His 1936 mugshot at age 18 still haunts the internet. An important historical square located on Victoriei Street. PROSECUTOR: Why do you think that people are fighting today? Furnish proof! Who are these fanatics? Lech Walesa has openly accused president Obama as unable to lead in world. Who pays them? PROSECUTOR: The people are fighting against you, not against the new forum. "This is the final battle," he said. Ceauescu's speech of 21 August 1968 was a public address by Nicolae Ceauescu, General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party and President of the State Council of Romania, strongly condemning the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia. PROSECUTOR: We have wonderful programs. Elena and Nicolae Ceausescu should be punished in a really legal trial. In addition, the law forbids the IRS from using its normal enforcement tools to collect unpaid penalties. Bucharests Broadcasting House was the main source of information yesterday for Romanians about the countrys liberation and the means by which politicians, military officers and dissidents tried to influence the situation. The problem with the Narrative is that it suppresses the dispersed information by insisting on the centralized knowledge, on stories the elite make up themselves. Every honest citizen who worked hard here until 22 December knows that we do not have medicines, that you two have killed children and other people in this way, that there is nothing to eat, no heating, no electricity. George thought about it for awhile and concluded he just couldnt. And you might perhaps have achieved the understanding of the Romanian people if you had now admitted your guilt. Ceauescu was finally cornered in a small town, where he and his wife were subjected to a summary trial, taken out to the courtyard and shot. I will not say anything here. The next he was a hunted man. The crimes against the people grew year by year. Print. Yet there is a big difference between grousing, which is endemic to the military, and actual rebellion. Some people will continue to believe the narrative, but even among the acolytes, the fatal smoke of doubt has entered the temple. The palaces belong to the people. No one can ask Bergdahl, since he is now reported as being unable to speak to anyone including his family. ELENA CEAUESCU: Such impudence! ELENA CEAUSESCU: Such impudence! Why did you make the peasants starve? Suntem in fata unui tribunal al poporului. Not a single shot was fired in Palace Square. PROSECUTOR: So you know the new forum. By 6 pm, Romanian television was broadcasting live reports of victory rallies attended by thousands in Bucharest. This work is a translation and has a separate copyright status to the applicable copyright protections of the original content. One of the most decisive moments in the Romanian Revolution of 1989 was Ceausescus December 21st speech (or lack thereof). A photo of a television screen of Nicolae Ceauescu delivering his last public speech from the balcony of the Romanian Communist Party headquarters, 21 December 1989. a silent falling away among American allies. PROSECUTOR: Do you not know anything about the order to shoot? Shakespeare dramatized the turnabout in his famous scene. The streets and squares of Bucharest were littered with torn portraits and shattered busts of the President and his wife. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: I will answer any question, but only at the Grand National Assembly, before the representatives of the working class. But who gave the order to shoot? Since the old government has been dissolved and Ceausescu has lost his functions, he no longer has the right to be treated as the president. Military base Tirgoviste - December 25th 1989. What prevents him from doing so? The president of the United States is the commander in chief over all branches of the military. Immediately before them were plainclothes Securitate agents and a row of police militia, who kept the mass of the crowd about thirty yards back from the front of the Central Committee building. They cultivated the soil in line with your orders and had nothing to eat. PROSECUTOR: The people are fighting against you, not against the new forum. This shows again how false the charges are. Workers, military units and other popular organizations were bused to the capitol and given orders on where to stand, when to applaud and what to sing. This speech was an annual event and carefully scripted by the regime to insure both success and the appearance of popular support. It should be stated once and for all that this military court is absolutely legal and that the former positions of the two Ceauescus are no longer valid. They wanted to separate the people from the army. ELENA CEAUSESCU: The intelligentsia of the country will hear what you are accusing us of. Sections in italic type are from Austrian television comentary: One momentCeauescu was in total control of Romania, determined to crush his enemies. What should he ask us? In the footage, Romanian president Nicolae Ceausescu can be seen delivering a speech from the balcony of the Central Committee building overlooking Palace Square, now know as "Revolution Square," where he praised the achievements of Romania's socialist regime and its "multi-laterally developed socialist society." From Wikipedia: Please make a note that here it has been stated that all legal regulations have been observed, that this is a legal trial. The following is a transcript of the closed trial of Romanian Dictator Nicolae Ceauescu and his wife, Elena, as shown on Romanian and Austrian television. A lie, a lie in my face. They are shooting at children; they are shooting arbitrarily into the apartments. VIENNA, Austria (AP) _ For the first time that anybody