Ceauescu refused to answer. CEAUSESCU: No, the people are fighting for freedom and against the new forum. 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once and for all that this military court is absolutely legal and that the former positions of the two Ceauescus are no longer valid. Then follows the reading of the indictment. It must be cleared up whether Ceausescu wants to, should, must or can answer at all. As the other primary sources reveal, the Ceausescus were tried a few days later and executed as enemies of the new Romanian state. You were so impertinent as to cut off oxygen lines in hospitals and to shoot people in their hospital beds. Nobody has opened an account. 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. Ceauescu claims that the putsch was organized from abroad. One of the fundamental defenses of a democracy is the truth. COUNSEL FOR THE DEFENSE: Even though he like her committed insane acts, we want to defend them. 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. PROSECUTOR: We have wonderful programs. 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 Ceauescus to death. . ELENA CEAUSESCU: The intelligentsia of the country will hear what you are accusing us of. Two: Armed attack on the people and the state power, in accordance with Article 163 of the penal code. 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. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: I do not recognize this court. One of the most decisive moments in the Romanian Revolution of 1989 was Ceausescus December 21st speech (or lack thereof). PROSECUTOR: Please, make a note: Nicolae Ceausescu refuses to cooperate with the court-appointed counsel for the defense. Ceausescu's last speech was interrupted but not by the shouts of the masses. They are shooting at children; they are shooting arbitrarily into the apartments. 20072021 Roy Rosenzweig Center for History & New Media 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. And I also do not recognize the counsel for the defense. Ceausescu begins his address to the people as he had in years past but this year the tide turned. 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: . This is a vulgar provocation. He was a cosignatory of an open letter harshly critical of the Ceauescu region which appeared last march. Print. PROSECUTOR: The Grand National Assembly has been dissolved. CEAUSESCU: I will not answer. Ceauescu's final speech is a speech delivered by Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauescu on 21 December 1989. ELENA CEAUESCU: The terrorists are from Securitate. The destruction of buildings and state institutions, undermining of the national economy, in accordance with Articles 165 and 145 of the penal code. Fanatics, whom you are paying. As a result, the prosecutor says: Elena has always been talkative, but otherwise she does not know much. 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. The Defence Minister, General Vasile Milea, was said to have committed suicide although it is equally possible he was shot by a member of the Ceauescu retinue. Usurpers have been punished severely during the past centuries in Romania's history. Despite this, I ask the court to make a decision which we will be able to justify later as well. I will not answer any more. PROSECUTOR: Well, Mr. The Times of Israel quotes Israeli oppositionists as accusing Benjamin Netanyahu of loathing Barack Obama so intensely it has endangering the Jewish states security. A voice in the studio said that the army was wholly on the side of the people. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: No one recognizes that. This speech was an annual event and carefully scripted by the regime to insure both success and the appearance of popular support. He answers: I am the president of Romania, and I am the commander in chief of the Romanian army. We want a legal trial. The video- shown live on Romanian television-- shows his confusion and consternation and the barely audible comments. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: I will not sign anything. You were the most important aide, the number two in the cabinet, in the government. Whatever the reason, the result is that the penalty will raise $27 billion less over the next decade than the CBO had originally expected. I ask the court, as the plaintiff, to take note that proof has been furnished for all these points, that the two have committed the offenses mentioned. PROSECUTOR: In all district capitals, which you grandly called municipalities, there is shooting going on. Because of the crimes they committed against the people, I plead, on behalf of the victims of these two tyrants, for the death sentence for the two defendants. What do you think? JUDECATORUL: Va rog sa luati loc. Everybody should be paid according to his performance. 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 counsel for the defense now takes the floor and instructs the Ceausescus once again that they have the right to defense and that they should accept this right. CEAUSESCU: Nobody can change the state structures. PROSECUTOR: We now have another leading organ. Elena and Nicolae Ceauescu must be held fully responsible for this. ELENA CEAUESCU: What genocide? What do you say as a citizen? What happened was that he was misled by Centralized Information. They organized the putsch. Stanley double-crossed Richard at the crucial moment. 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. I only recognize the working class and the Grand National Assembly -- no one else. Now you know what members of our U.S. military are thinking and saying. PROSECUTOR: Children cannot even buy plain candy, and you are living in the palaces of the people. 