The Archive of the Romanian Revolution of December 1989

A Catch-22 December 1989, Groundhog-Day Production. Presenting the Personal Research & Scholarship of Richard Andrew Hall, Ph.D.

“Decembrie 1989” (Sahia Film, martie? 1990, franceza)

(purely personal views, as always, based on over two decades of prior research and publications)

posted by Stark Alexandre, “Decembrie 1989” (Sahia Film, februarie/martie 1990, franceza)

A few brief observations:  as this is film, and not video, it has the feel of being even older than it is…and the over-the-top old-school heroic script, narration, and music harken back to a bygone era (by the way, does anyone know the piece of music that punctuates key moments of the film?)…while spontaneity was undoubtedly and critical characteristic of many of the events of December 1989, its over-usage takes on almost propagandistic value in the service of the National Salvation Front (FSN) at the time the film was made (the FSN, the rump communist party, reneged on its promises and in late January 1990 announced that it would, after all, run in the elections).

10:15 reference is made to expected elections in April 1990, which dates at least the narration script from pre 14 March 1990 when the date of 20 May 1990 was finally set for the initial parliamentary and presidential elections.

11:20 reference by a hospital doctor treating the wounded to the use of dum-dum explosive bullets and the catastrophic destruction they caused

 

For context regarding this, one of many posts on this page, see, for example:
https://romanianrevolutionofdecember1989.com/doctorul-andrei-firica-si-spitalul-de-urgenta-in-decembrie-1989/

Doctorul Andrei Firica si Spitalul de Urgenta in decembrie 1989

Dr. Andrei Firica (Libertatea 6 ianuarie 1990):  Trebuie sa se stie clar ca un ranit impuscat cu gloante dum-dum, care produc explozii la ? , necesita o urmarire foarte atenta, pentru a evita ca… [deci, e destul de clar ca nu vorbeste despre numai un caz singur, izolat)

related:  https://romanianrevolutionofdecember1989.com/6-march-1990-a-day-that-could-have-made-a-difference/; https://romanianrevolutionofdecember1989.com/dutch-ambassador-coen-stork-and-foreign-doctors-on-dum-dum-bullets/

Firică, Andrei Ce s-a întâmplat în aceste zile la Spitalul de Urgenţă? : [interviu] / cu Andrei Firică; realizat de Ileana Coman. – Convorbire cu doctorul Andrei Firică, directorul spitalului. Libertatea. – Anul 2, nr. 12, 06 ian. 1990. – p. 1-2.

http://www.bibmet.ro/Uploads/Revolutia%201989.pdf

http://www.amosnews.ro/remember-6-ianuarie-1990-presa-acum-25-de-ani6-2015-01-06

Fullscreen capture 1182015 13052 PM

Blaine Harden, “In Bucharest, Tears and Prayers for the Fallen,” The Washington Post, 25 December 1989, p. A1; A40.

At Bucharest’s main emergency hospital, doctors said that Securitate snipers, apparently using infra-red telescopic sights and exploding dum-dum bullets, had been firing throughout Saturday night and that they shot many civilians, with bullets striking foreheads and hearts. The morgue at the hospital was stacked with 90 bodies at noon today, almost all of them civilians dead of gunshot wounds. At the hospital, there was one wounded member of the Securitate in the intensive-care ward. He came into the hospital Saturday with a shoulder wound and an automatic pistol hidden under his bandages. In a corridor, according to a doctor, the man pulled out his pistol, pointed at people and pulled the trigger. He had no ammunition. It took six orderlies and doctors to wrestle the Securitate man to the ground. “He was very poised and very sure of himself,” said a doctor who treated him. “He gave the impression of a man who is well acquainted. He called us torturers and before we sedated him, he said he will kill us all if we didn’t release him. He said there are 400 {of his force} left in his sector and they would take care of all of the Romanian people.”
Doctors said there were about 15 Securitate commandos among the 679 wounded Romanians admitted for treatment this past week at the main emergency hospital in Bucharest. “They had a very strange behavior,” said Andrei Firica, a doctor and the director of the hospital. A number of them appeared to be drugged, he said. The pupils of their eyes were dilated. He also said they demonstrated extraordinary physical strength and unusual resistance to the effects of sedatives. It took six orderlies and doctors to wrestle one of the Securitate men to the floor of a hospital corridor, he said. Two Securitate members died “completely unexpectedly” in the hospital, Firica said. “One had a broken ankle and the other had a minor gunshot wound in the shoulder.” Firica said doctors did not have any idea why they died. Their teeth were checked for cyanide tablets when they were admitted. Because of the flood of patients, there was no time to perform autopsies on the two men. The few Securitate patients who spoke at all — the last one was taken from the hospital by the army on Thursday — were wildly defiant, Firica said. “I am sorry because I did not do everything possible to kill everyone,” a Securitate major was quoted by a doctor as saying while he was handcuffed to a hospital bed this week.
(Page 2 of 2)

