarding the UDMR, with that of Frunda; contending that Iliescu was adopting a nationalist discourse which had been discarded by the majority of voters, Gallagher described Frunda as the UDMR's "most moderate and fluent parliamentarian, who improved the UDMR's image for many Romanian voters". Confirmed a senator by the legislative election of the same period, he became Secretary of the Judicial Committee, also serving on the Committee for Monitoring and the Committee for Territorial Improvement and Local Authorities, as well as on the Committee for Human Rights (in 1999–2000) and, as Secretary, on the Judicial Committee for Appointments, Discipline, Immunities and Validations. Additionally, Frunda was Second Vice President of the PACE Judicial Committee. Welcoming reconciliation with Hungary and measures leading to the Romania's European integration at a time when the UDMR joined Victor Ciorbea's Democratic Convention cabinet, Frunda argued that this process had made unlikely the resurfacing of violent incidents such as the March 1990 ethnic clashes in Târgu Mureş. Tom Gallagher, "Conflicts between East European States and Minorities in an Age of Democracy", in Farimah Daftary, Stefan Troebst, ''Radical Ethnic Movements in Contemporary Europe'', Berghahn Books, Oxford, New York, 2003, , p.46, 47 In reference to the bilateral treaty signed by the two states, he stated: "from 1918 till now no leading figure in Romanian politics ever had the courage to say 'let us normalise relations with Hungary'". During the early 1990s, György Frunda represented in court
Pál Cseresznyés Pál is a Hungarian masculine given name, the Hungarian version of Paul. It may refer to: * Pál Almásy (1818-1882), Hungarian lawyer and politician * Pál Bedák (born 1985), Hungarian boxer * Pál Benkő (1928–2019), Hungarian-American che ...
, an ethnic Hungarian accused of taking part in the Târgu Mureș clashes. Michael Shafir
"Romanian President Pardons Ethnic Hungarian"
, at Radio Free Europe, ''OMRI Daily Digest'', No. 246, Part I, December 30, 1996; retrieved July 6, 2007
Previously sentenced to 10 years in prison, Cseresznyés was the recipient of a
pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...
issued by President Constantinescu (December 1996). Speaking at the time, Frunda stressed that Romanian courts investigating the 1990 incidents had only sentenced ethnic Hungarians and
Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
, and that Romanians had escaped punishment.


