George Simion is calling on Romanians to attend Saturday’s rally, although the protest was not authorized by Bucharest City Hall

AUR leader George Simion is calling on Romanians to attend the rally announced for Saturday in Bucharest, although Bucharest City Hall did not authorize the protest, citing risks to public order and safety. Simion is asking participants to bring flags and “peace in their hearts,” saying that the demonstration must not become violent.

In a Facebook post, the AUR leader announced that a new request to authorize the protest would be submitted on Thursday. Nai player Nicolae Voiculeț will attend the event. The first request was submitted by Jereb Mihai Florin and Constantin Claudiu-Laurențiu.

Simion also announced that AUR would organize courses and conferences at the Palace of Parliament from Friday to Sunday, in response to the visit by several European officials. He claims that approximately 100 lawmakers, MEPs and diplomats, including Americans, will observe whether freedom of expression is respected in Romania.

City Hall rejected the authorization based on recommendations from the Gendarmerie and the Bucharest Police. The institutions flagged the mobilization of participants from 39 counties, online messages allegedly containing threats and calls for violence, as well as additional risks generated by the Romania–Poland match scheduled for the same day. The authorities say that organizers of previous protests violated the agreed routes, time frames and participant numbers.