Singer fined for changing national anthem

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Singer fined for changing national anthem

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A singer fined for omitting a line from national anthem in protest at the politicizing of the song.

07 September,2011 09:38 pm

A news agency reported that the Bucharest prefect Mihai Atanasoaei on Wednesday fined singer Marcel Pavel and the Romanian Football Federation $1,685 (5,000 lei) each. The Federation was fined for its role in managing the pre-match entertainment.The dustup involved Pavel’s performance of the anthem prior to a football match between Romania and France this week, in which Pavel left out the line “Triumphant in battle, his name was Traian.”The anthem refers to the 1st century Roman Emperor Trajan, who conquered the Dacians, the forefathers of modern-day Romanians. But the singer told Realitatea TV it could be interpreted to refer to President Traian Basescu.Trajan and Traian are the same names. Only in the Romanian language, the name Trajan is written Traian.