2000–2005

He was nominated the UDMR candidate for the presidential election of November 2000, after winning the nomination in an inner-party race with the more radical László Tőkés, the Union's Honorary Chairman."Frunda for President"
, in ''Central European Review'', September 2000; retrieved July 6, 2007
Michael Shafir
"Hungarian Politician to Run in Romanian Presidential Elections"
, at Radio Free Europe, ''RFE/RL Newsline'', September 11, 2000; retrieved July 6, 2007
Frunda was endorsed by UDMR leader
Béla Markó Béla Markó (born September 8, 1951 in Târgu Secuiesc, Covasna County, Socialist Republic of Romania) is a Romanian politician and writer of Hungarian ethnicity. The former leader of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), he ...
, who advised party members not to vote for a change in policy; in reaction, Tőkés stressed that his adversary winning was going to "set in stone the wrong political line for a long time" (additionally, he accused the UDMR's leadership of displaying "moral decay"). Frunda was eventually voted by 59 members of the UDMR Council (Tőkés received 34 votes). During the electoral campaign, Frunda invited the
gay rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 3 ...
organization
Accept Accept may refer to: * Acceptance, a person's assent to the reality of a situation etc. * Accept (band), a German heavy metal band ** ''Accept'' (Accept album), their debut album from 1979 * ''Accept'' (Chicken Shack album), 1970 * ACCEPT (or ...
to take part in a meeting with youth in Bucharest, at a time when Article 200 of the Romanian Penal Code, which criminalized
homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...
relations, was being brought under public scrutiny. He received 696,989 votes (6.22%) in the national suffrage. During the second round of voting, when the
Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...
's Iliescu faced the Greater Romania Party's Corneliu Vadim Tudor, he urged all political forces to isolate the latter, who is generally viewed as an extremist.Nick Thorpe
"Romania's Far-right Contender"
at BBC News, November 28, 2000; retrieved July 6, 2007
Stating that he was "worried by the high score Mr. Vadim Tudor achieved", he declared that: "All political parties in Romania now have an obligation to isolate him and his party". Frunda was reelected a senator during the legislative election of the same month, serving as President of the Committee for Human Rights after 2002. In January 2001, Frunda was among the 38 parliamentarians from 18 countries who signed an appeal to have
Ilie Ilașcu Ilie Ilașcu (born 30 July 1952) is a Moldovan-born Romanian politician, especially known for being sentenced to death by the separatist Transnistrian government for alleged involvement in two murders and for actions which have been described a ...
, an
ethnic Romanian The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Romanian ...
Moldovan citizen who had been tried and sentenced to death by a Transnistrian court, to be retried in a Council of Europe member state. Michael Shafir
"Romanian Moves Motion on Ilaşcu in Strasbourg"
, at Radio Free Europe, ''RFE/RL Newsline'', January 26, 2001; retrieved July 6, 2007
