A Romanian far-right politician has called on the public to refuse takeaways and other courier services from a foreigner, especially if they are from Asia or Africa.
Dan Tanasă, the vice-president of the far-right AUR party wrote: “Refuse the order if it is not delivered by a Romanian. Stop encouraging the import of workers… unskilled workers in Asia and Africa. Wake up!!,” on a Facebook post which got 11,000 reactions and more than 9,000 comments.
His comments generated a flood of criticism from Romanians where five million work abroad and a criminal complaint was filed with the Prosecutor General’s Office against the politician for incitement to violence, hatred and discrimination.
The National Discrimination Council said it would investigate him for making discriminatory comments. He faces a fine of up to 4,000 euros according to council member, Catalin Raiu.
But Tanasa doubled down saying: “The West is sinking under an Islamic wave, and Europeans are crying into their hands because they weren’t aware of the massive import of immigrants. I don’t want something like this for Romania!”
His post comes after in Parliament he recently called on Romania to stop receiving immigrants. The far-right AUR party is the second largest in Romania’s parliament and it often amplifies pro-Russian narratives.
The number of non-EU workers has increased in Romania in recent years as they fill in for shortages in the labor market. A total of 101,599 foreign citizens from non-EU countries had residence permits in Romania at the end of 2024 for employment purposes, according to the Job Index conducted by Olx, which cites data provided by the General Inspectorate for Immigration.
That is 44% higher than at the end of 2023, when 74,394 workers from non-EU countries were working in Romania.
A third of all employees from non-EU countries come from Nepal, up by 63% in 2024 from 2023. Nationals from Nepal, Sri Lanka, Turkey, India or Bangladesh are working in delivery services, hospitality and construction to cover the local labor shortage. They can earn significantly more than in their home countries.
But police officer and activist Marian Godina called his comments illegal and an incitement to discrimination.
“In order not to leave to others what I can do, I have filed a criminal complaint against the Dan Tanasa for committing the crime of “Incitement to violence, hatred or discrimination”
“Stop encouraging the import of unskilled workers from Asia and Africa. Wake up!!” Through the above text, Mr. Tanasa clearly incites discrimination against workers in Asia and Africa,” Godina said in a Facebook post.
Starting this year, some non-EU nationals will be able to become taxi or ride-sharing drivers, as per a new European directive will allow them to apply for this type of job.
This year, Tanasa told Parliament that Romania risked becoming a refuge for asylum seekers or refugees. However, party colleague, Mohammad Murad – who is of Lebanese origin – said there were five to six million Romanians who are working abroad and asked Tanasa how it would be if the Spanish or the Italians treated the Romanians in the same way.
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