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DW
4 days ago
- Politics
- DW
Ion Iliescu, Romania's first freely elected president, dies – DW – 08/06/2025
Ion Iliescu, Romania's first leader after the collapse of the Ceausescu dictatorship, died at 95. He saw himself as a savior, but was accused of crimes against humanity in the 1989 revolution. On December 22, 1989, at 2:35 pm local time, a man stepped in front of the camera in studio 4 of Romanian state television TVR and addressed the viewers as "Dear comrades." It was Ion Iliescu, then 59, taking the reins as the overthrow of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was being broadcast live. Shortly before, Ceausescu had fled the capital, Bucharest, in a helicopter, driven out by an angry and determined crowd. The uprising against the national-Stalinist dictatorship had triumphed, and the "end of the tyrant" was announced from the television studio. When Iliescu appeared, most Romanians knew only vaguely who he was. In party circles, however, he was known as a functionary who Ceausescu had once sidelined. Iliescu made an emotional speech, accusing the "confused Ceausescu clique" of having "plunged Romania into chaos and disorder." He also called on the population to exercise "social discipline." Hours later, he made a second appearance. This time in a wooden tone, Iliescu announced that a "Front of National Salvation" had taken power and decided on measures to democratize Romania. High-ranking functionaries of the recently overthrown dictatorship surrounded him with applause. Iliescu appeared as the provisional Romanian leader — and as the head of an uprising in which he hadn't even participated. At that moment, no one questioned his legitimacy. In one of his famous self-mythologizations, Iliescu himself later said that he had been an "emanation," that the revolution had "brought him forth" as a leader. Iliescu was later elected three times, leaving a legacy in post-communist Romania unlike any other politician in the country. During the only bloody upheaval in Eastern Europe in 1989, he seized power, convinced that only he could save Romania. Under his leadership, Romania became the only former Eastern Bloc state in which the communists continued to rule for seven years after the fall of the dictatorship, albeit under a different name. He created what he called an "original democracy" and deceptive stability and calm, the price of which Romanian society still pays. Although his most fervent dream was "national unity," he stood at the beginning of divisions that still affect Romania today. Born in 1930 in the Danube port town of Oltenita, southeast of Bucharest, Iliescu grew up poor in a broken family. His biological mother abandoned him a year after his birth, and his father was an illegal communist activist who lived for years in the Soviet Union and died in 1945. Raised by his stepmother, after World War II, he made a career in the Romanian Communist Party, initially as a student functionary, and later as the person responsible for propaganda in the Central Committee and as Minister of Youth. He was also a pupil of Ceausescu, and at times, he was even regarded as his crown prince. When the dictator initiated a neo-Stalinist turn in 1971, he demoted Iliescu to district party leader for "intellectualism." After 1990, in another moment of self-mythologization, Iliescu claimed that he had been a "symbol of opposition to Ceausescu," representing social democratic ideals since the early 1970s. In fact, he was a quiet, belated reformist socialist who had spent the last years of the dictatorship marginalized as director of a technical publishing house in Bucharest. Whether and how Iliescu conspired against Ceausescu remains unclear. But he was certainly obsessed with the dictator, helping to order the secret execution of the Ceausescu couple on December 25, 1989. In conversations, he often became highly emotional when Ceausescu came up. During an election campaign debate, he also referred to an opponent by the dictator's name. The question of whether the fall of Ceausescu and Iliescu's subsequent seizure of power was a popular uprising or a coup was eventually answered: it was a mixture of both. The topic still unsettles Romanian society today. After Ceausescu was ousted from power, 862 people died in chaotic street battles allegedly carried out by "terrorists" loyal to Ceausescu. As it later turned out, Iliescu and his supporters had staged the fights to stabilize their provisional power in the turmoil, regardless of knowing that people would die. Soon afterward, in May 1990, Iliescu was formally elected by a large majority under the slogan that he was a "president of calm." But this calm was false: Iliescu repeatedly had thousands of miners brought to Bucharest from the Schiltal valley in western Romania to bludgeon opposition politicians and regime critics. The worst of these so-called "mineriads" took place in June 1990, when a student protest camp on Bucharest University Square was "eliminated" and miners beat student leader Marian Munteanu nearly to death. Afterward, Iliescu thanked them for their "high civic consciousness." As head of state, he successfully transformed the "National Salvation Front," which had taken over governing after the fall of Ceausescu, into a rallying point for former Communist Party functionaries, secret service collaborators, Ceausescu henchmen and former company