The scandal involving Professor Alfred Bulai is rolling like a huge pile of garbage, while he hides in grave silence. Society, however, is seething on the edge of this topic.
Sexual assault is punishable by imprisonment. Photo source: archive
And we cannot fail to notice one thing: these days we are witnessing a real irony of fate, but also an absolute first. Alfred Bulai, one of the greatest Romanian sociologists, managed, unwittingly, to contribute to the birth of a real social phenomenon: a kind of collective hatred towards everything that means abuse in Romania. Even more ironic is the fact that this “current” would certainly have become the subject of analysis and discussion right in his classes, if he had obviously been incriminated by someone else.
Better now than never. This was probably the principle on which the SNSPA management was based when they decided, days after the outbreak of the scandal, to send a message of support and encouragement to the students. “But we are talking about a fake message” are the opinions of the specialists consulted by “Adevărul” whom we asked to come up with a detailed analysis.
The management of SNSPA sent a message on the institution’s website addressed to its own students in which it justifies its delayed reaction, apologizes for what happened, declares itself appalled by the deeds committed by Alfred Bulai, which, however, it knew too well: “Many of us knew about some of Alfred Bulai’s sexist, racist and homophobic statements in the courses. Otherwise, I was only hearing rumours. We have received no complaints.” those in management justify themselves, those who could have changed the Code of Ethics since 2016, but who then refused to get involved.
Lawyer: “The rumors that were circulating could trigger an internal investigation. But they chose to ignore the problem”
Why didn’t they intervene? Why didn’t they fine sexual assault? Why did they ignore what was happening before their eyes for years? Why did they choose to be silent, to look away, to ignore the situation? They say that they did not have clear evidence, they say that the students did not file any complaint, that they could not prove the truth known, moreover, to everyone. The SNSPA leadership is trying to excuse itself by waving this slogan of accusations without evidence that you have no way of making.
Correct, up to a certain point, commented for “Adevărul” lawyer Alexandru Mirel Ovidiu, from Oradea, who followed the whole scandal closely. I contacted the specialist precisely to prove whether what the SNSPA leadership claims really stands. “I notice that everyone is washing their hands, so to speak, and throwing the dead cat from one to the other. But, if he really wanted to, the SNSPA management could immediately discover the truth”, the specialist told us. But, for that, he should have stirred some waters and it was not the time to make “waves”: when in 2016 the student Adela Alexandru proposed to amend and complete the Code of Ethics of the Faculty, she was bluntly told “It is not appropriate”. “Those in management needed to investigate these areas that they admit they have heard all along. What would have happened as a result of this internal investigation? Either it was discovered that the rumors were false and the faculty practically washed away its shame, its wrinkled image, or it was proven that the rumors were true, a situation in which the phenomenon had to be urgently stopped”.
But, say SNSPA representatives, it is difficult to impossible to open an investigation when you have neither victims nor aggressors, only words. What to investigate, actually? And who? “At the institutional level, from a legal point of view, solely on the basis of rumours, an accused person cannot be sanctioned”, is transmitted in the press release. But, like in a real ping pong match, the lawyer comes up with an extremely simple and common sense answer: “With a little due diligence, they could find out the names of the female students making those accusations. They could ask them for a clarification, a written point of view, which would be a source for them to start an investigation. Let them be called to the dean’s office, to the rectory: “Dear young lady, you write here, in black and white, what happened. They are defamatory accusations, so either you make them in writing, officially, or you don’t make them at all”. The rectory could solve the problem very quickly in this way. He could discover the truth by asking for a written position from the person who was, somehow, the source of the information circulated.”
Therefore, the management of the faculty says in vain that they did not know who the assaulted students were, because it was very easy to discover. And once discovered, they could begin the investigation. “But they decided to ignore this situation, despite the fact that the rumors jeopardized the image of the institution they lead. So they had to protect themselves, to defend their reputation, to cover up the scandal that we are witnessing today”. says the lawyer.
Everyone was silent. They went on the principle that if they don’t take out the trash, it won’t smell either. Here, however, the pole exploded in front of the sociologist Bulai, and the teacher was very badly roasted. So bad that he faces years in prison. Here is what the Criminal Code says in Article 219 – Actions against sexual freedom and integrity – Sexual assault – paragraphs 1 and 2: “The act of a sexual nature, (…) with a person, committed by coercion, making it impossible to defend oneself or express one’s will or taking advantage of this state, is punishable by imprisonment from 2 to 7 years and prohibiting the exercise of certain rights. The punishment is imprisonment from 3 to 10 years and the prohibition of the exercise of certain rights when: the victim is in the care, protection, education, guard or treatment of the perpetrator”.
