WBC Demands the Immediate Release of Rudel Obreja Consistent with His Right to Life

The World Boxing Council is seriously concerned over recent reports from Romania confirming that former Romanian Boxing Federation President, Rudel Obreja, remains detained and cannot access proper medical care.  Mr. Obreja has been recently diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer.  There are strong indications that Mr. Obreja may have been wrongfully convicted in the infamous “Gala Bute” case.

According to his family, Obreja, had been complaining of acute abdominal pain for 3 months.  Finally, he was taken to the hospital and was diagnosed with advanced cancer, an excessively late diagnosis due to the indifference of jail doctors and the poor and delayed response of the penitentiary system. Mr. Obreja’s human rights have been grossly violated.  Applicable international codes prohibit the torture and inhumane treatment of incarcerated individuals.  In short, the WBC believes that Mr. Obreja’s right to life has been desecrated.

The WBC places human rights above all other considerations.  Accordingly, Mr. Obreja should be released immediately so he can receive adequate medical care and the support of his family.

We urge the Romanian Government and all competent national institutions to take all appropriate measures to provide proper reparation in this case and to ensure that Mr. Obreja’s rights are respected, protected, and fulfilled.

Rudel Obreja, a close friend of WBC, has a long-standing history of fighting against corruption in boxing.  AS Chief Technical Officer for amateur boxing, he strongly denounced AIBA’s corruption at the Beijing Olympics.  His brave and ethical actions led to his illegal suspension and exclusion from AIBA.

In 2011, Mr. Obreja organised the Gala Bute boxing show, where Lucian Bute fought Jean-Paul Mendy.  Complex Romanian political forces involved in that boxing show resulted in disputes that eventually lead to Mr. Rudel’s unwarranted arrest and wrongful conviction.   He received a 5-year sentence for tax evasion.  By all appearances and based on many credible reports, the tribunal that convicted Obreja was illegally constituted, a fact recognised by the Romanian Constitutional Court. Despite several media appearances where he proclaimed the political nature of his prosecution, Mr. Obreja was eventually incarcerated in April 2022.

Given all those facts, the WBC is also concerned over a violation of the right to a fair trial that led to the arrest of Mr. Obreja. Nonetheless, it is now imperative, given his medical condition, that the Romanian Government grants his immediate release so that he can receive proper and adequate medical care.

With the involvement of Mr. Obreja’s family, the WBC will start immediately to organize a public fundraising initiative in support of his medical care expenses. We will soon offer more details about the donation process.   While the logistics of those efforts are implemented, if anyone is interested in contributing please contact the WBC Office at contact@wbcboxing.com