And those who carried it out were never brought to justice so we sit and fester.. It was not just, but it was necessary. The national address, which was broadcast on state television in an attempt to re-establish authority, was abruptly cut from the airwaves. The underground gay community in Bucharest was aware of how HIV was transmitted, says activist Adrian Petrescu (not his real name) And condoms could be smuggled in through Yugoslavia, but the official line was that HIV was a western plot.. Hoping to boost Romanias population, in 1966 Ceauescu issued Decree 770, a measure that effectively outlawed contraception and abortion. Why more than 25 countries are moving to let travelling workers put down roots, How genius TV drama Better Call Saul improved on its forebear Breaking Bad, Half of over-30s have an oral disease that can go undiagnosed for decades. Usually they have been used to instil fear or for propaganda purposes, but the filming of the Ceausescus execution was probably deliberately intended to provide an outlet for all the pent-up visceral hatred and outrage of the Romanian people. He offered to free those arrested but was met with protestors instead demanding that Ceausescu resign. The final death toll remains disputed upper estimates say as many as 1,200 were killed either in the Timisoara uprising or later on the streets of Bucharest as some sections of the military stayed loyal to the regime. He intended to sit it out, convinced of his own invincibility and the self-deluding righteousness of his socialist cause, seemingly incapable of understanding that it was only upheld by his overbearing, often vicious police and oppressive security services and the threat of Soviet intervention. In 1981 he began a programme of austerity, which aimed to liquidate his nations enormous national debt.

And in Romania, unlike elsewhere, the last days of communism would prove violent. But the crowd would not play along. Painted white outlines on the pavement show visitors where the couple's bodies fell. The victims of their regime would disagree vehemently and with justification. ', and 'down with Ceausescu!'". We are powerless now, she tell her husband towards the end. But it would make no difference. It was the denouement of an extraordinary year during which the Soviet Union had voluntarily given up its once implacable hold over its satellite states. While in prison, Ceauescu became a protg of his cell mate, the Communist leader Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, who would become the undisputed Communist leader of Romania beginning in 1952.

Romania's economy has grown impressively, but even today it is one of Europe's poorest countries. With protestors closing in and the military no longer prepared to defend him he fled with his wife in a dramatic escape by helicopter from the Bucharest rooftops only seconds before his pursuers reached the aircraft. "But not much has changed, we don't have [good] roads, motorways, and the healthcare system is getting worse," he says. Yet many in that country including some of their opponents question the summary nature of the Ceausescus' trial and sentence. It was a good thing to do to calm people down. They were to be the last (semi) judicial deaths in Romania. It had been a needless escalation but now the city was burning, martial law was declared and tanks entered the streets.

On 25 December an extraordinary military tribunal under 10 military judges was convened at Targoviste. Ceausescu had misjudged the mood of the crowd as he blamed "fascist agitators" for the Timisoara unrest; the Bucharest crowds responded by jeering and chanting "Timisoara! "I think it haunts everybody in my family," she says. Under Gheorghiu-Dej, Ceauescu eventually came to occupy the second highest position in the party hierarchy, holding important posts in the Politburo and Secretariat. But when police in Targoviste brought the Ceausescus to then-Col. Kemenici's headquarters on Dec. 22, 1989, he says, he was ready to protect them with his life. The appalling economic situation was only exacerbated as Ceausescu splurged cash on megalomaniac projects such as the construction of the People's Palace, even today one of the largest buildings in the world. He adds that Romanian officials' rush to judgment never gave the Ceausescus a chance to reflect on their actions. "They shot everybody on the sidewalk, I was 14 at the time.". Kemenici says his superiors ordered him to hide the couple and make sure they came to no harm while they figured out what to do with them. For 24 years they ruled Romania almost in tandem, simultaneously espousing hardline communist rhetoric while living lives of opulence as the Romanian population suffered the hardships and privations that were a common feature of life in the communist nations of eastern Europe. But, crucially, they delayed. The Romanian dictator had long been a law unto himself, distancing his nation from the Soviet-backed Warsaw Pact military alliance, especially after the Pact invaded Czechoslovakia in 1968, and defying the Soviet-backed boycott of the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. But the poverty wasnt a state-imposed policy any more. Each email has a link to unsubscribe.

