Ion Iliescu

Ion Iliescu (born March 3, 1930) is a Romanian politician. He was the President of Romania for eleven years, from 1990 to 1996, and 2000 to 2004. His final term ended in December 2004, and his successor is Democrat leader Traian B?sescu. Currently, Ion Iliescu is a Senator from SDP party. In 2005 investigations began that should eventually lead to his being put on trial for a number of accusations, including crimes against humanity, related to the bloody abuses of power he committed during the years 1989-1990, especially during the 1989 Romanian Revolution and the Mineriads.

Controversies

Mineriads

He was responsible for calling the miners of Jiu Valley to Bucharest on 28 January and June 14, 1990 to end the non-violent protests against the ex-communist leaders of Romania (the Golaniad). This ended in violence, as the miners armed with clubs attack the protesters and trashed the University, museums and the headquarters of the opposition parties, claiming to have found drugs, fake money printers and firearms (they later proved to be black and white xerox machines, and few, compressed air rifles, used for target practice. In the events, at least 6 died (unofficially the numbers are between 200 and 300), with at least 5000 injured. Miners shouted slogans such as "Death to intellectuals" or "We work, we don't think". The reasons cited ("ending anarchy and securing the ideals of the revolution" , "destroying fascist elements"), cannot be sustained. The protests were organized, peaceful, and were on the brink of breaking up (for different reasons ? especially the students' exam session), while the demands were but one: ousting all neo-communists (including Iliescu) out of power.

Related Topics:
Jiu Valley - 28 January - June 14 - 1990 - Golaniad

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He later thanked them: "I thank you for all you've done these past few days, in general for your attitude of high civic conscience.". He also proclaimed a right-wing liberal neo-fascist international conspiracy to take power, and destroy the progressive left of Romania.

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According to his lawyer and the military prosecutor Voinea, Ion Iliescu has been recently placed under criminal law investigation (the official term for prosecution) with regard to the events that occurred in June, 1990 in Bucharest. If convicted on all charges (that include crimes against humanity, accessory to murder and revolt, censorship), he faces life imprisonment.

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Constitution violations

Held three terms in office (four, if we count the one between December 1989 and June 1990), although the Constitution does not allow this ? he argued that his first term was before the constitution was adopted.

Related Topics:
December - 1989 - June - 1990 - Constitution

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In the 2004 electoral campaign he actively supported the SPD and its candidate Adrian N?stase, although that is a violation of the Romanian Constitution, which requires the President of Romania to be apolitical. He replied to these accusation that he is "the president of Romania, not Switzerland to be neutral". His actions are currently under the scrutiny of the Constitutional Court of Romania.

Related Topics:
Adrian N?stase - Romanian Constitution

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Alleged KGB connections

In 1995, the Ziua newspaper published an interview with an ex-KGB officer in which he declared that Ion Iliescu was a member of the KGB. Iliescu denied any involvement and Ziua journalists began to investigate this in detail. However, a few days later, some journalists of the Ziua discovered they were being watched by the Romanian Intelligence Service -- the official explanation was that the secret service was in fact watching a spy that lived nearby.

Related Topics:
1995 - Ziua - Romanian Intelligence Service

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The scandal on his alleged connections continued in 2003, when Russian dissident Vladimir Bukovsky, who was granted access to the Soviet archives declared that Iliescu and most of the FSN members were KGB agents, that he knew Mikhail Gorbachev since the time he studied in Moscow and that the Romanian revolution of 1989 was a plot organized by the KGB in order to gain control of the country that distanced itself from the Soviet Union during Ceau?escu's rule.

Related Topics:
2003 - Vladimir Bukovsky - FSN - Mikhail Gorbachev

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Pardons

On 15 December, few days before the end of Office, he pardoned Miron Cozma, the leader of the miners during the Mineriads of the early 1990s, who was sentenced in 1999 to 18 years in prison in conjunction with the 1991 mineriad. This has attracted harsh criticism from all Romanian media. The US ambassador has called it a "surprising and worrying act".

Related Topics:
15 December - Pardon - Miron Cozma - Mineriad - 1990s - 1999 - US

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For the pardon to be legal, it had to be countersigned by Adrian N?stase, the incumbent Prime Minster, however, when asked by the press, he first said that he didn't know anything about the pardon, then said he didn't agree with it and that his signature was just a formality. Upon returning from Brussels, he and Iliescu said that he wasn't aware of what he was signing and that he trusted the President enough to sign the papers without reading them.

