Muttertag vs. Ziua Tatălui

Across Europe, the second Sunday of May is time to celebrate Mother's Day. Belgium, Cyprus, Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary, Netherlands, Ukraine, Italy are among those who celebrate maternity today. However, there are many exceptions to the rule. France and Sweden use for the same purpose the last Sunday of May. Poland have a fixed day in the end of the same month: 26th of May. Bulgaria uses the International Day of Women, on 8th of March, and have no special celebration of the mothers. In Ireland and UK, they honor mother during the fourth Sunday of Lent. In Spain and Portugal, they have Mother;s Day in the first Sunday of May.

Starting 2009, a law changed the Romanian traditions, from the one similar to Bulgaria, to set up a Mother's Day like in Portugal: the first Sunday of May. Probably they found nothing unpleasant if sometimes it coincides with the Labour Day.

To make things more peculiar, the smart Romanian authorities, following a NGO initiative, enforced the second Sunday in May as Ziua Tatălui (Father's Day). In many of European countries, Father's Day is the third Sunday of June. As in the case of the Mother's Day, many exceptions occur. However, Romania is the only country in the world to celebrate Father's Day when most honor mothers. 

To make thinks funnier, the reason invoked in 2009 to set up a Father's Day, was to avoid discrimination of men. Therefore the Romanian Senate decided to officially celebrate Mother's Day and Father's Day, and that the later should be hold when many others have Mother's Day. They add to the International Women's Day, the International Men's day (29th of November) and the unofficial Men's day organized by some beer producer on 5th of May.

For at least 1.5 million Romanians living abroad, this is a good opportunity to jointly celebrate mothers and fathers ;)

Otherwise, the Romanian celebrations and their reasons leave misogynist attitudes, lack of knowledge, and populism to be active under some fresh political-correctness paint...