The last speech of Ceausescu - Bucharest, Romania
N 44° 26.316 E 026° 05.907
35T E 428253 N 4920984
On December 21st, 1989, Romanian Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu appeared on the balcony of the Central Committee Building in Bucharest and began to address the crowd of 80,000 who filled the Piata Republica (Republican Square).
Waymark Code: WM8FX1
Location: Romania
Date Posted: 03/28/2010
Views: 25
The New York Times reported the event in their article of December 24, 1989 as follows
"In addition, reports said hundreds of citizens have been killed in Bucharest since mass demonstrations against the regime began there on Thursday, when President Ceausescu was booed and shouted into a stunned silence for three minutes as he tried to deliver a speech a day after his return from a three-day state visit to Iran. Security police opened fire on the jeering crowd. "
The event, a political rally organized by the Communist Party, was meant to show support for Ceausescu following the arrest of Rev. Laszlo Tokes, a dissident minister who had been sermonizing against Ceausescu in the city of Timisoara. Romanian television carried the rally live and broadcast it throughout Romania.
Eight minutes into his speech, something went wrong. Chants of "Shut Up!" and "Timisoara! Timisoara!" rang louder and louder throughout the square. A visibly stunned Ceausescu, unaccustomed to such blatant acts of defiance, stopped in mid-sentence. The shock on his face was seen across the country, and later, around the world. It was the last speech he ever made. Within days, his regime had ended, and he would be hastily tried and brutally executed. The suddenness of his fall shocked the world.
Type of publication: Newspaper
When was the article reported?: 12/24/1989
Publication: New York Times
Article Url: [Web Link]
Is Registration Required?: yes
How widespread was the article reported?: international
News Category: Politics
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