directors under the label of the Social Democratic Party (PSD). However, Iliescu could not prevent Romanian society from slowly democratizing against him. At the end of 1996, he and his party were voted out of power, the first truly free and democratically legitimized regime change in Romanian history. Iliescu resigned himself to the inevitable and did not call for violence after he was voted out of power. Later, in 2000, he made a comeback and saved Romania from the fascist Greater Romania ideologue Corneliu Vadim Tudor, a poet and former employee of the notorious Securitate secret service, in a run-off election for the presidency. Iliescu won, though many of his critics voted for him only to avoid civil war and a new dictatorship. Thus, Ion Iliescu's great longing for "national reconciliation" was weakly fulfilled, at least for a short time. Iliescu would have liked to go down in history as a symbol of this reconciliation, but it was not to be. Those who perished after Ceausescu's escape, as well as the victims of the mineriads instigated by Iliescu, remained a shadow over any contributions for which he might have been honored. Commissions and public prosecutors investigated him for over three decades — an odyssey for the bereaved and those affected. In the end, Iliescu was never compelled to appear in court. And while the public also never stopped asking him questions, he did not show any real remorse. Ion Iliescu died on August 5 at the age of 95.
Boston Globe
4 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Ion Iliescu, Romania's first freely elected president after 1989 revolution, has died at 95
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Romania's government said it would announce plans for a state funeral soon. Advertisement In a statement on its official website, Romania's Social Democratic Party, which Mr. Iliescu founded, called it 'a very sad day for Romania.' 'A prominent figure of the Romanian Revolution and the history of contemporary Romania, Mr. President Ion Iliescu will remain for all of us a symbol of the politician and statesman,' the statement read. 'He had the courage to confront Ceausescu and his dictatorship, and directed Romania irreversibly on the Euro-Atlantic path.' 'He was a strong leader, loved by most, contested by others, as happens in democracy,' it added. In 2018, military prosecutors charged him with crimes against humanity for failing to prevent 'numerous situations' in which civilians were needlessly killed during the revolution. Prosecutors alleged he had spread false information through state media, creating a 'generalized psychosis' that fueled chaos and bloodshed. Advertisement The charges against Mr. Iliescu, who served as a minister in the communist government until he was sidelined in 1971, refer to a five-day period during the uprising, after Ceausescu had fled Bucharest on Dec. 22, 1989. At the time of Mr. Iliescu's death, he had never been convicted, and the case remained open. In January this year, his legal woes mounted when prosecutors charged him with crimes against humanity in a second case. Prosecutors allege he implemented policies that led to a violent 1990 crackdown on civilian protesters who were demanding the removal of former communists from power. Mr. Iliescu had called on coal miners from the Jiu Valley to 'restore order' in the capital. At least four people were killed. Despite maintaining good relations with the Soviet Union until its collapse in 1991, Romania became a member of the NATO military alliance in 2004 during his last presidential term. After his last term ended, he served as a lawmaker in the Social Democratic Party, Romania's most dominant political party since communism ended 35 years ago. Dominic Fritz, president of the governing coalition partner Save Romania Union party, said in a post on Facebook that Mr. Iliescu's passing 'is painful not because of his departure, but because it leaves us with so many open wounds.' 'Many are still waiting for justice,' he said. 'And Ion Iliescu took with him answers to questions that still plague society.' For two decades after the revolution, Mr. Iliescu was Romania's most consequential political figure who helped define the country's new democratic institutions and its Constitution, said Cristian Andrei, a Bucharest-based political consultant. Advertisement 'His legacy spans from the one to oust Ceausescu to being himself a break in Romania's development and transition to full functioning democracy and market economy,' he said. 'He was later accused by a growing number of Romanians of being the continuator of the Communist apparatus … trying to hold on to power in an authoritarian-communist style.' After President Nicusor Dan's victory in Romania's tense presidential rerun in May, Mr. Iliescu congratulated the pro-Western leader in a blog post, noting that Romania 'is going through a complex period' and faces economic, social, and geopolitical challenges. 'Romania needs coherence, dialogue and a firm commitment to strengthening democratic institutions and its European path,' he said. 'I am convinced that you will exercise this responsibility with dignity and a sense of duty to the nation.' Dan described the late president on Tuesday as 'the central figure of the 1990s transition' and said that 'history will judge Ion Iliescu.' 'It's our duty to clarify the major cases of that era, so we can move forward with accountability,' he said.
