Silviu Brucan

Silviu Brucan ( born January 18, 1916 in Bucharest, † September 14, 2006 ) was a Romanian communist politician, diplomat and a major critic of the regime of Nicolae Ceauşescu.

Born as Saul Bruckner son of Jewish parents changed his name to " Silviu Brucan " because of the anti-Semitism of the time. In 1944 he was editor and publisher of the communist newspaper " Scanteia ". Brucan 1955 first ambassador to the United States, 1959-1962 Ambassador to the United Nations. He later became Director of the National Radio and Television and speechwriter of the PCR -General Gheorghe Gheorghiu -Dej.

These offices he gave in 1965 after the assumption of office by Nicolae Ceauşescu and was one of the few critics Ceauşescu. This resulted in the following years again and again to persecution by the secret police " Securitate ".

In the last years of the reign of Nicolae Ceausescu 1987 he was placed under house arrest after he publicly criticized the regime of the dictator. In the spring of 1989 Brucan was one of six dissidents who signed a letter criticism about the dictator and then a leader of the "National Salvation Front ", which had Ceausescu was overthrown and put to death on 25 December 1989.

His countrymen shocked the respected analyst with the statement that they " were crazy and would need 20 years to learn democracy." In post-communist Romania Brucan was then temporarily hosted a TV show and an advisor to former President Ion Iliescu.