The MISA Case has Already Begun to Influence Romania’s Integration in the European Union
The Romanian Democracy Crisis Brings To International Attention Cases Of Human Rights Violation
Today an article appeared in Politiken, one of Denmark’s highest circulating and most well-respected newspapers, exposing the machinations in the MISA-Gregorian Bivolaru case and the political impact of this case on an international level. It is written by prolific investigative journalist, Vibeke Sperling, who has written unbiased articles about the MISA case before.
Sperling has done an excellent job in presenting some of the most important elements in this case and bringing to the public eye some issues which have not been properly addressed until now. This includes the continued involvement of the Romanian Securitate (secret service) even after the fall of communism, which explains much of the questionable involvement of the authorities and the media, especially in the last 16 years.
Sperling very accurately addresses the issue of human rights abuse in the MISA case and the impact this has on Romania’s status within the EU. She provides a fair account of the facts, which is a breath of fresh air after all the negative and damaging press it has attracted throughout the years.
About the Author, Vibeke Sperling
Vibeke Sperling (1945 -) is an acknowledged Danish journalist and author with a long career as a foreign correspondent and editor of international politics for several of the biggest Danish newspapers and television stations such as Danmarks Radio, DR2, Dagbladet Information and Politiken.
Her area of specialization is Eastern Europe and she has become well known in the Danish, as well as the international media, for her uncompromising reports on human and social injustice, as well as the intelligent analysis of complicated political matters related to the Eastern Bloc.
Vibeke Sperling was one of the few mainstream journalists who already in March 2004 dared to challenge the widespread corruption in the Romanian media and political system concerning the MISA case and the severe violations of the human rights of members of the Romanian yoga school, and published several article on the case from 2004 – 2007.
From 1999 – 2002 she was appointed special board member of DCHF, The Danish Center for Holocaust and Genocide studies.
Here is her article of 18th July 2012 translated into English.
Case about Yoga Club Is Now the Biggest Case of Human Rights Violation in Romania
Global comment – By Vibeke Sperling, East European Correspondent
“The Misa case shows that Romania has not cut the connection with the obscure practices that the Securitate did under Ceausescu”
Agents from the feared Securitate of the communist time are still playing havoc within the Romanian Government.
The EU has become ever more skeptical about Romania not fulfilling the demands for a constitutional state, which can ensure the human rights of the Romanian people. And now a member of the European parliament has fueled the discussion by posing questions about a specifically embarrassing case. Member of Parliament, Rita Borsellino, who is also an esteemed human rights and anti-Mafia activist, asks the EU commission, what is its “assessment about the reality of the freedom of religion in Romania, and what are the actions for ensuring the protection of the freedom of religion for the yoga practitioners in Romania?” At least 30 European parliamentarians have engaged themselves in this case, including Denmark’s Margrethe Auken (SF).
It is about the so-called Misa case, in which a Romanian yoga movement is indicted for terror, among other things. This case has been under surveillance internationally, and especially by the EU, ever since the founder and leader of the movement, Gregorian Bivolaru, received political asylum in Sweden in 2005. The EU commission recommended the Romanian government respect the independency of the court of law, since several lower court authorities already acquitted Bivolaru.
During a meeting between the leader of the EU commission, José Manuel Barroso, and the Romanian Prime Minister, Victor Pontas, last week, about the concerns which the EU has about Romania, the MISA case was also addressed, since this case displays a serious violation of human rights in an EU country.
In 2004, the Romanian yoga school went through an anti-terror raid by special anti-terror forces based on false charges. For the moment, the chief prosecutor behind the raid on Misa, George Balan, is being investigated for misuse of power and corruption. But the case still continues against Bivolaru in spite of his political asylum in Sweden. Members of all the different groups in the European parliament have signed letters to the Romanian government, in which they express their alarm and concern for the way Bivolaru and Misa is being treated. Amnesty International and the Romanian Helsinki group repeatedly filed reports about the case, which is being regarded as the biggest human right scandal in Romania.