South Wales Guardian
4 days ago
- Politics
- South Wales Guardian
Ion Iliescu, Romania's first freely elected post-revolution leader, dies at 95
Mr Iliescu, who held de facto military authority during the anti-communist revolt, assumed power after Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena were executed on December 25 1989. More than 1,100 people died during the uprising, 862 of them after Mr Iliescu had seized power. He repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. Twice re-elected, in 1992 and 2000, Mr Iliescu had largely withdrawn from public life by 2017. In recent years, his health had declined. In 2019, he underwent heart surgery, and he was diagnosed with lung cancer in June. The hospital in the capital, Bucharest, where Mr Iliescu had been receiving medical treatment since June 9, said on Tuesday that he died at 3.55pm local time after medics 'made all efforts to provide him the necessary care and treatment'. Romania's government also confirmed his death and extended its condolences to his family and those close to the former president. It added that it would announce plans for a state funeral soon. In a statement on its official website, Romania's Social Democratic Party, or PSD, which Mr Iliescu founded, called it 'a very sad day for Romania'. 'A prominent figure of the Romanian Revolution and the history of contemporary Romania, Mr President Ion Iliescu will remain for all of us a symbol of the politician and statesman,' the statement read. 'He had the courage to confront Ceausescu and his dictatorship, and directed Romania irreversibly on the Euro-Atlantic path.' 'He was a strong leader, loved by most, contested by others, as happens in democracy,' it added. In 2018, military prosecutors charged Mr Iliescu with crimes against humanity for failing to prevent 'numerous situations' in which civilians were needlessly killed during the revolution. Prosecutors alleged he had spread false information through state media, creating a 'generalised psychosis' that fuelled chaos and bloodshed. The charges against Mr Iliescu, who served as a minister in the communist government until he was sidelined in 1971, refer to a five-day period during the uprising, after Ceausescu had fled Bucharest on December 22 1989. At the time of Mr Iliescu's death, he had never been convicted, and the case remained open. In January this year, Mr Iliescu's legal woes mounted when prosecutors charged him with crimes against humanity in a second case. Prosecutors allege he implemented policies that led to a violent crackdown on civilian protesters in Bucharest in 1990, who were demanding the removal of former communists from power. Mr Iliescu had called on coal miners from the Jiu Valley to 'restore order' in the capital. At least four people were killed. Despite maintaining good relations with the Soviet Union until its collapse in 1991, Romania became a member of the Nato military alliance in 2004 during his last presidential term. After his last term ended, he served as a politician in the Social Democratic Party, Romania's most dominant political party since communism ended 35 years ago. Dominic Fritz, president of the governing coalition partner Save Romania Union party, said in a post on Facebook that Mr Iliescu's passing 'is painful not because of his departure, but because it leaves us with so many open wounds'. 'Many are still waiting for justice,' he said. 'And Ion Iliescu took with him answers to questions that still plague society.' For two decades after the revolution, Mr Iliescu was Romania's most consequential political figure who helped define the country's new democratic institutions and its constitution, said Cristian Andrei, a Bucharest-based political consultant. 'His legacy spans from the one to oust Ceausescu to being himself a break in Romania's development and transition to full functioning democracy and market economy,' he told The Associated Press. 'He was later accused by a growing number of Romanians of being the continuator of the Communist apparatus … trying to hold on to power in an authoritarian-communist style.' After Nicusor Dan's victory in Romania's tense presidential rerun in May, Mr Iliescu congratulated the new pro-Western leader in a blog post, noting that Romania 'is going through a complex period' and faces economic, social, and geopolitical challenges. 'Romania needs coherence, dialogue and a firm commitment to strengthening democratic institutions and its European path,' he said. 'I am convinced that you will exercise this responsibility with dignity and a sense of duty to the nation.' Mr Dan described the late former president on Tuesday as 'the central figure of the 1990s transition' and said that 'history will judge Ion Iliescu'. 'It's our duty to clarify the major cases of that era, so we can move forward with accountability,' he said.
