Alison Mutler is a freelance correspondent based in Romania.
To her fans Diana Iovanovici Sosoaca is "the mother of the nation." For the Romanian state, the nationalist member of the European Parliament is a danger to democracy.
A comment by an otherwise progressive politician in Romania that she had voted ‘yes’ in a referendum to ban same-sex marriage has sparked controversy and highlighted how controversial the issue is in the Eastern European country ahead of crucial elections.
Earlier this year, Romania was shaken by revelations that elderly and disabled residents at the country's care homes were being beaten, underfed, and neglected. Further investigations have revealed a fundamentally broken system, where care home residents were viewed as mere assets.
Over three decades after Romania overthrew and executed dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, the death of Ileana Negru by self-immolation has brought renewed attention to the relatives of those who were killed in the revolution and are still waiting for answers and justice.
The reaction to the death by suicide of Romanian journalist Iulia Marin, who openly wrote about her struggles with depression, reveals the widespread prejudice against people with mental health issues, a societal hangover from the Ceausescu era.
Plans to microchip Romania's famed wild horses have put some of them in danger, as it allows unscrupulous individuals to illegally claim ownership of the equines. In some cases, that means some of them are sent straight to the slaughterhouse.
The killing of a woman in Bulgaria has reignited a debate about the country's domestic violence law, which rights activists and legal experts say desperately needs modernizing and has, activists warn, resulted in the deaths of dozens of women.
Romania’s health-care system, the second-worst funded in the EU, is facing fresh scandal after five doctors were accused of illegally harvesting implants from corpses and reusing them in hundreds of patients in a cash-making scheme that allegedly operated for years.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of Romanian escapees were killed making bids for freedom across the Danube into Yugoslavia. Now, more than 30 years after the fall of communism, Romania is finally investigating, and shedding light on thousands of the deaths.
Romania is considering a bill that would ban minors from being exposed to so-called "gay propaganda" in schools and in public life, despite warnings from rights groups that it would "fuel Russian disinformation campaigns" and reinstate censorship.
Moldova has a novel approach to its coronavirus vaccination campaign, blending humor with the macabre in a bid to encourage Moldovans to get the shot. With only about 35 percent of the population vaccinated, the initiative is badly needed.
With both Romania and neighboring Bulgaria facing a spike in coronavirus cases, the challenge of treating the influx of newly sick patients is being complicated by the prevalence of fake vaccine certificates. Doctors are pleading with people to own up.
A new book reveals how legendary Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci was tracked, humiliated, and abused by the communist secret police and her trainers before her defection to the West in 1989.
Recent anti-Semitic incidents in Romania have led to introspection and highlighted the dark chapters of the country's World War II history.
The death of a 6-week-old infant after he was submerged during a baptism ceremony has sparked public outrage in Romania and has led to calls for the ritual to be changed.
The discovery of a scrap of paper with the names of political prisoners scribbled in charcoal in 1951 and found in a casino wall has reminded many of the evils of Romania's communist past.
Even as governments on both sides have pledged better support for Romanians willing to work at home or alleviate "structural" problems, skepticism of the promises reigns.
Romania's pro-European government reluctantly adopted a state of emergency, citing a public failure to respect distancing and other measures to counter the spread of COVID-19.
A Facebook post by a Romanian-American scholar and the reactions to it exposed the prevalence of anti-Romany racism in Romania and the prejudice faced by the minority.
Dubbed Romania's "Lombardy” after the Italian epicenter of the coronavirus crisis, the tiny region of Suceava has just 3 percent of the country's population but is home to a large number of its COVID-19 cases and deaths.
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