What the newspapers say: April 8, 2009

Most headlines on Wednesday refer to the protests in Moldova, either purely presenting the events taking place yesterday, or commenting on the impact these events may have on the region. In local news, wages and the never-ending Gigi Becali scandal are the only topics that make their way to the first pages.

The situation in Moldova is a reason for Cotidianul to discuss whether a new „orange revolution” is still possible or not. Reminding the similar movements that took place in Georgia, Ukraine and Kirgizstan, the newspaper claims that things have radically changed ever since: „The West seems more interested in resetting the relations with Russia, needing its support in problems such as Iran and North Korea, while the Western Europe still needs the Russian gas, so they can’t afford supporting a revolt in Russia’s immediate neighborhood”.

Another aspect of the problem is the way the protests in Chisinau will affect the relations between Romania and Moldova. For the moment, the border between the two countries is closed, although the officials in Chisinau never made any formal announcement in this matter. Romanian citizens are prevented from entering Moldova, although the only thing they would need is a valid passport, according to the diplomatic agreement between the two countries, Evenimentul Zilei reads.

Back to the usual topics in Romania, the scandal involving the controversial businessman Gigi Becali reached a new dimension. After a few days of enjoying massive popular support (an instant movement called Free Gigi was born), the mystery of the sudden solidarity with the „cash-man” behind the Steaua football club was solved: all those supporting Gigi at the last Steaua game were paid by the hour, being brought to the stadium from the poor surrounding villages near Bucharest, Evenimentul Zilei reads.

Since wages are a hot topic in Romania and not a day goes by without rumors or information about the money Romanians earn, Gandul put up a top of the most significant raises Romanians received after the crisis set in. Not as a surprise, four places out of the five fields in the top are taken by jobs where the state pays the wages. The salary increases during budgetary austerity came in Education, mining, public administration and health care. The only private businesses where wages increased enough to be taken into account are those in the tobacco producing area.