He noted that the matter was problematic, since Ilașcu was confirmed to have "shot and killed two people" by the Moldovan Supreme Court, but pointed out that the Transnistrian authorities were holding Ilașcu in "inhumane conditions" (a situation which he defined as "inadmissible"). Beginning 2003, Frunda sparked controversy when he called for the
posthumous rehabilitation Rehabilitation (russian: реабилитация, Romanization of Russian, transliterated in English language, English as ''reabilitatsiya'' or Scientific transliteration of Cyrillic, academically rendered as ''reabilitacija'') was a term used in ...
of
Albert Wass Count Albert Wass de Szentegyed et Czege ( hu, gróf szentegyedi és cegei Wass Albert; January 8, 1908 – February 17, 1998) was a Hungarian Hungarian nobility, nobleman, forest engineer, novelist, poet, and member of the Wass de Czege family ...
, a Hungarian writer convicted in Romania for participation in the Holocaust.
William Totok William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...

"Febra răsăriteană a reabilitărilor" ("The Eastern Fever of Rehabilitations")
in ''
Observator Cultural ''Observator Cultural'' (meaning "The Cultural Observer" in English) is a weekly literary magazine based in Bucharest, Romania. The magazine was started in 2000. The weekly publishes articles on Romania's cultural and arts scene as well as politica ...
'', Nr. 184, September 2003; retrieved January 11, 2011
His statement to the press argued that Wass, unlike Romania's World War II dictator
Ion Antonescu Ion Antonescu (; ; – 1 June 1946) was a Romanian military officer and marshal who presided over two successive wartime dictatorships as Prime Minister and ''Conducător'' during most of World War II. A Romanian Army career officer who made ...
(who had been tried in a similar context), was the victim of procedural mistakes. Frunda did not run in the presidential election of 2004, and gave his backing to Markó, who was the UDMR's nominee; at a time when political parties were considering announcing candidatures for the post of Romanian Premier, Frunda was the one designated by the UDMR. Michael Shafir
"Romanian Prime-Ministerial Hopefuls Clash in Televised Debate"
, at Radio Free Europe, ''RFE/RL Newsline'', October 22, 2004; retrieved July 6, 2007
During the televised debate hosted by
TVR 1 TVR 1 (; spelled out as ''Televiziunea Română 1'', "Romanian Television 1") is the main channel of the Romanian public broadcaster TVR. The most important show of the channel is Jurnalul TVR, whose motto is ("The news journal as it should b ...
, in an unprecedented gesture, he summarized parts of the discussion in Hungarian. Reelected a senator during the 2004 legislative election, he became President of the Senate Committee for Human Rights, Religions and Minorities, and, inside the Council of Europe, First Vice President of the Monitoring Committees, member of the Committee on Human Rights, member of the Subcommittee on Human Rights, and member of several other committees and subcommittees; additionally, Frunda was the council's Rapporteur for Nations, Minorities and Religion, and Rapporteur for the Judicial Committee on the "Concept of Nation"."The concept of "nation"", PACE Doc. 10762
, December 13, 2005, at the Council of Europe site; retrieved July 6, 2007


