The think tank Rethink Romania launched a warning about the future of the country, arguing that “democracy is not only the right to vote, but a continuous responsibility”, showing concern about the path towards which the state is being pushed, towards “the interests of hostile powers Romanians”.
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“We are at a crossroads, as we pointed out in recent days at the Rethink 2024 summit. Democracy is not just the right to vote, but an ongoing responsibility. And for a democracy to be functional, it needs all of us. Because democracy and the rule of law are built every day, by each of us. If we want to move forward, we must revive the civic spirit and educate our future citizens not only in the rights, but also in the duty to protect democracy. We call for preserving and consolidating the gains of the last decades and building a better future, starting from them and from the freedoms we have won”drew the attention of Rethink Romania in a press release.
Think Thank also emphasized that Romania will have to build in the coming years on belonging to the European family and to preserve democracy, showing concern over speeches that aim to push the country towards demagoguery and towards the interests of hostile powers. “For us, democracy, remaining in the European family of which we were a part, and social and economic progress are the strengths that Romania will have to build on in the next 25 years”the cited source also pointed out that “it’s not only about measurable progress, but also about values and commitments”.
“In this context, we cannot help but look with concern at speeches that aim to push Romania from a path that – regardless of its shortcomings – brought Romanians unprecedented opportunities and freedoms, towards demagoguery and towards the interests of some powers hostile to Romanians. From our point of view, the option of the next two weeks is as clear as possible: the continuation of Romania’s Euro-Atlantic path, the only one towards which Romanians have voluntarily aspired throughout history. The alternative, which in the past was imposed by force of arms, was one that left us poor, fearful and deprived of freedom”Rehink Romania also transmitted.
The Rethink Romania Think Tank also showed that “in recent years, it has assumed the mission of contributing to building a better country, where young people love to live. The time horizon we have assumed is the year 2050”through “the contribution to the development of evidence-based public policies”.
“We are a non-partisan and apolitical organization. Our events were open to members of all political parties, civil society and the business community without prejudice. At the same time, we are an organization that bases its positions on rigorous analysis. We use comparative approaches to identify those positions and policies that have the chance to do good for Romania. For us there is no equivocation: despite the chronic problems in health and education, the persistence of corruption and the inefficiency of some institutions, the last 25 years have been a period of unprecedented progress. The gap with the rest of Europe has decreased on almost all levels: GDP/capita, real incomes, life expectancy, infant mortality, kilometers of motorway per capita. Romanians could travel freely and had the chance to look for well-paid jobs in the European space. It is debatable whether the progress could be faster, but it is certain that Romania has experienced substantial progress compared to the former communist countries that remained outside the Euro-Atlantic integration process, for example Ukraine, the Western Balkans or Russia”, according to the cited source.