Ceausescu Bunker: Hub of Dreaded Securitate : Romania: The stronghold was where the dictator’s crack force was prepared to make its last stand.

December 30, 1989|CHARLES T. POWERS | TIMES STAFF WRITER

Through the heaviest of the combat, last Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the officers said that the Securitate fighters sent men into the city in disguises, sometimes in army uniforms, to report on the positions of the army in the streets. They rigged up a loudspeaker and tape-playing device that broadcast sounds of heavy gunfire. When the soldiers in the streets moved and shifted their defenses to deal with what they thought was another battle, the Securitate fighters opened up on them.

It is strange to most Romanians that the Securitate kept fighting long after Ceausescu fled the capital Dec. 22, and stranger still that some have continued to hold out even after his body, riddled by the bullets of a firing squad, was shown on national television. For most of the soldiers, as for the general population, it is the description of captured Securitate fighters that paints the eeriest picture of all.

Not many, the major said, had been captured alive. Most apparently preferred to use their last bullets on themselves. Of the few that have been captured, he said, “some looked as though they had been drugged. They had no fear at all. Even if they were captured without arms, they attacked, they used anything they could pick up to fight with, even if they knew they could be shot immediately.

“These captured terrorists have refused completely any food or water and refused to talk completely. They say nothing.”

All of them, they say, are large and muscular, like athletes or weightlifters, and in the few cases of hand-to-hand fighting, have demonstrated their skill in karate or some other martial-arts system. Just who they are, or how they have been trained, are subjects of intense speculation to the officers and soldiers who remark on how “strange” the Securitate men appear.

“There are several opinions,” the major said. “They do not look like intelligent men. They look like machines.”

He confirmed that many think the Securitate fighters are, in fact, orphans, raised from childhood to devote their lives to the defense of Ceausescu. This may be little more than fantasy–there is not a single fact to support it–but it is hard to find a Romanian who does not hold this belief. It is as prevalent among the soldiers who fought them as among the general population.

Personnel at the city’s main emergency hospital have stories that support the descriptions offered by the soldiers and are, in their way, equally bizarre. Dr. Andrei Firica, the director of the hospital, and another senior staff physician say that 12 men admitted with wounds ranging from critical to minor during the violence were suspected of being Securitate men.

“It is possible that most of them were drugged,” said the staff physician. “They were overexcited, and it required large doses of sedatives to calm them, to make them sleep. Almost all had been drinking as well. All were well-developed physically, strong and muscular. Some told us they were athletes or practiced high-performance sports.”

All but one denied being in the Securitate. One, however, identified himself as a major in the unit and said he was sorry only that he had failed in his duty and that he should have killed more people, Firica said. Among the group, two were of Asian or Asian-Romanian parentage. Four of them, the doctor said, appeared to be Arab. They spoke fluent, unaccented Romanian. Some carried as many as four differents sets of identification papers, all conflicting.

“In general,” the doctor said, “their comportment was very strange. The pupils of their eyes were dilated. They had a fixed look, their eyes staring. Whatever story they came in with, they stuck to . . . . Some of them had no reaction whatever to normal dosages of sedation. To make them sleep, they were given heavy sedatives.”

After that, they were handcuffed to their beds. The last of them was taken by the authorities from the hospital Wednesday morning.

“There were two mysterious deaths–two men, both with minimal wounds. One had a broken ankle, one had a bullet wound in the shoulder. We don’t believe it was poison. We opened their mouths when examining them to check for that, for cyanide capsules. It wasn’t that. We don’t know why they died. It is a mystery.”