Monitoring in Latvia and Russia

During October 2005, he visited Latvia as Monitor, with the goal of establishing "whether Latvia is successfully fulfilling the commitments it undertook upon joining the Council of Europe" (part of the post-monitoring process)."Latvia. Visit by Monitoring Committee Chair of the Councils of Europe Parliamentary Assembly"
, in
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
's ''Europe and Central Asia. Summary of Concerns in the Region July – December 2005''
"The Prime Minister and the Chairman of the Monitoring Committee of the Council of Europe Discuss Closing of the Post-Monitoring Dialogue"
, October 19, 2005, at the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia site; retrieved July 6, 2007
He notably met with
Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
Aigars Kalvītis, and gave a positive assessment of the way in which Latvia had carried out its obligations, while pointing out that Russian Latvians still faced some problems in
naturalization Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...
and voting rights. He called on the country to discard its reservations to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (in respect to the status of Latvian language as the sole language of administration), and to abandon the loyalty principle from its law on acquiring citizenship. President Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga indicated that the official status of Latvian was not subject for negotiation, and that social integration was a priority for the leadership. Based on Frunda's memorandum to the Council of Europe, the Committee on the Honoring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States recommended an end to post-monitoring, although Frunda himself proposed to prolong post-monitoring. In November, as Russia prepared for taking over the presidency of the European Council's
Committee of Ministers The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe ( French: ''Comité des ministres du Conseil de l'Europe'') or Committee of Ministers ( French: ''Comité des ministres'') is the Council of Europe's decision-making body. It comprises the Forei ...
, Frunda visited the country on behalf of the Monitoring Committee, and attempted to convince the Russian leadership to ratify the 6th additional protocol of the European Convention on Human Rights, restricting the application of the
death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
to times of war or national emergency (''see Capital punishment in Russia''). Kristina Rodrigues
"APCE: la Russie doit abolir la peine de mort avant de prendre la présidence du CE" ("PACE: Russia Must Abolish the Death Penalty before Assuming the EC Presidency")
RIA Novosti RIA Novosti (russian: РИА Новости), sometimes referred to as RIAN () or RIA (russian: РИА, label=none) is a Russian state-owned domestic news agency. On 9 December 2013 by a decree of Vladimir Putin it was liquidated and its asse ...
, November 16, 2005 (republished by Peinedemort.org); retrieved July 6, 2007
While he clarified that the council was not going to sanction Russian representatives if the measure was not enforced, he argued that the country had to decide between siding with the majority of European states and the group of states represented by North Korea, China, and the United States.


Report on the "Concept of Nation"

