Romania Today
Existing impressions of Romania are usually a hangover from Ceausescu's iron-fisted stranglehold, with strong memories of starving orphans, destruction of cultural monuments, and industrial plants spilling toxic waste. Indeed, Communism did a great deal to break the spirit of this nation. But the Romanian people broke the back of the regime in a small but bloody revolution that, back in 1989, was only the start of a long road to recovery.
Chat with the locals, and you'll hear much about a country beleaguered by corruption (a 2006 World Bank report stated that 50% of businesses are troubled by the level of graft) and a general lack of confidence in political leaders, underscored by schizophrenic election results. And while minister-level officials play dirty-tactic politics, people on the ground continue to experience widespread economic impoverishment, particularly in rural areas -- about one-third of the workforce continues to earn a living through agriculture. Romania is seen as a source of cheap labor, and a number of foreign companies have set up shop here mainly to take advantage of these low-wage expectations. Many young people with skills and education, as well as those disheartened by limited work prospects at home, cross the border for better wages and opportunities; with E.U. accession, the drain of human resources is likely to be substantial, at least for a time. Equally, locals complain, it is impossible to "get things done" in Romania, as a stultifying bureaucracy strangles entrepreneurial efforts.
In some ways, these ongoing problems are a residue of Communism, where the regime primarily served those who were connected to the seat of power, and a centralized public sector tended to curb anything resembling entrepreneurship. There was no such thing as foreign tourism, and therefore a general absence of service-industry culture. Jobs were there to be filled, not necessarily performed with any aplomb (if, indeed, at all), so the status quo -- no matter how frustrating and dehumanizing -- was fastidiously maintained.
In 2007, Traian Basescu enters his third year as president of Romania. Heading a large coalition, Basescu professes to hold real democratic ideals and genuinely oppose corruption; as such the E.U. views his leadership as critical for the country's future. While Romania remains one of Europe's poorest nations, there has after all been steady reform; the new government has imposed one of Europe's most liberal tax systems and wages are steadily arising. The spirit of development that has slowly gripped the nation may not necessarily have the entire population hopping at the pace set by Bucharest, but it clearly signals the aspirations for a prosperous future and -- despite ongoing public and media aspersions about corruption and political bungling -- urban Romania seems hellbent on careening into full-blown capitalism and reaping the fruits of free-market enterprise.