Their fate was sealed. Bernard Bisson/Sygma/Corbis The images were shown on television in Romania and around the globe. Despite myriad issues, Traian Rabagia says: "It's probably the longest and strongest democracy in [Romania's] history.". Hours later, they were arrested in Targoviste. But in 1989 things had been changing. The execution was the denouement of an extraordinary year for the country, 24 December1989: Romanians jubilant at news that Ceausescus have been arrested (AFP via Getty), Armed civilians chase down members of the Securitatesecret police (AFP via Getty), Anti-Ceausescu demonstrators on the Bucharest streets on Christmas day 1989(AFP via Getty), Crowds pack the cemetery: about 500 civilians were killed in the fighting (AFP via Getty), Celebrations as Romaniajoins the European Union in 2007 (AFP via Getty), The execution has been described as shameful but necessary (AFP via Getty), Ion Iliescu took office in 1990 and was the official successor to Nicolae Ceaucescu(AFP via Getty), Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number, Please enter a name between 1 and 40 characters, You must be over 18 years old to register.

He says Ceausescu would shout: "Hey, Colonel, don't you know? Mass protests in 2017 against the measures sparked the biggest anti-government protests since the 1989 revolution. Ceauescus regime collapsed after he ordered his security forces to fire on antigovernment demonstrators in the city of Timioara on December 17, 1989. As little as two minutes into his speech there were boos, jeers and cries of Timisoara. How had it come to this? Nicolae Ceausescu, who had effectively presided over the deaths of many thousands through his political intransigence and callous disregard, was the last victim of his own regime. And on Christmas Day in 1989, Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, were executed by firing squad. Turbulent years followed the revolution with a government led by Mr Iliescu. I raised you like a mother. They both wept as Nicolae sang the Internationale attempting to maintain his socialist credentials until the end. His rule was essentially a cult of personality. Meanwhile, messages of support flooded in for the new government replacing Ceausescu. Problems still exist today, however, and child poverty is still high in terms of the developed world and so younger people especially began to leave their country after 2007 to work in richer western nations. "The Christmas tree which my father bought for our family ended up in his coffin like flowers. They were dragged out, begging for mercy, and shot in the freezing courtyard. "He told me that the Americans and Russians got together to do this.". The stunned expression on his face when the catcalls didnt stop marked the very moment his regime lost its legitimacy, but more significantly it was the point when he finally realised it himself. "I felt relief. Romanians burn a portrait of Nicolae Ceausescu in Denta on Dec. 22, 1989, as residents take to the streets to celebrate the downfall of the dictator.

"It was war, it was a war zone here," remembers Traian Rabagia, then a 19-year-old geology student. And none of it had been good whatever lies he had spun. hide caption. Gabriel Amza for NPR The Ceausescus flagged down the car of Nicolae Petrisor, who recognised them and, equally speciously, told them he could find them a place of safety at an agricultural institute. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev had announced his nation would never again interfere in the affairs of others and the peoples of eastern Europe had taken note. It was on Christmas Day 30 years ago that Romania's tyrannical communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was executed by firing squad after a summary trial. And none of it had been good whatever lies he had spun.

From where I was standing well back in the crowd at first I thought it was for effect, says Alexandru Balan a factory worker then aged 33. "I was shot from three metres away, from a car," he says, pulling up his right sleeve to reveal a bullet wound on his forearm.

Read about our approach to external linking. Standing outside Bucharest's Supreme Court building on a blustery late November day, 46-year-old Alexandru Catalin Giurcanu, whose father was brutally killed during the revolution, is here to seek justice. On December 25 the couple were hurriedly tried and convicted by a special military tribunal on charges of mass murder and other crimes. Around 70% of Romania's rural population are living below the poverty line, according to World Bank statistics. 2022 BBC. Patrick Hertzog/AFP/Getty Images ', 'we are the people! On Christmas Day, 30 years on, maybe only they should deserve our sympathy. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. After listening to Kemenici tell his story, his granddaughter, Eliza Burcea, gives him a hug. He says the army-issued metal cups and plates the couple was given to eat off of didn't please him or his wife, who were used to fine china. ". He is still disputing the legitimacy of the military court, accusing them of being backed by the Soviet Union whom he had always distrusted, even as she realises what the outcome will be. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. The situation worsened after he appointed his wife first deputy prime minister. Her distress is palpable and raw. The charges included genocide by starvation and subversion of state power. He died after taking 13 bullets. Victor Stanculescu, an army general who took control of the Ministry of Defence during the revolution and was instrumental in organising the Ceausescus trial, concurs. The trial, which began on Christmas Day, lasted less than an hour, Carstina says, adding that the chief military judge, Gica Popa, delivered the verdict after only minutes of deliberation. "People aren't paid enough here [in Romania]," Mrs Taropa says. The "Revolution trial" has been postponed until February 2020. Not so in Romania.