In early February 2006, concluding his report on the "Concept of Nation", Frunda caused controversy in his country after promoting the PACE Recommendation 1735, which, through its reference to a previous PACE document, Recommendation 43 (1998), was interpreted as a call for ethnic and
regional autonomy Regional autonomy is decentralization of governance to outlying regions. Recent examples of disputes over autonomy include: * The Basque region of Spain * The Catalan region of Spain * The Sicilia region of Italy * The disputes over autonomy of pro ...
in respect to regions such as Transylvania."Frunda: 'Eu nu reprezint România'" ("Frunda: 'I Do Not Represent Romania'")
in '' Ziua'', February 4, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
Nicoleta Nicolae
"Partidul lui Guşă cere Parlamentului să-l sancţioneze pe György Frunda" ("Guşă's Party Asks Parliament to Reprimand György Frunda")
, in '' Realitatea Românească'', February 3, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
In addition, Frunda was quoted as saying he did not endorse the
nation-state A nation state is a political unit where the state and nation are congruent. It is a more precise concept than "country", since a country does not need to have a predominant ethnic group. A nation, in the sense of a common ethnicity, may inc ...
as defined by the
Romanian Constitution The current Constitution of Romania is the seventh permanent constitution in modern Romania's history. It is the fundamental governing document of Romania that establishes the structure of its government, the rights and obligations of citizens, ...
, and as stating "I do not represent Romania n the Council of Europe I am the head of the Romanian Delegation, elected by 10 members who represented Romania at a parliamentary level". In reaction, the
National Initiative Party The National Initiative Party ( ro, Partidul Inițiativa Națională) was a small Romanian political party. It emerged after three Democratic Party (PD) MCDs were expelled form the party a few days after the Justice and Truth Alliance (DA) narro ...
, represented by independent Romanian parliamentarians, called for Frunda to be reprimanded by the Senate. Replying, Frunda indicated that the Recommendation was ineffectual in respect to Romania, and pointed out that all states who agreed to join the European Union implicitly accepted to delegate powers of their respective national governments, stressing that his argument about the nation-state made reference to this latter process. In the PACE Report, he concluded: "I do not think it is important to formulate a new concept of nation. The real issue behind the debate about a possible '21st century concept of nation' is not the definition itself, but the acceptance of a new way of thinking, of rethinking the nation, and specifically the transversality of the nation across boundaries – a nation often, but not always, deeply rooted in history. Following the two world wars in the 20th century, national borders were redrawn and, as a result, parts of the kin-state now live in the territory of one of the neighbouring states, where they represent 'national minorities or communities'". According to the text, "The purpose of all these recommendations is to ensure that the concepts of 'nation' and 'national community (minority)' are interpreted flexibly and in good faith and to foster a peaceful and tolerant climate between the majority and national minorities in every Council of Europe member state". Elaborating on the issue, he expressed his support for enlarging the concept of nation, for
cultural autonomy Minority rights are the normal individual rights as applied to members of racial, ethnic, class, religious, linguistic or gender and sexual minorities, and also the collective rights accorded to any minority group. Civil-rights movements oft ...
, and for multiculturalismGyörgy Frunda on the Concept of Nation
Romanian Senate Session transcript, February 13, 2006, at the Chamber of Deputies site; retrieved July 6, 2007
(he stated: "Cultural autonomy means the right of a national minority, at a cultural level, for instance in schools, theaters and radio broadcasting, to decide for itself in the matter concerning it. It has nothing to do with territorial autonomy"). He later defined the way in which he was quoted by the press as "an injustice", and declared: "I have represented and will always represent my country, with dignity and in accordance with my best knowledge. But I have said, and it is true, that I did not draft this report as a Romanian senator, I have drafted it through appointment and with a mandate from the Council of Europe's Judicial Committee ... Frunda received support from UDMR president
Béla Markó Béla Markó (born September 8, 1951 in Târgu Secuiesc, Covasna County, Socialist Republic of Romania) is a Romanian politician and writer of Hungarian ethnicity. The former leader of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), he ...
, who reacted to additional criticism from the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
's Emil Boc, and indicated that he shared his colleague's views on the nation-state issue ("The concept of nation-state no longer exists in Europe")."Markó Béla: În loc de acuze nejustificate, György Frunda merită laude" ("Markó Béla: Instead of Unjustified Accusations, György Frunda Deserves Praises")
,
HotNews.ro HotNews is one of the oldest and biggest Romanian news sites focused mainly on general topics, finance, politics, and current affairs. The website constantly publishes news, interviews, video documentaries, and opinion pieces. As of February 20 ...
, February 7, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
He dismissed opposition to Frunda's attitude as "lectures in loyalty", and stated that Frunda's activity at the Council of Europe "deserves praise and appreciation".


