2.2.2. Democracy

space after the apartments were built, despite the strict laws and regulations (Panaitescu, 2012). These types of initiatives may suggest that the ideas of individualism and ownership did not disappear from the Romanian society during the communist regime.

The housing crisis attenuated by the mid-1970 but another one started in 1980 and the harsh construction regulations became even worse (Panaitescu, 2012). In the 1980s, the regime was building around 141.000 apartments each year which was close to the average of other European countries (Dan,2003). Dan (2003) points out the aim of the communist party was to move most of the population in the cities and by the 1990 to have 90% of the inhabitants in apartment blocks (Dan, 2003). The communist constitution established that every Romanian should have adequate housing and had to be provided by the government (Tsenkova, 2014). This could be interpreted as a measure to build affordable housing for the majority of the population but Dan (2003) describes the government actions as “bribing the citizens for their obedience” (2003, p.15). Therefore, it could be said that through the housing provision, the government was trying to control the population. The reality, as the research shows, was that what the regime considered adequate was a low standard of quality and small spaces (Soaita, 2014). These actions have had impacts that are still seen today and some of them are, overcrowding, lack of basic utilities, and an excess of housing that cannot be used (Soaita, 2014). These issues will be detailed in section 2.3 The Housing Situation Now.

2.2.2. Democracy

After the regime fell in 1989, the new political leadership had to reorganize and redefine many aspects of the Romanian constitution and laws (Alpopi, 2014). The right to housing was ratified in the Romanian laws in 1996, and in 2002 more regulations were added to fight against and limit social exclusion (Alpopi, 2014). Through these laws the acceptable principles of comfort and quality of life regarding all types of houses, rented, social or private were established (Alpopi, 2014). Thus, the right to housing was recognised in Romania as a human right. Also, as Romania is part of the UN and European Union, it adhered to their processes to fight the crisis housing which affects the entire globe (United