Escaping prison in August 1944 shortly before the Soviet occupation of Romania, Ceauescu subsequently served as secretary of the Union of Communist Youth (194445). Did the manner of his downfall, and concurrent violence the only communist nation in 1989 to experience a murderous overthrow of its regime create a legacy that differed from its erstwhile socialist allies? On the day of Ceausescu's botched speech, Traian Rabagia joined the throngs of demonstrators who faced down pro-communist forces in the streets. By clicking Register you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to ourTerms of use,Cookie policyandPrivacy notice. The Securitate, Romanias secret police, was a ubiquitous presence, deliberately intended to foster fear among the public. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the GooglePrivacy policyandTerms of serviceapply. This man had ruled every aspect of our lives since before we could remember. Mercy was clearly in short supply. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The Securitate were responsible for the torture and death of thousands of dissenters. In effect, he is saying that killing them stopped further bloodshed. "It's hard to judge if the way they were killed was right or wrong," the museum director says. In addition to violent political oppression, Romanians suffered repeated food shortages under Ceausescu's rule because he exported most of Romania's harvest and took drastic steps to curb the country's heavy debts.

Decades of bitter grievance, poverty and hunger were about to be unleashed. A visibly shocked Ceausescu attempted to appease demonstrators with promises of higher wages but dissent only grew. The costs sank the Romanian standard of living to nearly the bottom of the former Soviet bloc. The teetering leader intended to speak to the people again and helicopters dropped leaflets telling the protestors to return home to enjoy the forthcoming Christmas feast. A large number were killed, others seriously injured. If we had left it to the people of Bucharest there would have been lynchings, Even so, the fact that the Ceausescus were shot on Christmas Day has also been a source of anger in a deeply religious country All wrong, says 74-year-old Simona Dobre, a retired telephonist.

In an effort to pay off the large foreign debt that his government had accumulated through its mismanaged industrial ventures in the 1970s, Ceauescu in 1982 ordered the export of much of the countrys agricultural and industrial production. Their son Nicu is also buried alongside. hide caption. "I was no longer his slave," Kemenici says. Shameful. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. Twenty-five years ago, the Communist leaders of Eastern Europe were falling like dominoes. Three decades have passed since the fall of communism and Romania is now a functioning, democratic EU country with a growing economy. In a rambling military and civilian cemetery in Bucharests Sector 6 you can find the graves of Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu. Fighting died down by 27 December although many responsible for the bloodshed have never been identified. By clicking Create my account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to ourTerms of use,Cookie policyandPrivacy notice. hide caption. "There was blood all over the sidewalk there," Mr Rabagia, told the BBC, standing outside the InterContinental Hotel in central Bucharest. They still deserved it.". Kemenici says he and just about everybody else watched the execution. Ceausescus next move cemented his downfall. The argument he uses is that the Ceausescus needed to be removed so that nobody would be in a position to fight for them. So when the people finally rose against the Ceausescus there was more than just the everyday grind, the lack of hope, the lack of infrastructure and the lack of opportunity shared by all the other nations that overthrew communism in 1989. "We knew that people living in other countries had more material wealth and were living better. "He didn't believe they were doing this on their own," Kemenici says. It was the height of the bloody revolution in Romania, in which hundreds of protesters had been killed. The hastily appointed defence lawyer Nicu Teodorescu insisted the Ceausescus plead insanity as the only way of avoiding the death penalty. He was a young boy during the revolution. A crowd of Romanians gather in front of the Central Committee headquarters in Bucharest on Dec. 26, 1989, demanding a new government after the execution of former leader Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena. Nicolae Ceauescu, (born January 26, 1918, Scorniceti, Romaniadied December 25, 1989, near Bucharest), Communist official who was leader of Romania from 1965 until he was overthrown and killed in a revolution in 1989. Kemenici says he still resents the last Romanian communist leader using the military to bring their countrymen to heel. It's that gunfire one sees in the execution footage that was broadcast around the world, the museum director says. Video footage shows it wasn't until paratroopers assigned to carry out the execution arrived that the couple finally grasped what was about to happen. On 20 December with Nicolae Ceausescu on a government visit to Iran, Elena Ceausescu despatched her prime minister Constantin Dascalescu to Timisoara to take control. I know what happened, even though I was only six at the time, says Maria Radu an English translator. Retired Gen. Andrei Kemenici with his granddaughter Eliza Burcea.