Later, in 1990, Constantin Fugasin wrote an article with similar claims:

“La Spitalul de Urgenta au fost internate 13 persoane banuite a fi ceea ce ne-am obisnuit sa numim teroristii.  Dintre acestia citiva erau sigur straini, desi toti aveau acte romanesti.  Doi aveau figuri mongoloide clare (unul a declarat ca mama sa este romanca, iar tatul din Laos) iar alti patru erau arabi.  Vorbeau insa foarte bine romaneste.”

Teroristii din Spitalul de Urgenta

Articol de:
Publicat in: Decembrie ’89
Publicat la date de: 09 Mar 2004 – 00:00

Profesorul Andrei Firica, directorul Spitalului de Urgenta Floreasca in 1989, povesteste cum la camera de garda a spitalului au fost aduse, in zilele Revolutiei, mai multe persoane suspectate ca ar fi teroristi. Acestea au disparut apoi fara urma, luate de un colonel de la militie.

“Unii nu vorbeau, iar altii povesteau fantasmagorii”In zilele cu mister, gloante si sange ale Revolutiei, profesorul Andrei Firica era directorul singurului Spital de Urgenta din Bucuresti, cel din Calea Floreasca. In spital au fost adusi si raniti din randul populatiei iesita pe strazi, dar au fost internati si raniti suspecti, considerati la acea ora teroristi. FLORIN CONDURATEANU

