Romania tries 1950s prison boss
September 24, 2014
In a landmark trial for the former communist countries of Europe, on Wednesday Romania put Alexandru Visinescu on trial for alleged crimes against humanity. At least 12 political prisoners died during his command between 1956 and 1963.
Visinescu, who turns 89 this week, denies wrongdoing. He faces life imprisonment if convicted. His lawyers have argued that he is in poor health.
He commanded the Ramnicu Sarat prison facility, where many of the 500,000 Romanians condemned as political prisoners were locked up. They included the country's pre-communist elite and intellectuals.
Prosecutors allege that Visinescu oversaw an "extermination regime" in which inmates were deprived of food, heating and medical care. Detainees were forbidden to talk, resulting in the complex's grim nickname: the "prison of silence."
Trial adjourned
Judge Carmen Gaina adjourned Wednesday's proceedings after one hour, reportedly because not all the paperwork had been lodged by the plantiffs. Proceedings are to resume on October 22.
The only former inmate still living, Valentin Cristea, told news agencies that prisoners had been forbidden to talk. They were not even allowed to approach walls in case they might use morse code to communicate.
The trial was late in coming but important, Cristea added.
Nicoleta Eremia said her husband, Ion, eventually emerged from his stint at the prison barely able to walk. He had been forced to stand for hours in icy water during winter. Now deceased, Ion Eremia had been detained for writing a satirical novel that criticized communist leaders, including Stalin.
'Moral justice'
Cosmin Budeanca, a director of present-day Romania's government institute for investigating crimes under communism, described Visinescu's trial as a victory for "moral justice."
"Victims have waited 25 years to see this person sent to face justice," he said.
Another 35 people accused of similar crimes are under investigation and facing possible trial. One of them is Ion Ficior, who ran the Periprava labor camp from 1958 until 1963. He is scheduled to stand trial for the deaths of 103 prisoners.
ipj/mkg (AP, AFP, Reuters)