could remember, Romanian President Nicolae Ceausescu was interrupted at a public speech by boos and jeers that began a huge demonstration against him in Bucharest Thursday. CEAUSESCU: No, we will not sign. PROSECUTOR: The Grand National Assembly has been dissolved. The atmosphere was one of jubilation, and the over-riding feeling among the thousands celebrating in the city centre before the shooting began was one of undiluted triumph. They wanted to separate the people from the army. For example, George Ciampa, an 89-year old D-Day veteran refused an invitation to meet with President Obama at the White House. The English translation is by the U.S. government's Foreign Broadcast Information Service. It can go on for a long time shedding parts, but eventually the axle falls out. Those moments of Ceausescus weakness and the power of popular pressure explain why, a mere 48 hours later, Ceausescu was attempting to flee Romania, all power lost. Elena says: Look, and that they are calling genocide. Nobody has the right to abolish the Grand National Assembly. Please make a note that here it has been stated that all legal regulations have been observed, that this is a legal trial. What do you say as a citizen? Its provisional leader is the 73-year-old former Foreign Minister, Mr Corneliu Mnescu. And today you are acting in the same megalomaniac way. As a simple citizen, I tell you the following: For the first time I guaranteed that every peasant received 200 kilograms of wheat per person, not per family, and that he is entitled to more. . We want a legal trial. Its not that we dont want to respect the commander-in-chief, one told me sadly. I would not call for the death sentence, but it would be incomprehensible for the Romanian people to have to go on suffering this great misery and not to have it ended by sentencing the two Ceausescus to death. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: No one recognizes that. One in four of the population is believed to have a member. A voice in the studio said that the army was wholly on the side of the people. What happened? These two defendants procured the most luxurious foodstuffs and clothes from abroad. This is a vulgar provocation. I will not answer anymore. This shows how little patriotism there is, how many treasonable offenses were committed. Nobody has opened an account. This is a vulgar provocation. Teams of doctors with emergency medical supplies were being flown in from Geneva last night. Now the counsel for the defense, who was appointed by the court, asks whether Nicolae and Elena Ceauescu know the aforementioned facts that he is no longer president, that she has lost all official functions. This year, the crowd begins to chant unscripted comments back at the dictator. ELENA CEAUESCU: Incredible. Any actual attempts to fine 30 million Americans would end in a political disaster. Richard is soon unhorsed on the field at the climax of the battle, and cries out, A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse! But wags through the ages have rewritten the lines perhaps less poetically, but more accurately as a hearse, a hearse, my kingdom for a hearse. That sad funereal vehicle is always drawn by teams of corrupt information. At some point the entire structure of governance becomes a system of workarounds with all real power devolved to the man on the ground. What do you think? Elena answers: The intellectuals of this country should hear you, you and your colleagues. I have done everything to create a decent and rich life for the people in the country, like in no other country in the world. The destruction of buildings and state institutions, undermining of the national economy, in accordance with Articles 165 and 145 of the penal code. As the crowd becomes more unruly, Ceausescu becomes more confused and he begins arguing with the unseen hecklers. Are they the people, or are you paying them? Richard III of England rode into Bosworth Field relying on his ally Baron Stanely to come to his aid. In the early evening, it was announced that a National Democracy Committee had been formed, made up of uncompromised military commanders, students and intellectuals. PROSECUTOR: In all district capitals, which you grandly called municipalities, there is shooting going on. Quantum: Einstein, Bohr and the Great Debate About the Nature of Reality ELENA CEAUSESCU: We will not sign any statement. PROSECUTOR: By now, there have been 34 casualties. And you might perhaps have achieved the understanding of the Romanian people if you had now admitted your guilt. COUNSEL FOR THE DEFENSE: Even though he like her committed insane acts, we want to defend them. You have destroyed the Romanian villages and the Romanian soil. Who pays them? Only a president who is still confirmed in his position can demand to speak at the Grand National Assembly. The workers were augmented by bystanders who were rounded up on Calea Victoriei. ELENA CEAUSESCU: How can one tell us something like this? Immediately before them were plainclothes Securitate agents and a row of police militia, who kept the mass of the crowd about thirty meters back from the front of the Central Committee building. CEAUSESCU: I do not recognize this court. PROSECUTOR: That is to say, as a deputy prime minister you did not know about the genocide? And the next moment he was lying in the dust. We want a legal trial. All Rights Reserved. However, he had badly misread the crowd's mood. Now you know what members of our U.S. military are thinking and saying. He still considers himself to be the country's president and the commander in chief of the army. In response, the two laugh, and she says: We do not stay abroad. Why did you starve the people? No one was shot. I now ask the court to pass a verdict on the basis of the law, because everybody must receive due punishment for the offenses he has committed. But those who shot at the young people were the security men, the terrorists. Elena and Nicolae reject this. PROSECUTOR: And who heads Securitate? Therefore, it is a mistake for the two accused to refuse to cooperate with us. Elena answers: The intellectuals of this country should hear you, you and your colleagues. Later reports suggested the couple had been captured. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: I repeat: I am the president of Romania and the commander in chief of the Romanian army. They were given red flags, banners and large pictures of Ceauescu and his wife. Nicolae Ceauescu (Romanian pronunciation: [nikola.e ta.uesku]; 26 January 1918 25 December 1989) was a Romanian politician who was the Secretary Gener. Elena and Nicolae Ceauescu state: Well, you told us about it. Those moments of Ceausescus weakness and the power of popular pressure explain why, a mere 48 hours later, Ceausescu was attempting to flee Romania, all power lost. About Sections in italic type are from Austrian television comentary: NICOLAE CEAUESCU: I only recognize the Grand National Assembly. You need not admit your mistakes, mister. This page was last modified on 10 April 2016, at 21:40. This is a legal trial, and I honor them by defending them. PROSECUTOR: Did you hear the charges? [1], His security guard appeared, disappeared and, finally, hustled Ceauescu off the balcony. Their son, Nicu, was shown on television under arrest. The charges are incorrect, and I will not answer a single question here. This shows how little patriotism there is, how many treasonable offenses were committed. The bill of indictment contains the following points: Genocide, in accordance with Article 356 of the penal code. ELENA CEAUSESCU: Incredible. The new committee declared its immediate aim was an end to the cult of personality which had developed around the Ceauescu family. Witnesses saw scores of people shot down in the centre of Bucharest in the evening and around the burning royal palace where the Ceauescu family had made their home. The following is a transscript of the closed trial of Romanian Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, as shown on Romanian and Austrian television. We must not allow the slightest impression of illegality to emerge. This demonstrates their lack of understanding. I am talking to you as simple citizens at the least, as simple citizens, and I tell you: I am the president of Romania. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: No, we will not sign. The truth shall set you free, even if it makes you miserable. The English translation is by the U.S. government's Foreign Broadcast Information Service. "Video of Ceausescus Last Speech, December 1989," Making the History of 1989, Item #696, https://chnm.gmu.edu/1989/items/show/696 (accessed May 28 2021, 3:24 pm). Now the counsel for the defense, who was appointed by the court, asks whether Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu know the aforementioned facts -- that he is no longer president, that she has lost all official functions. PROSECUTOR: Whether you have ever had a mental illness. And I also do not recognize the counsel for the defense. PROSECUTOR: That is to say, as a deputy prime minister you did not know about the genocide? As the other primary sources reveal, the Ceausescus were tried a few days later and executed as enemies of the new Romanian state. The Securitate had hidden food reserves on which Bucharest could have survived for months, the whole of Bucharest. The catastrophic situation of the country is known all over the world. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: I will not sign anything. Fiction. We live in a normal apartment, just like every other citizen. PROSECUTOR: We have wonderful programs. PROSECUTOR: In the same way he refused to hold a dialogue with the people, now he also refuses to speak with us. Why did you starve the people? I only recognize the working class and the Grand National Assembly no one else. PROSECUTOR: You claim to have taken measures so that every peasant is entitled to 200 kilograms of wheat. I will only speak at the Grand National Assembly. . You have acted in a very irresponsible manner; you led the country to the verge of ruin and you will be convicted on the basis of the points contained in the bill of indictment. "a chant that was soon picked up by others in the crowd. This speech was an annual event and carefully scripted by the regime to insure both success and the appearance of popular support. They carried out acts that are incompatible with human dignity and social thinking; they acted in a despotic and criminal way; they destroyed the people whose leaders they claimed to be. PROSECUTOR: So far, they have always claimed that we have built this country, we have paid our debts, but with this they bled the country to death and have hoarded enough money to ensure their escape. Tax experts say the best it can do is withhold the penalty amount from any tax refund due. Perhaps the biggest example of thisis a CBO report that while 30 million people will technically be liable to pay the Obamacare Individual Mandate fine but in practice all but 4 million will have their fines waived or exempted. But their triumph was marred by the first confused reports of fresh bloodshed in the early evening following heavy machine-gun fire in Bucharests Republic Square. PROSECUTOR: Did you know about the genocide in Timisoara? He always claimed to act and speak on behalf of the people, to be a beloved son of the people, but he only tyrannized the people all the time. Since the old government has been dissolved and Ceauescu has lost his functions, he no longer has the right to be treated as the president. UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mr. President, I would like to know something: The accused should tell us who the mercenaries are. Copyright 2023 PJMedia.com/Salem Media. How can one say something like this? Now we are making a last attempt. These two defendants have robbed the people, and not even today do they want to talk. It is as if, in that moment, everyday Romanian's saw the possibility, saw the reality of the weakness of Ceausescus regime. By the morning of 22 December, the rebellion had already spread to all major cities across the country. 