Petition for reducing ex-Securitate and communist activists' pensions

The Romanian Historic Studies Society (SSIR) initiated a petition, signed by important names from the Romanian civil society to reduced the pensions of the high rank ex-communist activists and people occupying decision position in the former oppressive apparatus of the Securitate, the Romanian communist intelligence. The list of signatures remains open and submission can be sent to asociatiassir@yahoo.com.

With debates addressing the Unique pension law, SSIR and the people signing the petition request the Romanian Government to find a legal and constitutional formula to reduce the pensions of those responsible of the atrocities during the communist regime. At a European level, Poland represents the most recent example. From January 1 2010, communist officials and political police officers earning pensions over 24,000 euros saw their income reduced by over 50%.

The measure would be a reparatory gesture addressing the victims of the communism era and a sign that breaching human rights and democratic laws and norms cannot happen without sanctions. The request has been formulated several times so far in slightly different versions by the Presidential Commission for Analysing the Communist Dictatorship in Romania (2006), the Social Dialogue Group (2007), and the Institute for the Investigation of Communism Crime in Romania (2008).

Currently, ex-communist activists and Securitate staff earn a pension several times more consistent than the Romanian average pension. The Securitate employees went into retirement using a special law, which privileged them in comparison with the rest of the retired. Activists and Securitate members have been part of a privileged system before 1989 and kept their privileges after the 1989 revolution.

Some of the names signing the petiton are Gabriel Liiceanu, Norman Manea, Dumitru Tepeneag, Ana Blandiana, Dan Petrescu, Dan Lungu, Caius Dobrescu, Liviu Antonesei, Nicolae Manolescu, Nestor Ratesh, Carmen Musat, Liviu Tofan, Michael Shafir, Vladimir Tismaneanu, Daniel Barbu, Cristian Preda, Andrei Pippidi, Mihnea Berindei, Leon Volovici, Dennis Deletant, Andrei Oisteanu, Marius Oprea, Dragos Petrescu, Dinu Zamfirescu, Radu Filipescu, Gabriel Andreescu, Cristian Pirvulescu, Smaranda Enache, Victor Rebengiuc, Mihai Maniutiu.