The 50 concrete crosses in honor of Romanian heroes installed by Dermenest City Hall at the Valia Uzului cemetery were illegally installed and must be removed, the Court of Appeal of Bacău has finally ruled, TVR News reports.

Valya Uzului cemetery 2019Photo: Hotnews

In March 2019, the Darmenest local council decided to include the military cemetery in Valia Uzului in the public property of the city, and in April it established a Romanian site at the cemetery of the deserted settlement of Valia Uzului on the street. the border of Harghita and Bacau counties, TVR reports.

Previously, the cemetery was taken care of by the commune of Sanmartin from Harghita, and the Hungarian community considered it a Hungarian military cemetery. The court found that the construction permit issued by Darmenest city hall for the crosses at the Valia Uzului military cemetery is illegal.

Tension at the Valya Uzului cemetery

On June 6, 2019, the international cemetery in Vala Uzului became the scene of tension between several Romanian organizations, gendarmes and Hungarians formed a chain around this disputed cemetery, trying to prevent Romanians from entering it.

The situation escalated after several Romanians broke the gates of the cemetery and entered its territory. Several Hungarians were beaten with flags, stones and spat on amid patriotic songs, the Romanian national anthem and chants such as “March out”, “March to Budapest” or “Get out of the country with Hungarians”.

Finally, the Hungarians left the territory, and Romanian associations led by priests put candles on the graves and held memorial services.

Before the June 6 conflict, several dozen crosses erected to Romanian heroes were covered in black garbage bags, according to photos posted on social media. After this event, on June 3, the Harghita District Council decided that the cemetery could only be visited for one hour a week.

See more details on the topic:

  • VIDEO Full file of the Romanian-Hungarian conflict with Valya Uzului. How many Romanians are buried in the heroes’ cemetery, the territorial dispute and the question of legality. Official data and documents
  • PHOTO GALLERY: How the Valya Uzului cemetery was transformed, images from the beginning of the last century to the present