The persecution of Bivolaru started all the way back in the communist time. In 1972 he was accused of spreading pornography, but received amnesty and was released before he finished the 1 year sentence. In 1984 he was accused of conspiring against Romanian leader Nicolae Ceausescu. After the Romanian revolution in 1989, yoga was again legalized, and Gregorian Bivolaru, who was teaching yoga classes in secret, founded Misa, which teaches, amongst other things, Kashmirian philosophy and Indian Ayurveda. The courses started in Bucharest, but they soon spread throughout the entire country.
Yoga teacher, Gregorian Bivolaru
In March 2004, the prosecutors and secret service started a media campaign against MISA and soldiers were sent to the private homes of yoga practitioners to ransack them and Bivolaru escaped. Then he was accused of tax evasion. How come this accusation can be found again and again in former communist countries that suffer from a lack of democracy? Bivolaru is still accused of eight different crimes which include sex with a minor and illegally leaving the country. Is it really possible to illegally leave an EU country? After a series of questions about the past of Bivolaru, in July 2011 a Romanian court of justice decided that he had been “politically persecuted” during the communist regime. After that it was revealed that some journalists continued the cooperation with former agents from the previously feared security agency, Securitate and that it was those agents who were behind the campaign against the yoga practitioners which continued after the fall of communism. The spokesman for the successor of the Securitate, SRI, admitted that in the last 16 years SRI agents have been working undercover as journalists controlling the campaign against yoga practitioners in general and especially against Bivolaru.
A Romanian parliament committee started an investigation in 2006 but still the case against Bivolaru and Misa continued, even though the secret service had information that it was former agents from the Securitate of the communist time that wanted to prove that the accusations against him from back then were still valid. This raises the question of how many ghosts from the past are still haunting the Romanian state apparatus, since the old accusations are not just being withdrawn?
Another grotesque detail in this whole story is that the Romanian authorities chose to call it “Operation Christ”. Several times a final verdict has been postponed and the “operation” has been pushed from one court to the other. And now the Supreme Court in Romania has taken the amazing decision that the case has to be entirely redone! What the actual meaning of this is still remains uncertain, but one thing seems to be clear. The Misa case includes the biggest police action in the country since Ceausescu, and the Misa case shows that Romania did not put an end to the obscure practices of the Securitate during Ceausescu. The demand from the EU should therefore include that the old agents are finally being purged. Without this, a constitutional state is a “city in Russia” [translation note: it means a city that cannot be found] in the poorhouse of EU.
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Interviu nou despre Gregorian Bivolaru si MISA, la Nasul Special (prima parte)
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Dear Advaitananda!
I was reading this article in Politiken as well, and I must say that until now I had no idea that this kind of corruption and immoral illegal undercover work could still exist in a civilized european country.
It is very good that it comes out and that the EU parlamentarians are actually acting on it, and that we have an engaged and courageous journalist in Denmark 🙂 who is rapporting these things.
I hope that the romanian government will manage to stop the securitate for real – so that the revolution, with all the sacrifices and troubles it brougt – was not a complete waste,
it is sad that we still do not have a really free Europe in which all the members of each of the countries at least are secured their human rights!
Also I hope that Romania will wake up to the challenge and that they acknowledge that if they want to be part of the more civilized countries they have to stop acting like a banana republic 🙂
Thank you Advaitananda, for keeping us up to date.
best regards
Betina
Great to see such a well esteemed danish journalist as Vibeke Sperling, choosing this – correct – angle. Finally.
I’m happy someone else from Europe knows and speaks the truth about the series of abuses in the MISA case.
Maybe it will take some more time but truth will come out in the open about Gregorian Bivolaru for sure. That time is not so far away, as one might think.
It is so wonderful to read this article and realize that not all journalists just take up any kind of juicy gossip to make nasty stories, but that indeed there are journalists out there who really want to show the truth to the people! I really do hope that from now on more and more people will be courageous to see the truth in this situation, and act accordingly. It is obvious now, that Romania, instead of battling the real problems that the country is having (poverty, education, corruption, illness etc), chooses to use such an immense time and resources for dirty games! It is obvious that they do not care about their citizens, but rather indulge in destructive power games.
The truth, though, is still the truth and will always be.