  • Jurnalul National: Domnule profesor Andrei Firica, fiind in vartejul evenimentelor la butoanele de comanda ale Spitalului de Urgenta, puteti sa ne spuneti parerea dvs. privind cetoasa tema a teroristilor care erau legati cu catuse de paturile spitalului? Andrei Firica: In perioada celor 25 de ani cat am fost in Spitalul de Urgenta am trait acolo sapte catastrofe, Revolutia fiind ultima. Am avut accidentatii de la prabusirea unui avion, de la incendiul de la Magazinul Victoria, cutremurul si asa mai departe. De departe cele mai dramatice au fost zilele Revolutiei, de altfel timp de 10 zile eu n-am mai ajuns acasa, am stat numai in spital. Am si operat, dar am stat si la butoanele de comanda pentru ca, in timpul unor lupte periculoase, generalul e bine sa nu stea in transee, ci la comanda. Incercam sa descifram ce insemna cuvantul “terorist”, pentru ca nu scria pe fruntea nimanui “terorist” si nimeni nu avea legitimatie de “terorist”. Menirea teroristului este sa omoare oameni nevinovati, ca sa creeze panica. Cand combatantii intr-un razboi se lupta intre ei, acestia nu pot fi considerati teroristi. Dar cum poate fi numit cineva care impusca exact intre sprancene, asa cum i s-a intamplat unei doamne de la etajul 8 al unui bloc de pe Bulevardul Balcescu, in zona magazinului Unic, care atunci cand au inceput impuscaturile s-a trantit la podea impreuna cu sotul si copilul, iar cand focul s-a terminat, s-a ridicat in picioare si a fost impuscata in frunte in casa ei? Cel care a tras era un lunetist si pe buna dreptate considerat terorist. Sau ce i s-a intamplat unui coleg de-al nostru, secretar al Academiei de Stiinte Medicale, care aflat in casa lui i s-a trimis un glontin mijlocul capului. Acestor lunetisti, acestor tragatori pe buna dreptate li se spune teroristi.
  • Si cine ii considera teroristi si cum erau ei adusi la Spitalul de Urgenta?Acest triaj se facea la Camera de Garda. Si am sa va si spun cum. Iata un exemplu: se vantura pe salile spitalului de mai multe ore un barbat, care practic nu avea treaba, si oamenii spitalului l-au considerat suspect. Cand au vrut sa-l legitimeze, acesta a dat sa fuga si a trebuit ca un grup de sase-sapte angajati ai spitalului sa se lupte cu el pentru ca avea o forta uriasa. Tin minte ca acest barbat a indoit si brancarda, a indoit barele de metal. Cum altfel decat suspecti si teroristi puteau fi considerati cei care la camera de garda erau descoperiti cu mai multe haine unele peste altele? Salopeta de muncitor, combinezon de lucru, uniforma militara. Bineinteles ca acesti oameni trezeau suspiciuni, erau teroristi, securisti? Cine Dumnezeu putea sti la acea ora? Cum sa nu trezeasca suspiciuni altii care aveau asupra lor patrucinci legitimatii, poza individului pe toate, dar nume diferite si meserii diferite: legitimatie de profesor, de frizer, de inginer, de ospatar. Erau adusi unii cu comportamente de-a dreptul stranii: unii nu scoteau nici un cuvant, altii debitau povesti neverosimile. Imi amintesc de un tanar internat pentru o rana nesemnificativa din punct de vedere a gravitatii, un glont il ranise la umar, dar nu-i atinsese nici macar osul, ei bine, acest tanar care nu a vorbit nimic a fost gasit a doua zi mort la Terapie Intensiva. Nimeni nu stie ce s-a intamplat.
  • Si ce s-a descoperit in urma autopsiei?Ce autopsie? Era vorba de sute de morti in acele zile. Aceluiasi baiat cu rana in umar, un regizor tanar i-a spus cuvinte mai sentimentale: “Ai fost bine primit la noi si tu ai inceput sa impusti pe strazi?”, la care tanarului au inceput sa-i curga lacrimile, semn ca intelesese romaneste. Situatia a devenit si mai ciudata cand un medic care lucrase cu contract vreo doi ani in Egipt l-a trezit pe acest tanar din somn si i-a vorbit arabeste, iar el, trezit brusc, a raspuns cu cuvinte arabe. E vorba de baiatul gasit mort a doua zi.
  • Avea figura de arab, domnule profesor Firica?Greu de spus, era brunet, dar stiti cum e, bruneti sunt si romanii. Dar erau si unii cu figuri mongole, cu ochii oblici.
  • Si acestia dadeau impresia ca inteleg romaneste?De regula, acestia nu vorbeau nimic, dar cei care n-au scos nici un cuvant erau putini. Ceilalti spuneau niste povesti care aproape erau de necrezut, nu stiai daca sa ii consideri psihopati. Imi aduc aminte de o fata ranita, care vorbea mult si debita o poveste greu de crezut, la prima vedere: ca e asistenta medicala, undeva, intr-un oras din Moldova, Bacau sau nu mai tin minte, si a venit in Bucuresti sa dea ingrijiri medicale. Ca mai intai a stat de vorba cu niste militari in termen, care au dus-o la metrou, si, cand a iesit din statie, a insfacat-o un barbat, i-a dat sa bea ceva, care a ametit-o si apoi a fost obligata sa ajute la transportul unor arme depozitate la un magazin de stofe de pe Calea Victoriei. Am si dus niste reporteri sa-i asculte povestea si i-am si relatat ofiterului care conducea grupul de militari ce aparau spitalul. Cand a fost adus insa un revolutionar ranit, ce luptase pentru apararea Radioului, acesta a confirmat ca s-au gasit arme in magazinul de stofe cu pricina de pe Calea Victoriei. Deci, vorbele aiurea ale fetei capatau totusi o confirmare de la realitate. Dar s-au intamplat si lucruri care scapasera de sub control. A fost adus cu rani un tanar, care tragea cu o arma militara dintr-un taxi. Am stat de vroba cu el si a povestit ceva fantasmagoric, cum ca el trebuie sa ajunga la presedintele Iliescu, o povestire foarte complicata, ca mai tarziu sa aflu ca acest tanar era fiul unui doctor din Craiova, diagnosticat cu tulburari psihice si care suferise o decompensare.
