Ion Iliescu, Romania's first post-Communist president, dies at 95
A central figure in post-1989 Romania, Iliescu won the country's first free elections in 1990 and was re-elected in 1992 and 2000. Even after stepping back from politics, he remained influential within the Social Democratic Party, though health issues limited his public appearances in recent years. He had been diagnosed with lung cancer two months before his death.
Iliescu, who studied in Moscow, rose through the ranks of the Communist Party but was sidelined by dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu. After Ceaușescu was overthrown and executed during the December 1989 Revolution, Iliescu emerged as a key figure in the power vacuum. He and other dissidents formed the National Salvation Front, which took control with military backing, and Iliescu was installed as interim leader.
His role during and after the Revolution has long been disputed. Some revolutionaries claim that on 23 December 1989, Iliescu sought Soviet military support. His past links to the regime sparked mass anti-communist protests in Bucharest's University Square in 1990.
Iliescu responded by calling in miners from the Jiu Valley to quash the demonstrations, triggering violent clashes known as the 'Mineriada.' The crackdown drew widespread condemnation, but legal proceedings moved slowly.
In April 2024, Iliescu and former Prime Minister Petre Roman were indicted for crimes against humanity in connection to the June 1990 violence. Prosecutors allege that the coordinated state response left four people dead, two raped, over 1,300 injured, and more than 1,200 illegally detained.
Critics argue that Romania's democratic transition might have taken a different path had the 1990 Timișoara Proclamation, which sought to bar former communists from public office, been enacted. Supporters, however, credit Iliescu with stabilising the country, launching EU integration efforts with the 1995 Snagov Declaration, and steering Romania into becoming a NATO member during his final term in office.
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