Over half a year ago, Snoop published an investigation that revealed how sociologist and SNSPA professor Alfred Bulai sexually assaulted dozens of female students during his years at the SNSPA, according to former students’ statements, as reported by the publication.
The material revealed disturbing details of how Bulai is accused of ruining the university experience and traumatizing dozens of women who had the misfortune of being his students since 1993.
After the Snoop investigation was published, prosecutors opened a criminal case against Bulai and he was remanded in custody for 24 hours, followed by house arrest. Bulai was dismissed from all positions at SNSPA and became the subject of an investigation by the authorities. He applied for retirement at the same time he was dismissed from his SNSPA teaching job.
But where does the case of sociologist Alfred Bulai stand now, more than half a year after the former SNSPA professor was accused?
What the Snoop investigation shows
Snoop’s investigation shows how Bulai allegedly started sexually assaulting female students at SNSPA in the 90s. Bulai allegedly called several female students into his office or rooms where he was staying during internships outside Bucharest to give them „individual feedback”.
During these sessions, Bulai is accused of making numerous sexual remarks to the students and, in some cases, asking them to undress under the pretext that this would help them „gain confidence”. Many students, out of fear, complied with these demands, and would later be groped without consent by Bulai. Victims recounted how they were affected by these traumatizing experiences and some of them dropped out of their studies as a result of the abuse.
Female students who spoke for Snoop also reported that he often gave erotic assignments, such as essays in which students had to tell how they lost their virginity, and often organized „psychological” games with sexual subtext, both during internships and during university classes.
After Snoop’s investigation was published, several women, in addition to those in the story, plucked up the courage to come forward with their experiences and filed complaints against Professor Bulai. He was initially placed under house arrest, which was extended until the end of November, after which he was placed under judicial supervision for 60 days.
At the beginning of December, Snoop published a new investigation revealing how sociologist Alfred Bulai solicited private meetings with female students including at his government office when he became secretary of state between 2006 and 2008. The investigation shows how several female students who claim to have been victims of Bulai’s abuse also believe that their university experience was affected and they are left traumatized.
In the footage, Snoop also shows how Bulai vehemently denies the allegations and how he claims the investigation is being „rigged with artificial intelligence” to smear the former university professor. However, it also shows the telephone conversation between Bulai and sociologist Marius Pieleanu (also a professor at SNSPA), intercepted by prosecutors on August 5, in which the latter contradicts himself and admits that the recordings are real.
At the centre of the investigation is also Corina Benga, the professor’s former teaching assistant, who was Bulai’s „right-hand woman” and with whom he organized some of the internships.
According to some students at SNSPA, Corina supported Bulai in carrying out psychological games with sexual overtones during the internships and even helped him to set up the camera with which he recorded the games.
Snoop reveals that Bulai allegedly asked Corina Benga to pay for media articles in order to „save” his reputation, and Corina agreed to do so.
In early December, just released from house arrest, Bulai sued SNSPA and demanded that the university pay him the salaries he lost after his dismissal. Bulai alleged that the decision of the Ethics Commission was communicated to him by e-mail and that he was dismissed without going through the whole procedure.
The effect of the investigation in the community
The material had a major impact in the community and showed how such abuse often goes unreported because of fear of being judged or perceived differently. Victims also do not always realize that they are being abused, as the topic is too little talked about in Romania and is often considered „shameful”. Moreover, victims are often blamed for „asking for it” or „doing something wrong themselves”. However, discussing these issues openly can prevent future abuses against women.
Snoop, together with 25 other newsrooms and journalists, including Info Sud-Est, initiated a journalistic initiative that consisted of a set of 14 questions to SNSPA about Professor Bulai’s abuses, under Law 544/2001 on free access to information of public interest. The questions were sent on August 5, but SNSPA did not respond even 5 months later.
This approach underlined how the university’s management refused to be transparent and to pass on information of public interest even in such a serious context, as a result of which some of the 25 editorial offices and journalists sued the institution for not complying with Law 544/2001.
The alleged abuses committed by Bulai have generated discussions about women’s safety in the educational environment and about the sexual abuses to which women are unfortunately frequently subjected in the university environment.
NGOs such as the Filia Center reacted to the material, expressing their solidarity both with the victims mentioned and with all those who have experienced any form of sexual abuse or harassment in the university environment. Declic also shortly after launched a petition asking universities for clear rules against sexual harassment in higher education.
The investigation quickly went viral and was tumbled both in the online and TV press, as well as on social media, where it remained in the public and authorities’ attention until the presidential elections.
The political crisis triggered by the first round of the presidential elections, won by the pro-Russian candidate with a legionary discourse, Călin Georgescu, followed by the annulment of the elections, overshadowed Bulai’s case, who was under house arrest at the time.
