The Institute for the Investigation of Communist Crimes in Romania ( ro, Institutul de Investigare a Crimelor Comunismului în România) is a government-sponsored organization whose mission is to investigate the crimes and abuses conducted while

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

was under communist rule, prior to December 1989. Following the

Romanian Revolution The Romanian Revolution ( ro, Revoluția Română), also known as the Christmas Revolution ( ro, Revoluția de Crăciun), was a period of violent civil unrest in Romania during December 1989 as a part of the Revolutions of 1989 that occurred ...

, Romania’s Communist government was overthrown and a democratic president was elected in May 1990. The main objectives of the Institute are the gathering of data, documents and testimonies regarding all oppressive actions exerted by the system, and notifying the state’s

criminal investigation Criminal investigation is an applied science that involves the study of facts that are then used to inform criminal trials. A complete criminal investigation can include searching, interviews, interrogations, evidence collection and preservat ...

departments. In addition, the Institute informs the public of the crimes, abuses and instigations to crime, conducted in the name of " class struggle" by the powerful people within the communist system. The Institute was led for many years by Marius Oprea, president, a

University of Bucharest The University of Bucharest ( ro, Universitatea din București), commonly known after its abbreviation UB in Romania, is a public university founded in its current form on by a decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza to convert the former Princel ...

graduate with a PhD in history who is an archeologist and historian; since January 2020, it is being led by Alexandra Toader. The institute is a member organisation of the

Platform of European Memory and Conscience Platform may refer to: Technology * Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run * Platform game, a genre of video games * Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models * Weapons platform, a system or ...

News

According to a 2006 report presented to Romanian President

Traian Băsescu Traian Băsescu (; born 4 November 1951) is a conservative Romanian politician who served as President of Romania from 2004 to 2014. Prior to his presidency, Băsescu served as Romanian Minister of Transport on multiple occasions between 1991 ...

, up to one million people were killed or persecuted by communist authorities in Romania. In December 2009,

France 24 France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Mo ...

, the French-based news agency, reported on the Institute’s progress in documenting the communist crimes in Romania, including finding the buried remains of some of the many thousands of people alleged to have been murdered.

International partners

The Institute has cooperation agreements with the

Institute of National Remembrance The Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation ( pl, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej – Komisja Ścigania Zbrodni przeciwko Narodowi Polskiemu, abbreviated IPN) is a Polish state resea ...

and the

Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes The Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes ( cs, Ústav pro studium totalitních režimů or ÚSTR) is a Czech government agency and research institute. It was founded by the Czech government in 2007 and is situated at Siwiecova street ...

, government agencies of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

and the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

, respectively, tasked with the investigation of Nazi and Communist crimes. Institute website, partners, Dec 2009

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Government agencies established in 2005 Government agencies of Romania Commemoration of communist crimes Decommunization Platform of European Memory and Conscience

News

International partners

See also

References

External links