Rhyl Journal
4 days ago
- Politics
- Rhyl Journal
Ion Iliescu, Romania's first freely elected post-revolution leader, dies at 95
Mr Iliescu, who held de facto military authority during the anti-communist revolt, assumed power after Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena were executed on December 25 1989. More than 1,100 people died during the uprising, 862 of them after Mr Iliescu had seized power. He repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. Twice re-elected, in 1992 and 2000, Mr Iliescu had largely withdrawn from public life by 2017. In recent years, his health had declined. In 2019, he underwent heart surgery, and he was diagnosed with lung cancer in June. The hospital in the capital, Bucharest, where Mr Iliescu had been receiving medical treatment since June 9, said on Tuesday that he died at 3.55pm local time after medics 'made all efforts to provide him the necessary care and treatment'. Romania's government also confirmed his death and extended its condolences to his family and those close to the former president. It added that it would announce plans for a state funeral soon. In a statement on its official website, Romania's Social Democratic Party, or PSD, which Mr Iliescu founded, called it 'a very sad day for Romania'. 'A prominent figure of the Romanian Revolution and the history of contemporary Romania, Mr President Ion Iliescu will remain for all of us a symbol of the politician and statesman,' the statement read. 'He had the courage to confront Ceausescu and his dictatorship, and directed Romania irreversibly on the Euro-Atlantic path.' 'He was a strong leader, loved by most, contested by others, as happens in democracy,' it added. In 2018, military prosecutors charged Mr Iliescu with crimes against humanity for failing to prevent 'numerous situations' in which civilians were needlessly killed during the revolution. Prosecutors alleged he had spread false information through state media, creating a 'generalised psychosis' that fuelled chaos and bloodshed. The charges against Mr Iliescu, who served as a minister in the communist government until he was sidelined in 1971, refer to a five-day period during the uprising, after Ceausescu had fled Bucharest on December 22 1989. At the time of Mr Iliescu's death, he had never been convicted, and the case remained open. In January this year, Mr Iliescu's legal woes mounted when prosecutors charged him with crimes against humanity in a second case. Prosecutors allege he implemented policies that led to a violent crackdown on civilian protesters in Bucharest in 1990, who were demanding the removal of former communists from power. Mr Iliescu had called on coal miners from the Jiu Valley to 'restore order' in the capital. At least four people were killed. Despite maintaining good relations with the Soviet Union until its collapse in 1991, Romania became a member of the Nato military alliance in 2004 during his last presidential term. After his last term ended, he served as a politician in the Social Democratic Party, Romania's most dominant political party since communism ended 35 years ago. Dominic Fritz, president of the governing coalition partner Save Romania Union party, said in a post on Facebook that Mr Iliescu's passing 'is painful not because of his departure, but because it leaves us with so many open wounds'. 'Many are still waiting for justice,' he said. 'And Ion Iliescu took with him answers to questions that still plague society.' For two decades after the revolution, Mr Iliescu was Romania's most consequential political figure who helped define the country's new democratic institutions and its constitution, said Cristian Andrei, a Bucharest-based political consultant. 'His legacy spans from the one to oust Ceausescu to being himself a break in Romania's development and transition to full functioning democracy and market economy,' he told The Associated Press. 'He was later accused by a growing number of Romanians of being the continuator of the Communist apparatus … trying to hold on to power in an authoritarian-communist style.' After Nicusor Dan's victory in Romania's tense presidential rerun in May, Mr Iliescu congratulated the new pro-Western leader in a blog post, noting that Romania 'is going through a complex period' and faces economic, social, and geopolitical challenges. 'Romania needs coherence, dialogue and a firm commitment to strengthening democratic institutions and its European path,' he said. 'I am convinced that you will exercise this responsibility with dignity and a sense of duty to the nation.' Mr Dan described the late former president on Tuesday as 'the central figure of the 1990s transition' and said that 'history will judge Ion Iliescu'. 'It's our duty to clarify the major cases of that era, so we can move forward with accountability,' he said.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Ion Iliescu, Romania's first freely elected president after 1989 revolution, has died at 95
