Ceaucescu

[DivaDebs]

I am researching a book, and want to have a bit of background about Romania, during the regime of Ceaucescu.

I know he was shot dead on TV in 1989. Could anyone tell me if the Romanians would have watched this? I would find it difficult to believe any of them would have a TV, but would any of them been able to have watched it live?

I would like to place one of my characters there at the time.

Thanks for your help.

[bernardo]

Yes - definitely.

The revolution which happened in December 1989 was waiting to happen immintnetly because hundreds of people had been massacred a few days before in Timisoara by the police. A standard propaganda rally was taking place in the capital, Bucharest, on 22nd December (I think), where thousands of "joyous" workers and citizens were forced to go to the presidential palace and chant their praises for President Ceausescu.

A few people in the middle of the crowd overcame their fear, and started jeering and booing, and chanting "Timisoara!" and "Murderer!". It would have been unthinkable even a few weeks earlier, because the whole crowd could have been massacred. Ceausescu was in the middle of a speech on the balcony when the booing started, and he was taken aback because he genuinely did not understand why they were upset.

The crucial point is that the whole rally, and the speech and the booing, were being broadcast live on TV. A few seconds after the booing started, the TV transmission was cut off. But it was already too late, because the people had seen what had happened. Almost immediately, crowds of people came swarming onto the streets and stormed the presidential palace. Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena escaped (with moments to spare) by helicopter from the roof of the palace.

Two days later, they were captured in the countryside to where they had fled, they were taken to a military barracks, where on Christmas Day they were summarily tried and then taken out and executed.

[bernardo]

The revolution was successful because the Army took the side of the people, and refused to obey orders to stop the rebellion. For about a week afterwards, there was a civil war in which 4000 people died, when the secret police (the Securitate) fought back and tried to restore the Communist Party to power.

Television was crucial in showing the people that the crowd was booing (without being too scared) and then in showing the executions (which was necessary in order to prevent the possibility of Ceausescu and his regime being restored to power). If he had been kept alive (waiting for a proper more detailed trial) then he would have been a focus for rebellion, and there would have been stronger incentive for the Secutitate to fight back to try to have himn restored. In other words, it was necessary to kill him quickly (and show his dead body on TV) to prove that he was dead, in order to prevent far more people being killed in the civil war.

I think that right up to the moment of his death, Ceausescu believed genuinely that his people loved him and that he would be rescued. He believed that the whole revolution had been arranged by the imperialist Americans and Russians, because he was so detached from reality that he had come to believe his own propaganda about how wonderful he was.

[DivaDebs]

Thanks very much Bernardo. From what I have read, it would seem that the actual execution was not broadcast live on TV though, would you agree? It appears to have been videotaped, then released in France first, Romania a few days later. This tape, however, did not show the actual shooting - just the bodies?

[MustafaTinkl]

No, that is not so. The first broadcasts showed the whole wretched incident in full, but within a couple of hours it was edited. Mr and Mrs Ceaucescu came out through a side door into a small yard. They were not under escort. Both were smartly dressed, she with a fur coat and hat, he in a smart overcoat and hat. They took a few steps into the yard and suddenly Mrs Ceaucescu grabbed Mr Ceaucescu's arm and said in Rumanian "My God, he is going to kill us!". The back of a man stepped into camera, the Ceaucescu's stopped, straightened and faced him and, holding arms, started to sing what sounded to me like The Red Flag. They had scarcely started when the man pointed an automatic weapon at them and let fly. They fell to the ground, he slightly on top of her, her right foot noticeably twitched 3 or 4 times, blood became visible on both, the man walked over and looked down at his handiwork, and that was that.

[DivaDebs]

God! That IS gruesome! Thanks so much for the info. It certainly will help with the book. Also, you mentioned the music which was playing. Apparently, this was The Internationale, which was banned in many European countries around the beginning of the 20th C because of its communist image. Apparently, they were shot just after they sung the fourth word.

What started as a very small part of my book has now got me so interested, it could be a book in itself... Thanks very much for all your help again.

[DESIREE]

the tape was shown last year in a documentary on the history channel. i suggest reading "transcript of the closed case of nicolae and elena ceausescu" or "the most evil men and women in history"

[DivaDebs]

Thanks for this. I will track it down.