Securitate file

A controversy was sparked in summer 2006, when files kept by the Securitate (
Communist Romania The Socialist Republic of Romania ( ro, Republica Socialistă România, RSR) was a Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist One-party state, one-party socialist state that existed officially in Romania from 1947 to 1989. From 1947 to 1965, the s ...
's secret police) on Frunda and 28 other politicians, including the UDMR's Markó and
Attila Verestóy Attila Verestóy (1 March 1954–24 January 2018) was a Romanian chemical engineer and politician. A member of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), he was also an elected member of the Romanian Senate for Harghita County from ...
, were declassified by the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI). Oana Dobre
"Frunda, și el în rețea" ("Frunda, Himself in the Network")
, in '' Evenimentul Zilei'', August 10, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
Aniela Nine, Lavinia Dimancea
"Membrii CNSAS au intrat în silenzio stampa" ("CNSAS Members Have Engaged in a News Blackout")
, in '' Jurnalul Național'', August 16, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
The opening of archived documents uncovered that Frunda had been the subject of a "network file" (a type of document which is generally associated with Securitate informants). Upon reviewing it, Frunda concluded that it was actually evidence of the Securitate having attempted and failed to enlist him, stressing that he never agreed to be drawn into collaboration. He added that he had signed two documents, confirming, respectively, his refusal to collaborate, and his pledge to maintain secrecy over having been contacted by the secret police. According to Frunda, only the latter document was present among those handed down by the SRI, which led him to question whether the file was complete. The matter was made more problematic by the fact that Frunda had a second file kept on him, which proved that he was also the object of Securitate surveillance. Ligia Voro
"Frunda, comisarul UDMR" ("Frunda, the UDMR Commissioner")
, in ''Zi de Zi'', October 3, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
Speaking at the time, the last Securitate chief for Mureș County, Gheorghe Mărieș, claimed that he had first-hand information regarding Frunda's status as an informant, George Rădulescu
"Șandru cere CNSAS redeschiderea cazului Frunda" ("Șandru Asks the CNSAS to Reopen the Frunda Case")
in ''
Adevărul ''Adevărul'' (; meaning "The Truth", formerly spelled ''Adevĕrul'') is a Romanian daily newspaper, based in Bucharest. Founded in Iași, in 1871, and reestablished in 1888, in Bucharest, it was the main left-wing press venue to be published dur ...
'', September 21, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
an allegation which the senator dismissed. In September, György Frunda was interpellated by the National Anticorruption Prosecution Office over, as indicated by Frunda's statement, "several parliamentary debates, regarding a number of parliamentarians"."György Frunda, interpelat de procurorii anticorupţie pe teme 'parlamentare'" ("György Frunda, Interpellated by Anticorruption Prosecutors over 'Parliamentary' Issues")
, Mediafax, September 13, 2006 (hosted by Kappa.ro); retrieved July 6, 2007
During the same period, he asked to be heard by the CNSAS, an institution charged with investigating Securitate affiliations, and declared to the press that he rejected all notion of ever having been an informant or collaborator of the Securitate (while indicating that public figures who stated otherwise were legally liable). The CNSAS ultimately cleared Frunda of the allegations (September 14, 2006), with six out of eight votes—the two abstaining members were Mircea Dinescu and
Constantin Ticu Dumitrescu Constantin-Grigore Dumitrescu, also known as Constantin Ticu Dumitrescu or Ticu Dumitrescu (27 May 1928 – 5 December 2008), Olari, Prahova, was a Romanian politician and president of the Association of Romanian Former Political Prisoners. H ...
. Oana Dobre
"Frunda, albit de CNSAS" ("Frunda, Whitewashed by the CNSAS")
, in '' Evenimentul Zilei'', September 15, 2006; retrieved July 6, 2007
Adriana Duţu
"'Desuurile' Colegiului, scoase la vedere!" ("The CNSAS' 'Laundry', Out in Public!")
in '' Curentul'', September 22, 2006 (hosted by 9am.ro); retrieved July 6, 2007
According to '' Evenimentul Zilei'', the deliberation was tense, with Dinescu and Dumitrescu reportedly protesting the verdict during the actual procedures. Several days later, Dinescu, who took the decision of exposing what he saw as the CNSAS' problems, clarified his position in the case involving Frunda: "It was a complicated file and I could not vote in clear conscience, not knowing certain details". The
National Initiative Party The National Initiative Party ( ro, Partidul Inițiativa Națională) was a small Romanian political party. It emerged after three Democratic Party (PD) MCDs were expelled form the party a few days after the Justice and Truth Alliance (DA) narro ...
's Raluca Şandru, an independent member of the
Chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
, publicly appealed for the CNSAS to reconsider its decision and recall Frunda for questioning. In early October, Frunda also proposed that the law regulating CNSAS activities be amended, in order to automatically include among Securitate collaborators those members of the
Romanian Communist Party The Romanian Communist Party ( ro, Partidul Comunist Român, , PCR) was a communist party in Romania. The successor to the pro-Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave ideological endorsement to a communist revolution that woul ...
who held political offices at a central, regional, or local level, and who took part in decision-making regarding political repression."Senatorii jurişti au eliminat sintagma 'poliţie politică' din Legea CNSAS" ("Senators-Jurists Have Stricken Out the Notion of 'Political Policing' from the CNSAS Law")
Mediafax, October 11, 2006 (hosted by Infopolitic.ro); retrieved July 6, 2007
The project drew opposition from the
Social Democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soci ...
senator Şerban Nicolae, who argued that the text was purposely designed to incriminate former President Ion Iliescu. Defending his bill, Frunda stressed that "it would be hypocritical to condemn Securitate cadres, but not their bosses". In addition, he proposed changes to define as Securitate collaborators those who had acted "with intent".