Romanian President Ion Iliescu speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in Bucharest Romania in this Nov. 9, 2004.(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File) BUCHAREST, Romania — Ion Iliescu, Romania's first freely elected president after the fall of communism in 1989, who later faced charges of crimes against humanity for his role in the bloody revolution, has died. He was 95. Iliescu, who held de facto military authority during the anti-communist revolt, assumed power after Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, and his wife Elena, were executed on Dec. 25, 1989. More than 1,100 people died during the uprising, 862 of them after Iliescu had seized power. He repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. Twice re-elected, in 1992 and 2000, Iliescu had largely withdrawn from public life by 2017. In recent years, his health had declined. In 2019, he underwent heart surgery, and was diagnosed with lung cancer in June. The hospital in the capital, Bucharest, where Iliescu had been receiving medical treatment since June 9, said on Tuesday that he died at 3.55 p.m. local time after medics 'made all efforts to provide him the necessary care and treatment.' Romania's government also confirmed his death and extended its condolences to his family and those close to the former president. It added that it would announce plans for a state funeral soon. In a statement on its official website, Romania's Social Democratic Party, or PSD, which Iliescu founded, called it 'a very sad day for Romania.' 'A prominent figure of the Romanian Revolution and the history of contemporary Romania, Mr. President Ion Iliescu will remain for all of us a symbol of the politician and statesman,' the statement read. 'He had the courage to confront Ceausescu and his dictatorship, and directed Romania irreversibly on the Euro-Atlantic path.' 'He was a strong leader, loved by most, contested by others, as happens in democracy,' it added. In 2018, military prosecutors charged Iliescu with crimes against humanity for failing to prevent 'numerous situations' in which civilians were needlessly killed during the revolution. Prosecutors alleged he had spread false information through state media, creating a 'generalized psychosis' that fueled chaos and bloodshed. The charges against Iliescu, who served as a minister in the communist government until he was sidelined in 1971, refer to a five-day period during the uprising, after Ceausescu had fled Bucharest on Dec. 22, 1989. At the time of Iliescu's death, he had never been convicted, and the case remained open. In January this year, Iliescu's legal woes mounted when prosecutors charged him with crimes against humanity in a second case. Prosecutors allege he implemented policies that led to a violent crackdown on civilian protesters in Bucharest in 1990, who were demanding the removal of former communists from power. Iliescu had called on coal miners from the Jiu Valley to 'restore order' in the capital. At least four people were killed. Despite maintaining good relations with the Soviet Union until its collapse in 1991, Romania became a member of the NATO military alliance in 2004 during his last presidential term. After his last term ended, he served as a lawmaker in the PSD, Romania's most dominant political party since communism ended 35 years ago. Dominic Fritz, president of the governing coalition partner Save Romania Union party, said in a post on Facebook that Iliescu's passing 'is painful not because of his departure, but because it leaves us with so many open wounds.' 'Many are still waiting for justice,' he said. 'And Ion Iliescu took with him answers to questions that still plague society.' For two decades after the revolution, Iliescu was Romania's most consequential political figure who helped define the country's new democratic institutions and its Constitution, said Cristian Andrei, a Bucharest-based political consultant. 'His legacy spans from the one to oust Ceausescu to being himself a break in Romania's development and transition to full functioning democracy and market economy,' he told The Associated Press. 'He was later accused by a growing number of Romanians of being the continuator of the Communist apparatus … trying to hold on to power in an authoritarian-communist style.' After President Nicusor Dan's victory in Romania's tense presidential rerun in May, Iliescu congratulated the new pro-Western leader in a blog post, noting that Romania 'is going through a complex period' and faces economic, social, and geopolitical challenges. 'Romania needs coherence, dialogue and a firm commitment to strengthening democratic institutions and its European path,' he said. 'I am convinced that you will exercise this responsibility with dignity and a sense of duty to the nation.' Dan described the late president on Tuesday as 'the central figure of the 1990s transition' and said that 'history will judge Ion Iliescu.' 'It's our duty to clarify the major cases of that era, so we can move forward with accountability,' he said. Stephen Mcgrath, The Associated Press