„This centralization is far from complete. Most victims do not file reports”
We spoke to Ioana Moldoveanu, the author of the investigations on Alfred Bulai, about how she feels as a journalist about the actions taken by the authorities so far, but also by the university. We also wanted to find out her opinion on the fact that Bulai vehemently denies the accusations and wants to return to his professorship, despite the charges against him.
Ioana Moldoveanu says she is glad that the Snoop investigation published in the summer has had a real impact and that it has managed to alert the authorities and society about a serious phenomenon that had been ignored by the community until then. As a result, victims have made their voices heard, and legislation has been changed to allow universities to analyze anonymous complaints, which were previously filed away, so they can forward them to the police.
The investigative journalist also points out that the statement by government spokesman Mihai Constantin, who described the Bulai case as a „moral lapse of an individual”, highlighted a limited understanding of sexual harassment in academia and appeared to prioritize protecting the system’s image over supporting victims and getting to the truth.”
Even though the Capital Police opened an investigation into the abuses just a day after the Snoop investigation was published, and prosecutors encouraged victims and witnesses to speak out, offering hope that things can change, Ioana notes that Bulai is now being investigated at large, which may create the impression that abusers are being indulged by the system.
Ioana also adds that she expected SNSPA to have a systemic rather than a one-off reaction after they terminated Bulai’s contract 8 days after the publication of the material, to prevent similar cases in the future.
Although the university has organized a workshop and worked on a guide aimed at preventing sexual abuse and harassment in the academic environment, the guide has not been finally adopted so far, and SNSPA has avoided taking responsibility for the accusations against a professor of the institution.
Asked how she feels about Bulai’s decision to sue SNSPA and demand his place back at the university to get back the money he lost in the months he was fired, the author argues that Alfred Bulai has not understood the impact he has had on dozens of victims and the education system.
- „If abusers continue to be accepted in the environments in which they have committed their acts, then a system is perpetuated that allows them to continue,” adds Ioana Moldoveanu.
In the context of the SNSPA’s refusal to respond to a public interest request made in a journalistic endeavor involving 25 newsrooms and journalists, Ioana mentions that she also sent several questions to the SNSPA almost a month before she published her first investigation into Bulai’s sociologist abuses.
Ioana had asked for information on the number of harassment complaints over the past 20 years and the measures taken, including in the case of a sexual abuse in 2017. She did not receive a registration number until two weeks after sending the request, only because she had raised the issue with the rector in a phone call, but in the end she did not receive any response to the request she sent.
- „The fact that some of the 25 newsrooms and journalists have had to take the university to court to obtain information of public interest shows a culture of opacity and cover-up and disregard for people’s right to be informed. But also a lack of accountability that prevents not only the truth but also change,” the journalist adds.
The two investigations into the sexual abuse and harassment of which Alfred Bulai is accused are part of the „Chair of Abuse” project, carried out by Ioana Moldoveanu and Luiza Vasiliu in 2022, when they were working at RISE Project, a project they say they will continue on Snoop.
According to Ioana, the project was inspired by a study by the Filia Center, which shows that one in three female students is sexually harassed by a university professor. This statistic highlights the systemic nature of the abuse and the authorities’ lack of attention to the problem, and underlines the importance of bringing the issue to public attention to highlight the seriousness of the situation.
The journalist also specifies that the „Chair of Abuse” project also contains an interactive map, which gathered 303 cases of abuse and harassment in Romanian schools, high schools and universities between 2017-2023.
The map was compiled by the two journalists by indexing court cases together with press cases that were ignored by the authorities. Through a form where victims and witnesses had a safe space where they could confess to the sexual abuse or harassment they had been part of, 150 testimonies were collected, and Snoop’s investigation into Bulai’s abuse generated almost 200 new testimonies, Ioana adds.
- „This centralization is far from complete. Most victims do not file reports. Many don’t recognize the abuse when it happens, because there is no sex education in Romania. Others don’t speak out out of fear of the abuser, out of shame or because the system offers rudimentary reporting procedures and no protection for victims. And when they do report, cases are often covered up, ignored or not properly investigated. There are still no prevention or support programs for victims of sexual abuse in education. Most abusers remain in office and continue to abuse new generations,” concludes Ioana Moldoveanu.
ISE has written about the lack of sex education in Romanian education and the benefits of introducing it in schools. The subject still remains taboo in Romania and is often surrounded by conspiracies, such as the misconception that sex education is supposed to encourage and teach children how to have sex.
Among the benefits of introducing sex education in schools is that such a course could help pupils identify the signs of sexual abuse or harassment, which could reduce the number of future victims of sexual harassment.
If you too have experienced abuse at school, high school or college, no matter when, fill in this form as a victim or witness. Your identity will be protected. Data will be used to continue the Map of Abuse on a stand-alone website.
For urgent help, call asistentavictime.ro.
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