Related Topics:
Adrian N?stase - Brussels

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Iliescu's party, the Social Democrat Party, said they cannot be associated with the President's decision, neither constitutionally, nor politically. Furthermore, they do not support the decision and ask for its revocation, a position also adopted by Adrian N?stase. Finance Minister and Social Democrat Party vice-president, Mihai T?n?sescu said he will resign from the party if Iliescu returns as president of the party early next year, after finishing his last term as President of Romania.

Related Topics:
Social Democrat Party - Adrian N?stase - Finance Minister - Mihai T?n?sescu - President of Romania

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Also pardoned other 46 convicted criminals, most controversial being:

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• Vasile Bu?e, former vice-president of the International Religion Bank - convicted for abusing his powers in granting a loan of over a million USD
• Ioan Corpodeanu, former help of chief of police in Timi? - convicted for the deaths of some revolutionaries in the Romanian Revolution of 1989 (this pardon took effect exactly 15 years after the Revolution started, in Timi?oara)
• Petre Isac, former presidential adviser - convicted for corruption
• Mihai Gheorghe - convicted for embezzlement
• Horia Grigori?? - convicted for fraud
• Valentino Acatrinei, former judge in the Bucharest Court of Appeals - convicted for influence peddling and bribery.

On 17 December, Iliescu and Adrian N?stase, while still in Brussels, 'signed' a revocation of the pardon. Due to the fact that in order for it to be legal it had to be the original, handwritten document, press speculated it was signed even before the two left for Brussels. According to legal experts, however, the revocation was not legal, as an individual act can be revoked as long as it did not take effect, in this case, as long as the convicts were not released. This would equate with a person being convicted twice. This legal opinion prevailed in courts as on June 2005, Miron Cozma was freed from prison on the basis of Ion Iliescu's pardon. The legality of the pardon decree is still under scrutiny.

Related Topics:
17 December - Adrian N?stase

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Miron Cozma was detained minutes after the presidential spokeswoman announced the President's intention, first because he wasn't carrying an ID and then sent to Bucharest because "there are documents there regarding his detention". Finally, the official statement is that he was being detained in connection to crimes he committed while in prison, along with the same person that picked him up when he was first released, Fane Spoitoru.

Related Topics:
Miron Cozma - Fane Spoitoru

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The EU Delegation's head in Bucharest, Jonathan Scheele, said "I'm as surprised of the President's last decision too!". Internally, the pardon may have had far worse consequences, as the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania condemned the pardon and stopped talks with the Social Democrat Party for forming a parliamentary majority.

Related Topics:
EU - Jonathan Scheele - Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania - Social Democrat Party

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In 2002, Iliescu signed a pardon for George T?nase, former Financial Guard head commissary for Ialomi?a convicted for corruption, only to revoke it days later due to the media outcry.

Related Topics:
Financial Guard - Ialomi?a - Corruption

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Another controversial pardon was that of Dan Tartag? a businessman from Bra?ov that, while drunk, ran over and killed two people on a zebra crossing. He was sentenced to three years and a half but was pardoned after only a couple of months. He is currently executing a two year sentence for fraud.

Related Topics:
Dan Tartag? - Bra?ov - Fraud

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On account of revoking pardons, one has to notice that it is not legally possible to issue a new presidential edict that would revoke the previous one as the Constitution of Romania and criminal laws for that matter do not allow it.

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Others

In the last days of his President mandate, he awarded the National Order "Steaua României" (knighthood) to the nationalist politician Corneliu Vadim Tudor, which drew lots of criticism in the press and prompted Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel, 15 Radio Free Europe journalists, Timi?oara mayor Gheorghe Ciuhandu, song writer Alexandru Andries and historian Randolph Braham to return their awards in protest. The leader of Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania, Béla Markó, did not show up to claim his award.

Related Topics:
Knighthood - Nationalist - Corneliu Vadim Tudor - Nobel Peace Prize - Elie Wiesel - Radio Free Europe - Journalist - Timi?oara - Gheorghe Ciuhandu - Alexandru Andries - Randolph Braham - Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania - Béla Markó

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