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. He also refuses to recognize the new forum. This shows how little patriotism there is, how many treasonable offenses were committed. ELENA CEAUSESCU: Accounts in Switzerland? Elena and Nicolae reject this. PROSECUTOR: This situation is known. The video- shown live on Romanian television-- shows his confusion and consternation and the barely audible comments. The defendant has not recognized us. Now we are making a last attempt. How to Debate Leftists and Destroy Them: 11 Rules for Winning the Argument. Ceauescu's speech of 21 August 1968 [English Subtitles] Transcrierea discursului lui Ceauescu: 01:08 Nicolae Ceauescu: Dragi tovari. The administrations threats, so dire on paper, are toothless in practice because they actually cant afford to carry out the threat. I told you right at the beginning that I will not answer a single question. ELENA CEAUESCU: I will not answer. His talks with Dubcek focused primarily on the events that had unfolded in Czechoslovakia over the last several months. They were even worse than the king, the former king of Romania. He refused to undergo a psychiatric examination. Richard III of England rode into Bosworth Field relying on his ally Baron Stanely to come to his aid. The palaces belong to the people. Ceausescu sprinkles snow on his wife's head during yet another hunting trip in 1976. ELENA CEAUSESCU: What genocide? CEAUSESCU: As a citizen, as a simple citizen, I tell you the following: At no point was there such an upswing, so much construction, so much consolidation in the Romanian provinces. PROSECUTOR: That is to say, as a deputy prime minister you did not know about the genocide? Elena answers: The intellectuals of this country should hear you, you and your colleagues. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: I will answer any question, but only at the Grand National Assembly, before the representatives of the working class. Elena and Nicolae reject this. Nobody has opened an account. That is why the people are fighting all over the country. Tip Jar or Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the Belmont Club. PROSECUTOR: Yes, but you are paying the mercenaries. 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. The Rise of Ceausescu Nicolae was a member of the communist youth movement. "Stenographic transcript of meeting of the Executive Committee of the Central Committee of the Romanian Communist Party," August 17, 1968, History . Romanian demonstrators gathered in front of the headquarters of the Romanian Communist Party in Bucharest during the 1989 anti-communist revolution, 22 December 1989. ALISON SMALE December 21, 1989. George thought about it for awhile and concluded he just couldnt. Sudden realizations are like a crash; its not the fact of deceleration that is fatal so much as the suddenness of it. NICOLAE CEAUESCU: Her scientific papers were published abroad! About By the way, I will not answer any more questions. PROSECUTOR: Did you know about the genocide in Timisoara? This demonstrates their lack of understanding. I have nothing to do with them. PROSECUTOR: Esteemed Mr. Chairman, I have been one of those who, as a lawyer, would have liked to oppose the death sentence, because it is inhuman. 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. The prosecutor wants to find out on which basis the trial can be continued. [1] The crowd, now totaling up to 80,000, were given orders on where to stand, when to applaud and what to sing. PROSECUTOR: The people are fighting against you, not against the new forum. Nicolae Ceauescu (Romanian pronunciation: [nikola.e tea.uesku]; 26 January 1918 -- 25 December 1989) was a Romanian Communist politician. After an outage of transmission of Romanian television, the speaker announces the verdict in the trial of Elena and Nicolae Ceausescu is death sentence. What prevents him from doing so? Share . Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for The Land of Green Plums, Mller, Herta at the best online prices at eBay! NICOLAE CEAUESCU: What? Defendant, if you had no accounts in Switzerland, will you sign a statement confirming that the money that may be in Switzerland should be transferred to the Romanian state, the State Bank. You need not admit your mistakes, mister. Military base Tirgoviste - December 25th 1989. CEAUSESCU: She was not a deputy prime minister, but the first deputy prime minister. If he no longer has a certain function, he cannot demand anything at all. The charges are incorrect, and I will not answer a single question here. I am the president of the people. I am talking to you as simple citizens at the least, as simple citizens, and I tell you: I am the president of Romania. However, there is a difference between real sickness that must be treated and mental insanity which leads to corresponding actions, but which is denied by the person in question. The details are known. I do not recognize the court. We will speak only at the National Assembly, because we have worked hard for the people all our lives. PROSECUTOR: In the same way he refused to hold a dialogue with the people, now he also refuses to speak with us. This is a legal trial, and I honor them by defending them. The Soviet Parliament expressed its approval of the fall of President Ceauescu and sent to the Romanian people a special message of support proposed by President Gorbachev. 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. What defamation, what provocations! Here Nicolae Ceausescu steps in and defends her. Tens of thousands of people gathered in the early hours in front of the Intercontinental Hotel in Bucharest, undeterred by armoured vehicles. 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. And today you are acting in the same megalomaniac way. Here Nicolae Ceauescu steps in and defends her. They wanted to separate the people from the army. CEAUSESCU: We had no account in Switzerland. Nicolae Ceausescu delivers his last public speech in Bucharest on December 21, 1989. The people only received 200 grams per day, against an identity card. CHIEF PROSECUTOR: Esteemed chairman of the court, today we have to pass a verdict on the defendants Nicolae Ceauescu and Elena Ceauescu who have committed the following offenses: crimes against the people. You cannot talk to me in such a way! There is still shooting going on, the prosecutor says. What should he ask us? This year, the crowd begins to chant unscripted comments back at the dictator. The process usually follows this path. I will not answer any question. ELENA CEAUSESCU: Such impudence! PROSECUTOR: Nicolae Ceauescu should tell us why he does not answer our questions. The prosecutor agrees, but stresses that they lived in them while the people suffered. His 1936 mugshot at age 18 still haunts the internet. 