THE LOGGING MAFIA CHRONICLES, A NEW EPISODE Sued over his disfigured face!

• Pal Emeric, the man who was attacked in his home for fighting the logging mafia of Joseni, is now being sued after showing his face in public, after the assault that left him disfigured

Reporter: Mr. Pal, you were recently released from the hospital. Do you have any sequelae after the attempt on your life? How are you feeling now?

Pal Emeric: I haven"t fully recovered after that assault, when I was brutally beaten by attackers who had been paid to kill me. I lost 350 ml of blood at the time. I suffered several fractures, including having my nose broken. I still have problems with my senses of smell and taste. I also get bad headaches when I experience strong emotions.

Reporter: How is your mother doing?

Pal Emeric: My mother has severe back pains which prevent her from sleeping. As I told you, my 67 year old mother had two broken ribs, after being pushed down the stairs by the attackers. A broken rib touched her lung, she got pulmonary edema, which caused her extreme pain, which she is still experiencing.

Reporter: Have the attackers been caught?

Pal Emeric: No, the police has not yet found them. I don"t know what kind of roadblocks they set up. There are only four main roads in the area, I can"t understand how the four attackers could get away. However, they have already compiled a list of suspects. According to my information, two of the attackers come from Deva, and another one comes from Arad. The Police is still investigating. What"s more, I have been informed that the attackers are still in the area.

Reporter: Have you received any further threats after the attack?

Pal Emeric: I haven"t received any threats, but I fear for my family, considering that these people are free and still close. After the attack I received two phone calls from people who did not say one word. From what I can tell, they wanted to check if I was still alive. These phone calls are still being investigated, but work is going slowly since the we have very few commissioners and too many cases. However, the good thing is that my home is now being guarded by a security company at night.

Reporter: So you haven"t received any further threats...

Pal Emeric: No I haven"t, but I was however sued by the Mayoralty of Joseni and two actions were brought against me just a few days after being attacked in my own home. The former management of the composesorat (ed. note: the institution which handles the management of privately managed forests).

Reporter: Why did the local mayoralty sue you?

Pal Emeric: After I was hospitalized, I insisted on going outside to talk to the people who had gathered in the street, to see if I was alive. I signed a statement that I understood the risks and the doctors let me out of the hospital for two hours so I could talk to people. I later went to the Mayoralty to see whether the local authorities were aware of what had happened to me. Since the door was wide open, accompanied by my family and reporters from several TV stations, I entered the board room and poured myself a glass of pineapple juice, without the authorization from the mayor. In the subpoena, the officials of the mayoralty claim that "they were frightened by my bizarre behavior, by drunken gaze and my disfigured face". They say I was drunk, which is a lie! You can imagine after the beating I had received I was nervous and I wasn"t looking too good. Following this event, they filed two lawsuits against me and requested 50,000 lei in non-material damages for each count, accusing me of having denigrated the image, the reputation and the honorability of several employees of the mayoralty.

Reporter: How do the people in the town behave...

Pal Emeric: They stand behind me and they now stick together. Think about it, I was looking for justice and look what happened to me! I am being sued after nearly being killed. And this while I am also on trial, in a criminal case, for staging a meeting which was perfectly legal, in the town of Joseni, against the logging mafia. At the time, on March 15th, 2009, I organized a protest against abusive retrocessions of woodland in which 400 people participated. I won that case.

Reporter: And the case with the former management of the Joseni composesorat...

Pal Emeric: I was designated the chairman of that institution, with 98% of the votes, but the former management does not acknowledge the validity of that election. I want to tell you now that once I begin my term, I will perform an audit to uncover all the irregularities which happened in the "composesorat". The past needs to be brought to light and I will get to work once I have all the cards.

Reporter: Did the coverage of this case pressure the authorities into taking steps to stop illegal logging?

Pal Emeric: Yes, it did convince them to attempt to stop illegal logging and illegal retrocessions. The authorities have begun taking steps in this direction, but they are being blocked at every turn by political influence. Some high-ranking connections are obstructing the investigations. As for me, if I can"t get justice here, I am willing to go to the European Court of Human Rights. I can"t stop now. I will fight the logging mafia as long as I live!

Reporter: Thanks for the interview!