Cultură de securitate și

strategică

Ciuf Bogdan Andrei

Managementul Securității în Societatea Contemporană, AN I, IFR

Control paper no. 2

 A STRATEGY TO RAISE AWARENESS OF SECURITY ISSUES AT
THE LEVEL OF A LOCAL / NATIONAL COMMUNITY

As a first step, it would be useful to try to understand the concepts of "security education" and
"security culture". It is not easy to discern between them, which is why we used the superior knowledge
concentrated in an explanatory dictionary of the "language of the secret services". 1

Security education is a set of measures taken systematically by public authorities and non-
governmental organizations, through which notions, ideas and information about national security
values, interests and needs are used in specific forms and means. The dictionary provides explanations
for the purpose: it reminds of the formation and development of the intellectual, moral and behavioral
qualities of the citizens in fields and problems of national and international security.

Culture of security, refers (says the same dictionary) to the promotion and consolidation of
democratic values, by developing a common understanding of the challenges and opportunities in the
field of national security at the level of the state and society.

The two reporting factors are the decision makers (the state) and the citizens or (in other words)
all of us (society), as the efficiency of activities to promote a culture of security must be found in the
positions adopted at collective and individual level2. These are attitudes that must conform to or be as
close as possible to the objective reality of the world in which we live. Practically, the promotion of the
culture of security is the method by which all those who challenge, defy or behave as if they tolerate
must be attracted - towards a better understanding of the importance of an act of ensuring national
security, information service activities in general. The situation is also present in Romania, where the
degree of confidence, although with a tendency to increase, still has some steps to climb until we can
say that it is optimal in relation to the perception of citizens. The need for communication is obvious.

Basically, a modern approach at institutional level involves:

1
https://intelligence.sri.ro
2
Ibidem

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  promoting the idea and importance (ensuring) of national security;
 knowledge of the register of so-called public emergencies of military, economic, societal
and ecological nature;
 the totality of notions, ideas and influences available, at a given moment, to the citizens
of the state regarding the values, interests and national security needs;
 developing attitudes, motivations and behaviors necessary for the defense and personal,
group and state protection against vulnerabilities, risk factors, threats, states of danger or
potential aggressions, as well as their promotion in the internal and international security
environment.3

In this century, the fight against terrorism, organized crime, economic and financial crime and
corruption are realities that civil society representatives need to know in order to contribute together
with state institutions, to know, prevent and counteract them. To strengthen our argument, let us consider
only the factor of corruption, which is a threat to national security, with a negative impact, in the long
run, on living standards, human rights and fundamental freedoms, but also on healthy economic
development. Therefore, security education and culture are necessities of a new collective defense, but
which is no longer achieved only by the state as a political-administrative entity, but also by citizens
through civil society. Its exponents can be actively involved in actions of preventive education and
management of the new security reality.

Viewed throughout Romania's history, the security culture has developed - as Mircea Maliţa
identified - a pattern, characterized by four essential features: wisdom, active adaptation, realism and
experience4. However, the stage differences, which culminate with the current one on what security
culture means, were the ones that constantly created an added value and brought the “smart nation”
paradigm in Romania as well.

The evolution of the security culture is marked by two contradictory tendencies: on the one hand,
the maintenance of the culture that brought performances and, on the other hand, its change as a result
of changes in society. It is a natural path in the contemporary environment, as the creative climate and
the depth of the degree of socialization impose new values and presumptions in terms of security culture.
Consequently, it is not excluded that the long-term preservation of concepts, beliefs, norms that have

3
https://www.infosequre.com/
4
https://acad.ro/

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had a beneficial effect at a given time will turn into development brakes, prejudices or stereotypes in the
approach.

At the national level, security strategies indicate a joint effort involving both military and civilian
institutions, and, last but not least, citizen accountability. There is a need for a strong security culture,
promoted in a sustained way among the population and policy makers, at the same time with an
exponential increase of transparency at the level of institutions able to ensure the achievement of national
security, but also a great openness to the creation of collaborative networks, integrate specialized
institutions, OSINT, academic institutions and private experts.

It is very important to emphasize the role of the press in educating citizens / civil society on
national security. Communication is a main means by which values, ideas, the concept of security culture
can be understood and assimilated. Relevant information, without distorting the truth, serves national
security.

Institutions are concerned with the realization of security education, by using several means of
training, with the involvement of OSINT, but also through concrete actions, such as: meetings with civil
society representatives, round tables, conferences, debates or various partnerships with academic
institutions or research, scientific communication sessions. The "Terrorism near us" campaign, carried
out in 2004-2010, targeted public authorities, pupils, high school students, and took place in the form of
information sessions both in Bucharest and in other cities, with the aim of to present the danger of
terrorism. The series of meetings "SRI in 50 minutes", launched by SRI in 2013, presented students and
teachers with unique information about SRI, about the risks specific to the current security environment,
offering recommendations on how to react in certain risk situations.

The round table on "Society, Democracy, Intelligence" (2008) had among its objectives the
evaluation of the expectations and perceptions of civil society on the activity of SRI, as well as on the
need to strengthen public communication in the area of intelligence. We can also mention the debate
“Social media evolutions: a look at the future” (2015), on the topic of the risks felt at the level of society
with the revolution of relational thinking and communication under the impact of social media.

All this demonstrates the constant concern for transparency and a clear and coherent dialogue
with civil society, as part of the process of organizational transformation that the institutions have
undergone in recent years. Openness to the public can lead, on the one hand, to attracting young people

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who share the values of the institution and can become an important resource in the process of defending
national security, and on the other hand to strengthening a partnership with citizens.

Citizens need to have access to information that can build or strengthen their security culture. It
is essential that the need for national security be aware and integrated into the self (preferably constantly)
on alert. This is at least one of the acceptable and affordable solutions for individuals to move from
security status to higher security generators. Development is a condition of freedom.

Bibliography

„Academia Națională de Informații „Mihai Viteazul“”, https://www.animv.ro/.

„Academia Română - Institutia”, https://acad.ro/academia_romana/.
„Security awareness solutions | Infosequre”, https://www.infosequre.com/.
„Serviciul Român de Informații”, Serviciul Român de Informații, https://www.sri.ro/.
„Revista Intelligence - Serviciul Român de Informații”, Revista Intelligence,
https://intelligence.sri.ro/.