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. In the second stage their edicts become unenforceable from sheer impracticability. I am the president of the people. PROSECUTOR: Do you not know anything about the order to shoot? It is surpassingly perilous not only for the country, but also for the ruler who relies on it. The English translation is by the U.S. government's Foreign Broadcast Information Service. Answer this question! It is simply an accumulation of multitudes ignoring the official line bit by bit and thereby gradually placing themselves unwittingly in opposition to it. ELENA CEAUESCU: Accounts in Switzerland? NICOLAE CEAUESCU: This is not possible at all. Only the front rows supported Ceauescu with cheers and applause, with most of the crowd remaining impassive. has openly accused president Obama as unable to lead in world. Thousands of workers were bussed into the square under threat of being fired. The palaces belong to the people. Workers from a Bucharest power plant started chanting Ti-mi-oa-ra! Copyright 2023 PJMedia.com/Salem Media. They were only busy enslaving the people and building up an apparatus of power. 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. I just couldnt convince myself to do it., He is not alone. And who brought them into the country? 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. The next he was a hunted man. This gang will be destroyed. Only a few hours before the Genius of the Carpathians had been in apparently complete command. One moment Ceauescu was in total control of Romania, determined to crush his enemies. The recent Bergdahl prisoner swap in which five hardened Taliban terrorists were released from prison is rubbing a lot of the military veterans attending D-Day events the wrong way. You were not used to talking to the people. But who gave the order to shoot? Elena Ceauescu's last moments were as pathetic as one could imagine. All their property will be impounded. I have no statement to make, and I will not sign one. Thirty years on, will the guilty pay for horror of Ceauescu orphanages? Their son, Nicu, was shown on television under arrest. He still considers himself to be the country's president and the commander in chief of the army. At that moment Elena says to Nicolae: Forget about them. PROSECUTOR: You claim to have taken measures so that every peasant is entitled to 200 kilograms of wheat. Tell the people that I will answer all their questions. A horse or a hearse? However, they will be indicted, and a sentence will be passed on the basis of the new legal system. Dressed in a black Persian lamb hat with matching coat collar, Ceausesecu, 71, was . Sooner or later an administration neuters itself from sheer implausibility. The balcony where Ceauescu delivered his last speech, taken over by the crowd during the Romanian Revolution of 1989 The speech was typical of most of Ceauescu's speeches over the years. PROSECUTOR: Please, make a note: Nicolae Ceauescu refuses to cooperate with the court-appointed counsel for the defense. , the former US ambassador to Syria, has effectively accused the Obama administration of abandoning genuinely pro-American rebels in Syria thereby allowing the ascendance of al-Qaeda. Despite this, I ask the court to make a decision which we will be able to justify later as well. However, why are your programs not implemented? Paper is patient. I hope that you do not also work for the foreigners and for the destruction of Romania. Because of this indictment, I call for the death sentence and the impounding of the entire property of the two accused. Why do the peasants then buy their bread in Bucharest? How can one say something like this? Elena says: Look, and that they are calling genocide. One of the first acts of the new leadership was to place the security forces, the dreaded Securitate, under control of the army. The message was apparently sent on the understanding that Mr Ceauescu had been arrested. UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mr. President, I would like to know something: The accused should tell us who the mercenaries are. The produce which the peasants grew was exported, and the peasants came from the most remote provinces to Bucharest and to the other cities in order to buy bread. CEAUSESCU: No, we had no palaces. Nobody is likely to rise up and become a Man on Horseback. Fiction. And the next moment he was lying in the dust. He did not realize, however, that a real revolution was starting right before his eyes. The collapse of the narrative doesnt happen in a single big step, but through an accumulation of small, personal, often innocuous refusals. . We have ensured an apartment for every citizen through corresponding laws. Ceauescu appeared on the balcony of the Central Committee building and began as he had in years past, with a speech laden with the usual Marxist-Leninist wooden language. However, he had badly misread the crowds mood. They are not only accused of offenses committed during the past few days, but of offenses committed during the past 25 years. Workers from a Bucharest power plant started chanting "Ti-mi-oa-ra! PROSECUTOR: The terrorists are from Securitate? PROSECUTOR: You have never been able to hold a dialogue with the people. All the world should know what is going on here. In 1947, we assumed power, but under completely different circumstances. "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). Within hours Ceauescu was beseiged inside the Central Committee building by irate crowds. 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. A caretaker government was announced within an hour of the dictators capture. Ceauescus hated son, Nicu, a one-time candidate to follow his father as the countrys leader, was said to have been arrested in the city of Sibiu as he was trying to take hostages. PROSECUTOR: Do you not know anything about the order to shoot? We want a legal trial. The catastrophic situation of the country is known all over the world. You are guilty of these offenses even if you do not want to admit it. The bill of indictment contains the following points: Genocide, in accordance with Article 356 of the penal code. Lech Walesa has openly accused president Obama as unable to lead in world. They are speaking about injustice, ineptitude and impeachment. This shows again how false the charges are. Why do the peasants then buy their bread in Bucharest? 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