  • Un psihopat care tragea cu Kalasnikovul din taxi…Vedeti, lucrurile erau foarte fluide, greu de precizat. Tanarul acesta bolnav putea sa fie considerat un terorist. Nu va mai spun ca se putea intampla o nenorocire chiar cu Spitalul de Urgenta. Un medic, angajat al spitalului, care candva avusese o boala psihica, a dat telefon la garnizoana, anuntand ca spitalul va fi ocupat de arabii ce vin dinspre Stadionul Dinamo. Acest medic avea un frate din echipa de piloti ai lui Ceausescu, deci cunostea nume de granguri, si a dat acest telefon, urmat de sosirea unei formatii militare, care a intrat in dispozitiv. In interiorul spitalului erau militari care ne aparau si noroc ca cineva i-a pus in legatura unii cu altii ca s-ar fi declansat focul.
  • Si ce s-a intamplat pana la urma cu acesti suspectati de terorism, legati cu catuse de paturile Spitalului de Urgenta?Incepuse sa se si traga asupra spitalului. Nu mai vorbesc de invazia de reproteri straini, care vizau doua obiective: s-o vada pe mama Elenei Ceausescu, batrana fiind adusa in zilele Revolutiei la spital de ministrul Sanatatii, Ciobanu, si, in plus, curiozitatea ziaristilor se indrepta si spre acei teroristi prinsi cu catuse de pat. De altfel, imi amintesc o secventa: eu trebuiea sa fac si oficiile de gazda cu presa straina, fiind directorul spitalului, si ma aflam cu o echipa de jurnalisti straini la patul fetei aceleia care vorbea mult si zicea ca a incarcat arme din magazinul de stofe. In acel moment a aparut un colonel de militie, nu-i mai tin minte numele, au trecut 14 ani de-atunci, care mi-a dat un sfat ce la prima vedere parea logic: sa nu mai duc ziaristi la patul teroristilor, fiindca acestia sunt doar suspecti de terorism si s-ar putea sa ma trezesc mai tarziu dat in judecata ca am stricat imaginea unor oameni. Cum incepuse tirul asupra Spitalului de Urgenta, eu m-am aflat dand telefoane la Ministerul Sanatatii s-o ia pe mama Elenei Ceausescu, dar si pe teroristi. Credeam ca cei ce trag asupra spitalului vor s-o recupereze pe mama Elenei Ceausescu. Cu batrana s-a rezolvat mai repede si a fost mutata. Nici nu stiu unde. Dar, legat de teroristi, lucrurile s-au desfasurat astfel: a venit din nou colonelul acela de militie care ma indemnase sa nu mai duc ziaristii la patul teroristilor si i-a incarcat pe teroristi intr-un autobuz, plecand cu ei. Este exact ce eu doream, facand tot felul de demersuri pentru a fi preluati de Spitalul Jilava, fiindca ei nu aveau rani grave. Peste doua-trei zile am primit un telefon de la genelarul Chitac, deja ministru, care m-a intrebat ce e cu teroristii. I-am relatat cum ei au fost luati de acel colonel de militie si generalul Chitac n-a parut surprins. Chiar parea multumit ca au fost luati de acel colonel de militie. Marea mea surpirza a fost cand pe acel colonel de militie l-am revazut in zeghe, la televizor, in boxa acuzatilor, la procesul de la Timisoara. De altfel, l-am rugat pe fiul meu, care a facut Facultatea de Teatru si Film, sa-i filmeze pe acei teroristi prinsi cu catuse de paturile spitalului si am dat copii dupa aceasta caseta la Procuratura. Fiul meu filmase si desfasurarea Revolutiei pe strazi.
  • Deci, in momentele acelea pline de ceata ati reusit sa chemati autoritatile si sa scapati de teroristi. Mai stiti ce s-a intamplat cu unii dintre ei?Nu, dar va voi povesti totusi o intamplare de semnificatie. A fost adus batut mar un barbat, ce s-a aflat ascuns intre peretii dubli din aripa Muzeului de Arta din Palatul Regal. Cand a inceput sa se traga cu tancuri din piata, acest barbat a iesit fluturand o batista alba, dar aproape a fost linsat de multime. El sustinea ca este ofiter de securitate si se afla acolo cu misiunea de a pazi tablourile din muzeu. Am anuntat Procuratura despre cazul acesta si, peste doua-trei zile, un procuror i-a dat drumul, ca nu e terorist. Ca sa aflu ca, peste doua-trei zile, acesta statea intr-un restaurant cu sotia si cu un prieten si a fost chemat afara si injunghiat in Gradina Icoanei. Va dati seama ca daca a fost omorat era ceva neclar din punct de vedere al terorismului. Dar fara doar si poate au existat teroristi. In Spitalul de Urgenta vedeam oameni impuscati cu precizie in frunte, unii manifestanti spuneau ca au fost impuscati in timpul demonstratiilor de cineva chiar din randul manifestantilor.

 

 

 
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