23 December 1989: Nicolae Ceauescus overthrow follows a week of carnage in which thousands of protesters against his regime were killed in cold blood. The final speech of the prosecutor follows: PROSECUTOR: It is very difficult for us to act, to pass a verdict on people who even now do not want to admit to the criminal offenses that they have committed during 25 years and admit to the genocide, not only in Timisoara and Bucharest, but primarily also to the criminal offenses committed during the past 25 years. A tyrant stops knowing the difference. These two defendants procured the most luxurious foodstuffs and clothes from abroad. We will speak only at the National Assembly, because we have worked hard for the people all our lives. Despite this, I ask the court to make a decision which we will be able to justify later as well. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: This is not possible at all. You, as a scientist, did you know about it? We live in a normal apartment, just like every other citizen. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: We will discuss this before the Grand National Assembly. This is our home. PROSECUTOR: This situation is known. Answer this question! Elena and Nicolae reject this. No one can dissolve the National Assembly. Share . The people were slaves. 600K views 3 years ago Nicolae Ceauescu (Romanian pronunciation: [nikola.e ta.uesku]; 26 January 1918 25 December 1989) was a Romanian politician who was the Secretary General of the Romanian. PROSECUTOR: Children cannot even buy plain candy, and you are living in the palaces of the people. Every honest citizen who worked hard here until 22 December knows that we do not have medicines, that you two have killed children and other people in this way, that there is nothing to eat, no heating, no electricity. Finally, I would like to refer once more to the genocide, the numerous killings carried out during the past few days. PROSECUTOR: Well, Mr. They not only deprived the people of heating, electricity, and foodstuffs, they also tyrannized the soul of the Romanian people. The details are known. Why did you ruin the country so much: Why did you export everything? Elena says: Look, and that they are calling genocide. Then follows the reading of the indictment. CEAUSESCU: Is it possible that we are facing such charges? It is a historic time, given that no military member goes public to speak negatively about the ultimate commander. VIENNA, Austria (AP) _ For the first time that anybody could remember, Romanian President Nicolae Ceausescu was interrupted at a public speech by boos and jeers that began a huge demonstration against him in Bucharest Thursday. PROSECUTOR: This situation is known. I will not speak with you provocateurs anymore, and I will not speak with the organizers of the putsch and with the mercenaries. Why did you ruin the country so much: Why did you export everything? Tell us! They will receive a link in their email and it will automatically give them access to a Kindle reader on their smartphone, computer or even as a web-readable document. They were not really interested in the people. The mighty Law of the Land is exposed as all bark and no bite; a fine they cant enforce. Earlier, joyful crowds had paraded through the city after reports that Mr Ceauescu had been arrested after trying to flee from the roof of the party headquarters by helicopter. What defamation, what provocations! The following is a transscript of the closed trial of Romanian Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, as shown on Romanian and Austrian television. I have no statement to make, and I will not sign one. Watching the "Video of Ceausescu's Last Speech" on the Making the History of 1989 website, a speech which Nikolae Ceausescu made on 21 December 1989, I was curious to see what the disturbance was that so rattled Ceausescu because by the end of the speech it appears a semblance of order had returned. Captive: My Time as a Prisoner of the Taliban You were so impertinent as to cut off oxygen lines in hospitals and to shoot people in their hospital beds. PROSECUTOR: Who ordered shooting into the crowd? Not a single shot was fired in Palace Square. You see, there is no use in talking to these people. As the other primary sources reveal, the Ceausescus were tried a few days later and executed as enemies of the new Romanian state. Everybody should be paid according to his performance. ELENA CEAUESCU: The terrorists are from Securitate. The video- shown live on Romanian television-- shows his confusion and consternation and the barely audible comments. In response, Ceauescu raised his right hand in hopes of silencing the crowd; his stunned expression remains one of the defining moments of the end of Communism in Eastern Europe. Video of Ceausescu's Last Speech, December 1989 Annotation One of the most decisive moments in the Romanian Revolution of 1989 was Ceausescu's December 21st speech (or lack thereof). ALISON SMALE December 21, 1989. ELENA CEAUSESCU: Accounts in Switzerland? Ceausescu begins his address to the people as he had in years past but this year the tide turned.