It can be reasonably argued that Romania should have established a National Program for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage as early as 2008. The absence of such a programme has enabled well-known brands to reproduce elements of Romanian culture without any form of agreement. The most recent example is the case of the Romanian IA being copied by the renowned brand Louis Vuitton. In the event that the Ministry of Culture fails to expeditiously develop the aforementioned programme for the protection of Romanian cultural heritage, FACIAS will pursue legal action.
In accordance with the stipulations of Law No. 26 of 29 February 2008 on the protection of intangible cultural heritage, the Ministry of Culture was obliged to formulate the National Programme for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2008. The programme would have served to identify and register Romania's traditional cultural elements, thereby preventing such an occurrence as that which has been observed today. Although the law establishes the general framework necessary for the identification, documentation, research, protection, conservation, promotion, enhancement, transmission and revitalisation of elements of intangible cultural heritage, which are defining characteristics of human communities, in order for this law to be implemented, it needed implementing rules, namely a Programme for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
An important step towards the recognition of cultural heritage
The elaboration of a national programme for the protection of intangible cultural heritage would represent a significant advance in the safeguarding of the values of Romanian communities. Such a programme would have contributed to the recognition and protection of Romania's cultural heritage, thereby preventing the utilisation of traditional elements without appropriate attribution. In the event of the Ministry of Culture failing to provide a prompt and positive response, FACIAS will request that the court compel the Ministry to draw up the aforementioned programme for Romania's cultural heritage.
In a significant legal victory, FACIAS compelled the Romanian Government to draft the regulations for the Youth Law. This legislation, which was originally scheduled for enactment in 2006, was intended to confer a number of fundamental rights upon young people in Romania. The legal triumph serves to illustrate FACIAS's unwavering commitment to advocating for the rights of citizens and to guaranteeing the respect and enforcement of laws.