Thank you Advaita, and all the other people working courageously for this! It is really a wonderful example to all of us, what it means to fight for the truth despite the odds!
With love and hope,
Aurora
My deepest respect and appreciation goes to Vibeke Sperling. She restores my faith in journalism!!!
I hope it should serve an inspiration to many other journalists who are not yet irreversibly corrupted by cheap sensationalism, lies and propaganda. Together you can make media a true power, more powerful than any politician can ever dream of! I trust in that!
Congratulations! 🙂 And thank you for all of us..
Finally mainstream media begin to admit openly that the human rights situation in EU is not as pretty as we would like to think.
Strangely, the article cannot be found on pol.dk – the website of the newspaper.I just tried to both google it and search directly on the website. So it will not appear in the internet, but only in the printed papers… not available anymore.
As I see it.
It is significant that Sperlings excellent article appear the same day as the European Commission report “Mechanism for Cooperation and Verification for Justice regarding Romania” (MCV). The report points out teh very same points that the MISA case reflects; corrupt political influence on the courts, dysfunctionality within a stagnated judicial apparatus and too slow or inadequate reforms to ensure human rights and rule of law in Romania.
It is also significant that the article, seemingly triggered by the Italian MEP Rita Borsellino’s critical question to the European Commission regarding the MISA case, appears on teh day 20 years after the mafia murdered her brother, the honerable judge Paolo Borsellino. In a time where others failed, he rose in dignity and courage to stand against one mans oppression of his brother, against corruption and violence, fear and submission. He inspired his sister to do the same, and now her actions inspires the Danish journalist Sperling. May thousands more be inspired to stand for truth and dignity, against perpetuated fears and suppression. May we all rise for true freedom in Europe today!
Is is very good indeed when the truth surfaces and is being transmitted through such an wide-spread newspaper. Ițm not very familiar with your case, but reading this article makes me think such a journalist was very much needed and is a hero. Congratulations!
They say that if one digs in the dirt he will discover bad things. This days Ițhe noticed that the fight between politicians makes them dig for dirty secrets in each other’s yard.
The MISA case seems to be such a dirty secret of the former governments and for sure will pull down some important political figures.
I think it’s just a matter of time until someone takes the responsibility and takes away the curtain of lies put around this case. The journalists are already doing it so it’s the beginning of the end.
Barroso asked the PM Victor Ponta about the yoga case? That must have hurt…
But then again… it hurts all the time when you squeeze the pimple to get the poison out… 🙂
Congratulations Vibeke Sperling and thank you for being here and daring saying the truth about abuses made in the MISA case. Little by little, the truth Will come out and be recognized by the public and these injustices Will end.
It was a great day, the one when the article was published, and it was also a great day when people from Europe started to question the persecutions in Romania.
I also feel there are greater days to come so keep writing articles ’cause there will be stories to be told… History will soon give us a lesson about the truth…
The war which started now in Romania seems to be the way the monsters of the past come out of the closets in order to be used against the opponents, and as Adelle said, at some point someone will take the responsibility to publicly admit the true course of events in the MISA case.
Thank you Vibeke Sperling for the refreshing verticality and thank you Advaita for sharing these great news from Denmark! Lets hope that verticality is catching and more people will act…Looking forward to the ripple effect.
Good work! Keep on working then! Sun is rising on your street too!
That was definitely a very good journalist writing a very good story. Her colleagues must have been jealous they weren’t the ones to offer the revelations…
I can’t wait to see the next moves…. 🙂
Yes, that’s right Bert.. You know something about that?
Hi, there, I am new to this site but I know what you are talking about .
Always in the history of humanity, when a truly awakening movement or individual appeared, they were suppressed heavily by those trying to maintain the status quo and preserve their political, social or financial advantages.
I hope things will go well for you and the truth will come out as it is.
You know that saying about Romania: “Beautiful country, too bad it’s inhabited.”
People are angry, upset, disappointed.. kind of feeling hopeless in Romania with all the strange political and economic on going tricks that occurred even more lately. Corruption is the new label that stands when one speaks about this beautiful country lately.. unfortunately.. and it is more and more obvious.