[The following is in regards to the execution of Nicolae Ceaușescu, deposed President of Romania, and Elena Ceaușescu, his wife.]
Moments later they were led out into a small courtyard and shot. Voinea, who had stepped outside for a quick cigarette, witnessed the whole, gruesome event:
When they were taken out of the room where they’d been tried, there was this 10-metre-long corridor, and then they entered the yard of the military unit. From the exit to the wall where they had them shot, it was about fifteen metres. When they took them out into the yard [Ceausescu] stopped as he saw the soldiers. It was then that he realized he would be executed, I believe. First they took him and put him up against the wall. They took two steps back and the officer shot first. The other members of the firing squad were behind him. When they shot, he jumped, I think out of reflex… because they aimed at his feet. More than half a metre he jumped. And maybe you’ve seen on TV that he died on his back with his feet under him… And then they shot her.’
It was an ignominious end to a political career that had spanned almost a quarter of a century. Seen in one light it could be viewed as a tragedy. After all, from very humble beginnings Elena Ceausescu had carved out a career of unparalleled success. She was a prominent scientist whose academic credentials had contributed to her country’s scientific progress both at home and abroad. She was also a successful politician who had worked her way tirelessly through the Communist Party’s ranks to attain a leading governmental position. From scarce appearances in public she had grown to become the female face of Romania, her image appearing not only on TV broadcasts, but in newspaper articles, on billboards and posters. Romanians adored her, children sang her praises and foreign dignitaries showered her with honourable titles. To all intents and purposes, hers was a success story.
Seen in a different light, Elena’s life was far from savoury. Barely able to read or write, her scientific titles weren’t worth the paper upon which they were printed, and her political successes were entirely due to her husband’s position. Romanians had been forced into loving Elena, when in reality they despised her. The only people who loved this boorish, power-crazed woman were her husband and children. In the light of this, it could be seen as quite poignant that Nicolae and Elena’s corpses, though taken to the same cemetery (the Ghencea in southwest Bucharest), were buried in separate plots. Today, very few people lay flowers on either of the Ceausescu’s graves.
Source:
Klein, Shelley. “Eelena Ceausescu.” The Most Evil Women in History. Barnes & Noble Books, 2003. 103. Print.
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