2007 debates

Later in the same month, in preparation for Romania's accession to the European Union, he was nominated by the UDMR for a position in the European Commission (the National Liberal
Varujan Vosganian Varujan Vosganian (; hy, Վարուժան Ոսկանեան, born on 25 July 1958) is a Romanian politician, economist, essayist and poet of Armenian origin. Vosganian was Romania's Minister of Economy and Commerce (2006–2008) in the Tăriceanu ...
was selected for the post, before being replaced by Leonard Orban). Speaking in February 2007, Frunda criticized members of his party for having failed to promote a challenger for Markó during elections for its presidency. Adrian Giurgea
"György Frunda critică lipsa competiţiei pentru şefia UDMR" ("György Frunda Criticized the Lack of Competition for the UDMR's Leadership")
, in '' Curentul'', February 5, 2007; retrieved July 6, 2007
Referring to the UDMR faction formed around
Sándor Kónya-Hamar Sándor Kónya-Hamar (born September 5, 1948 in Lunca Mureșului, Alba County) is an ethnic Hungarian politician in Romania and Member of the European Parliament. He is a member of the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania, part of the Europe ...
, Tibor Toró, and Péter Eckstein-Kovács, he argued its alleged policy of "not providing viable written-down alternatives denotes tspolitical weakness". During spring, Frunda supported his party's option to impeach President Traian Băsescu for allegedly unconstitutional conduct. Before the May referendum reconfirmed Băsescu, Frunda commented on the UDMR's choice before
TVR 1 TVR 1 (; spelled out as ''Televiziunea Română 1'', "Romanian Television 1") is the main channel of the Romanian public broadcaster TVR. The most important show of the channel is Jurnalul TVR, whose motto is ("The news journal as it should b ...
cameras, confronted with the pro-Băsescu intellectual Gabriel Liiceanu. On the occasion, Liiceanu asked Frunda to explain how the UDMR could tolerate being on the same pro-impeachment camp as the Greater Romania Party; according to '' Dilema Veche'' political commentator Cristian Ghinea, the reply was unsatisfactory. Cristian Ghinea
"Cine cu cine" ("Who with Whom")
in '' Dilema Veche'', Nr. 169, May 2007; retrieved January 11, 2011
Ghinea sarcastically noted that there was an additional paradox to be noted, since the Greater Romania agenda was "anti- mafia", whereas Frunda "now seems to me the most cleaned-up front for the corrupt system." In June–July 2007, Frunda was at the center of a controversy provoked when Dick Marty, a
Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...
representative to the Council of Europe's Parliamentary Assembly, publicized his report on the existence of black sites allegedly maintained by the
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
Central Intelligence Agency in several Eastern European countries (Romania included). As Romanian authorities denied the charge, National Liberal senator
Norica Nicolai Norica Nicolai (born January 27, 1958) is a Romanian lawyer and politician. An independent who previously belonged to the National Liberal Party (PNL) and before that the Christian Democratic National Peasants' Party (PNŢ-CD), she was a member o ...
accused Frunda of wanting to discredit Romania by providing Marty with necessary information; in response, Frunda argued that this actually had been furnished by the Romanian institutions, which, he indicated, had a duty to report them. On July 3, 2007, the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
representatives to the Parliamentary Assembly asked the Romanian Parliament to recall Frunda from his leadership of the delegation, claiming that he had been absent from the Judicial Committee during deliberations over Marty's report (they also indicated that they were not going to attend meetings at the Council of Europe until Marty would come and verify his conclusions on the spot)."PD cere înlocuirea lui Frunda de la şefia Delegaţiei la APCE" ("PD Asks for Frunda to Be Recalled from the Leadership of the PACE Delegation")
,
Realitatea Realitatea TV (, meaning "The Reality TV") is the former name of the Romanian news television channel Realitatea Plus. The channel began broadcasting in 2001 as a general-profile television and became the first Romanian news television in 2002. I ...
, July 3, 2007; retrieved July 6, 2007
Chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
leader
Bogdan Olteanu Bogdan Olteanu (born 29 October 1971) is a Romanian politician and lawyer. He was the president of the Chamber of Deputies (the lower house of the Romanian Parliament) between 2006 and 2008. Olteanu had formerly been a member of the National L ...
, a member of the National Liberal Party, criticized the decision, indicating that such resolutions could only be initiated by Parliament.


