Atentatul de la Raul Alb
​Episode 2 – The “Eco” Agent Manipulates for Money and Politics

The manipulation of collective emotion through a false concern for nature was also exposed from within the “environmental movement” by a biologist with an impeccable reputation. Dr. Peter Lengyel warned long before the events at Râul Alb that environmentalism had been hijacked for the benefit of mafia-type interests. On his nature blog, “probably the best in Romania” (according to România Liberă), Dr. Peter Lengyel wrote: “I believe that the non-governmental environmental movement in this country is becoming more and more pathetic. In the early days there was a brief period of enthusiasm, which lasted maybe 5–7 years, when there was genuine passion in what was happening, when there was sincere and complete involvement in the actions of most who were part of this movement. Then came the period of increasingly large and bureaucratic projects, of consortia, of coalitions at the mercy of people implanted by various mafias. Money talks, and it talks loudly.”(video 2.1)

Starting in the autumn of 2014, when we began work at the Coroieşti construction site, the activists filed multiple complaints and criminal charges accusing us of having illegally obtained building permits for two micro-hydropower plants, of illegally cutting down the forest in the area, and of starting the destruction of the Râul Alb. The complaints were filed under the cover of environmental NGOs: Efectul Fluture, Agent Green, the Natura 2000 Coalition, the Society for Nonformal and Social Education (SENS), and the Romanian Academic Society (romaniacurata.ro). These complaints were in fact aggressive lies, crudely disguised behind beautiful ideals about nature. Over time, it became clear that members of these NGOs are, in fact, mercenaries protected by certain interest groups with influence reaching the top of the “state.” The law governing NGOs in our country allows the funding of these influence agents without revealing who is actually paying them. To appear credible, they pose as representatives of civil society under various guises: NGO activists, environmentalists, #REZIST members, planet saviors, progressives, politicians, etc.

For the first time in Romania, the #REZIST movement was claimed by members of the NGO Efectul Fluture from Cluj (currently Declic), known since 2013 after the “Save Roşia Montană” protests. In the meantime, we’ve come to understand that these “saviors” are in reality professional protesters, agitators, and provocateurs used to eliminate political and economic “targets,” as reported by journalist Ion Spînu in the newspaper Cotidianul: “#REZIST manipulates for money and politics.” (article 1)

How did a group of agitators come to “make the law” on the public stage? The answer lies in the secret Protocols concluded between the General Prosecutor’s Office and these NGOs. Even though, apparently and formally, the protocols have been declassified, the “protocol-based” collusion continues to cause serious deviations in the act of justice. We’ve all seen that most of the #Rezist actions turned into actual harassment and provocations to violence. Each time, however, the prosecutors “washed away” their deeds through the infamous unmotivated case closures. In return, the members of the group protested hysterically in defense of the prosecutors whenever there were proposed changes to justice laws aimed at eliminating the “loopholes” protecting prosecutors who commit abuses. Few know that the visual identity of #Rezist was created by one of the members of Declic.ro. Her name is Luminiţa Dejeu, who introduces herself as follows: “She is a professional graphic designer and campaigner for Declic. Involved in good governance campaigns, Luminiţa is the author of Declic’s first viral petition. In January 2017, she created the #Rezist visual, which became the symbol of the protests in Romania. When not at the office, Luminiţa enjoys cooking and posting her culinary achievements on Facebook.” (video 2.2)

Objections filed out of gang interest

The first petitions against the investments on the Râul Alb failed because the permits and building authorization were fully legal. The so-called environmentalists knew this, as they had received, as early as 2014, responses clearly showing that the projects were being carried out within a legal framework.(doc.1). Yet, they continued the smear campaign, claiming public institutions didn’t comply with their demands. Activist Dejeu Călin said he found out about Decision no. 1327/26.08.2013 concerning the Râul Alb microhydropower plants in August 2014 from the APM Hunedoara website, but felt ignored. He confirms that he challenged the decision together with Roxana Pencea Brădățan, as founding members of Efectul Fluture (now Declic), long after the legal deadline for public debate (doc.2). This detail is very important because, as you will see, these complaints were filed alongside an attempt by an associate of Dejeu to take over our projects. Similarly, Andrioni Alin (the author of the attempted murder) admitted he was unhappy with institutional responses and continued harassment with his team of about 10 people. In fact, the “activists” had been fully informed of the legal status of the Râul Alb projects long before the attempted murder, and they lie when claiming they were ignored by authorities. This is proven by the documents sent to them by the very institutions they cite. One example is APM Hunedoara's response no. 3357 / 29.04.2015, which states: “In the ‘context data’ section, the petition signatories broadly claim that ‘the project is based on a set of blatantly illegal permits’—yet they fail to specify even one such permit, let alone the entire set. Furthermore, the petitioners underestimate the natural heritage of Hunedoara County, claiming that Râul Alb is the last almost perfectly preserved valley, when we can easily show at least 20 equally beautiful and well-preserved valleys that face no such threats—contrary to the apocalyptic, but unsubstantiated, claims made by the petitioners.” (doc.3)

Against the law and constitutional order

At Râul Alb, the provocateurs acted on command, with double standards, against the laws and the constitutional order. If they had genuinely been concerned with environmental issues, they could not have ignored the European Union's determination regarding environmental protection measures, which are carried out in parallel with the promotion and support of sustainable development. It is well known that Romania committed to promoting, financially supporting, and increasing the share of alternative energies, establishing that renewable energies are a priority, and micro-hydropower plants fall into this category. This is why our national legislation was aligned with the new international requirements regarding environmental protection. Therefore, the actions against the projects at Râul Alb cannot be legitimate! We had all the approvals and permits obtained legally, and the projects were based on expert studies, which demonstrated that these investments do not produce a negative environmental impact. The appropriate assessment study, registered with APM Hunedoara under no. 5664/2013, for the purpose of obtaining the Screening Stage Decision¹, shows that the natural area is not affected as a result of the project’s implementation: “Consequently, it can be stated that the integrity of the natural area of community interest is affected only at a very low level as a result of the project’s implementation.” Following the environmental impact assessment, APM Hunedoara issued the Natura 2000 approval no. 3/2013, and the administrator of the protected area, the Hațeg Country Dinosaurs Geopark, issued approval no. 17/21.08.2013.

The raids of the influence agents at Râul Alb were not “investigations,” but command units formed with the precise mission of stopping our projects by any means. In the upcoming episodes, you will see how #Activism was hijacked here into a mega clientelist business.

Note:

¹ Screening Stage Decision – The decision of central or territorial authorities with specific responsibilities in the field of environmental protection, issued after evaluating the environmental impact of certain projects. Prior to issuing the Decision no. 1327/26.08.2013, APM Hunedoara issued the Natura 2000 approval no. 3/23.08.2013, and the Administrator of the Protected Area Hațeg Country Dinosaurs Geopark issued approval no. 17/21.08.2013.