Psychologist Keren Rosner believes that the regrets they keep circulating now that they are in college, when the professors at the SNSPA are fake. “If he had a real intention to solve something, he would have done it a long time ago“, believes the specialist. Now we witness an avalanche of regrets only because they have to have them, not because they feel them. “It’s normal for him to say now that he’s sorry, it’s normal for him to show compassion to the victim and say that, yes, things will work out. But it’s a false regret because only if there is external pressure will something really change”.
The psychological profile of the aggressor Bulai. “He’s angry, frustrated and feels wronged”
The acts committed by the sociologist Alfred Bulai are judged by the entire public opinion, by the entire Romanian society in direct proportion to the notoriety of the perpetrator. Alfred Bulai is subject to perhaps the biggest public and media lynching that we have witnessed in the last decades. His Facebook page became the place where the Romanians went wild, throwing very hard words and machine-gunning him with words that are difficult to reproduce.
“How about the accusations, Mythic Coon?”
“Monster! Destroyer of people!”
“Shut up and do it. He is retiring. Hand in hand with the leadership of the National School of Political and Administrative Studies – SNSPA”
“Daddy, do you still have the nerve to stick your head out in public?
“You destroyed souls, what a “great man” you are, because I don’t want to offend the animals”
“You deserve to go to jail!”
These are just a few of the dozens of messages received on the social network to which the teacher did not react.
“What’s it like to be the ugliest man in the land?” It is the question addressed to the sociologist by a netizen and which touched one of the deepest “strings”: the notoriety of a man, carefully built over a lifetime, is destroyed in a single day. “He has regrets, but not as we think… he is angry that he is in the middle of such a big scandal, he feels frustrated and wronged”, psychologist Keren Rosner analyzes his profile. “For him, so valuable from a professional point of view, to be laughed at by the world…for some such insignificant things to tarnish his image…so much scandal for such small things…I think this is his inner dialogue”, he explained for “Adevărul” the specialist in trying to write the profile of the aggressor Bulai. “In no case does he regret his actions, he does not make a mea culpa, he does not admit his guilt. He regrets that he didn’t manage to hide better, that he wasn’t more discreet. Although he knows what he has done, he does not regret anything. Such people are self-centered, everything is about them. I mean, why did it happen to me, why me, why now…Moreover, the aggressor could come up with explanations like the girls are to blame because they accepted. And if they accepted, they liked it, and if they liked it, why are they accusing me now? Man feels only anger, disappointment and injustice”.
But the girls are the victims here, not him, and the trauma they went through is terrible, the psychologist believes. “From the victim’s point of view, what she experiences is terrible because she feels humiliated, despised, powerless and afraid of the consequences. The inner conflict is huge because, on the one hand, he wants to get out of this situation and no longer have contact with the abusive person, on the other hand, he depends on that person to complete his studies. I advise all women not to accept such behaviors, to report them. As for the female students, they must have the courage to say, to expose the abuses, to speak openly about them”.
Gelu Sunday: “Penis don’t make us superior”
Whether we like it or not, sexual harassment and abuse are deeply tolerated in Romanian society, sociologist Gelu Duminică writes on his Facebook page.
“The man tries, the woman is stupid if she fails” it’s an exhortation/creed that I’ve heard at least 1000 times in my life, very often even said by women“.
The specialist believes that this type of behavior has its roots deeply embedded in an old and misogynistic mentality, built, we would say, on the gross lack of education, an education that comes first from the family and second from the school. “Nothing fundamental will change if we don’t question the misogyny that is super present around us. What we see these days is the ugly face of a type of reporting towards women that we have had for centuries and an obviously unfair system. I hope things don’t stop here. And to ask politicians, companies, institutions and citizens to understand that we need to ensure the protection and respect of the rights of those around us. Of all those around us”, continues Gelu Sunday.
The sociologist warns that it’s been more than 100 years since women demanded to be respected, and it still hasn’t happened. “And there is still a lot of work to do. Because we men don’t want to understand that a penis doesn’t make us superior. So, look at yourselves! And do what you have to, each in his own right, so that such dramas are as few as possible. Of course, if we do what we’re doing – as we have done so far – tomorrow the victim may even be your daughter!”
Indeed, unless we change our mentality, this scourge will not be eradicated. He must be plucked from the collective psyche altogether, and this purging action must be done quickly, efficiently, and mercilessly. The Minister of Family and Youth, Natalia Intotero, made a recommendation in this regard that can be seen as a first step towards normality: “I encourage all the young women and all the young men who have passed or who are made such indecent proposals or feel that there is pressure, harassment on them, not to wait, not to forgive and immediately to call the telephone number 0800500333 – it is the number dedicated to victims violence in any form and, subsequently, they will benefit from support from the state, but it is very important that they also have the courage to make a criminal complaint”, she stated.
“Without a referral to the competent institutions, the cases definitely cannot be solved and it is also a model to discourage those people who, from my point of view, have health problems and resort to such attitudes”, the Minister of the Family also specified.