2007–2008 candidatures and new Senate term

Frunda ran on the UDMR list for the European Parliament election of November 2007. The election was marked by László Tőkés' decision to run as an independent, which caused the UDMR to express its disappointment. Upon announcing his own candidature in September, György Frunda indicated that having two contenders from the Hungarian minority could result in the community not being at all represented in Brussels, and argued that Tőkés would have done best to withdraw from the race. Frunda eventually won the
MEP MEP may refer to: Organisations and politics * Mahajana Eksath Peramuna, a political party in Sri Lanka * Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (1956), a former political alliance in Sri Lanka * Maison européenne de la photographie, a photography centre ...
seat but, on December 1, 2007, announced that he was giving it up in favor of party colleague Iuliu Winkler, explaining that he was being instead considered for the presidency of the PACE Judicial Committee. He stated: "I have decided it was more important for me and for the Hungarian community in Romania and, not least, for Romania, if I were to take up he PACEoffice." Frunda was subsequently involved in discussions about prison reform, speaking in favor of judicial methods to tackle the widespread inmate overcrowding, and supporting a more generalized use of parole. Frunda again won a Senate seat after running in the November 2008 election, the first such suffrage to result in mixed member proportional representation at a newly established electoral college level. In Mureș County, the three main UDMR contenders for the electoral college seats were himself, Béla Markó, and
László Borbély László Borbély (born March 26, 1954) is a Romanian economist and politician. A member of the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), he has been a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies for Mureș County since 2000, having previ ...
. In October, before Social Democratic leader
Mircea Geoană Dan Mircea Geoană (; born 14 July 1958) is a Romanian politician and former ambassador who served as president of the upper chamber of the Romanian Parliament, the Senate from 20 December 2008 until he was revoked on 23 November 2011. From 21 A ...
was elected Senate Chairman, Béla Markó had announced that he favored Frunda for that office, were UDMR in a position to nominate a candidate. Frunda's new term in the Senate was touched by controversy. Shortly after he returned to his seat, his new statement of financial interests revealed that he is by far the richest parliamentarian in Mureş. In June 2009, a Parliament administrative report showed that his office had cost the public 103,197 new lei in state-funded expenses (the costliest mandate). In July 2010, Frunda introduced law amendments which drastically limited powers for the government-backed
National Integrity Agency National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
(ANI), an organism previously charged with verifying the assets and revenue statements of politicians; his objections were passed into law, mainly with backing from the opposition Social Democrats and the National Liberals, and with additional votes from the governing Democratic Liberal Party and UDMR. The anti-ANI legislation, unsuccessfully rejected by President Bǎsescu, was received with strong criticism by various journalists, political commentators and civil society opinion leaders. '' Revista 22'' panelist Andreea Pora summarized Frunda's attempts to fight the ANI law, dating back to Monica Macovei's 2005 proposals, and described Frunda as a " devil's advocate" for those who wanted "a free passage to deals, wrongdoings and theft". She also noted that the senator was himself a reputed target for ANI investigators. Andreea Pora
"ANI sugrumată cu mâna lui Frunda" ("ANI Strangled by the Hand of Frunda")
, in '' Revista 22'', Nr. 1061, July 2010; retrieved January 11, 2011
Writing in 2002 for '' România Literară'' review, academic
Mircea Mihăieş Mircea is a Romanian masculine given name, a form of the South Slavic name Mirče (Мирче) that derives from the Slavic word ''mir'', meaning 'peace'. It may refer to: People Princes of Wallachia * Mircea I of Wallachia (1355–1418), a ...
contrasted Frunda's "new tone and elegance" of the 1990s with his support of Social Democratic moves to keep dignitaries' fortunes under secrecy. Cristian Ghinea, who spoke of several attempts on Frunda's part to redefine the scope of ANI investigations as favoring the corrupt under the pretext of human rights concerns (and against the scope of European monitoring), ridiculed the association of interests between Frunda and the new National Liberal leader,
Crin Antonescu George Crin Laurențiu Antonescu (; born 21 September 1959) is a Romanian politician, who was President of the National Liberal Party (PNL) from 2009 to 2014. He also served as the country Acting President after the impeachment of Traian Băsesc ...
. Shortly after the Senate vote, Democratic Liberal Party senator Iulian Urban, who had abstained, denounced a political deal between his own group and the UDMR, through which Frunda was selected to uphold a measure coveted by PDL representatives, but unpopular with the electorate. Himself hailing from Democratic Liberal politics, President Bǎsescu also went on record with a claim that, in proposing the vote, Frunda had acted "against Romania's interests", compromising its standing and credibility within the European Union. Frunda ran for mayor of Târgu Mureş at the June 2012 local election. He finished in second place with 37.3% of the vote, while incumbent Dorin Florea was re-elected with just over half of ballots cast."Dorin Florea a câștigat un nou mandat la Târgu Mureș " ("Dorin Florea Wins a New Term in Târgu Mureș")
in '' Evenimentul Zilei'', June 11, 2012; retrieved June 14, 2012


Presidential elections


References


External links

*
Official site

Profile at the Council of Europe


{{DEFAULTSORT:Frunda, Gyoergy 1951 births Living people 20th-century Romanian lawyers Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania politicians Candidates for President of Romania Members of the Senate of Romania Babeș-Bolyai University alumni People from Târgu Mureș Grand Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary (civil)