en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_revolution
2 corrections found
On 20 November 1989 (the day when Ceaușescu was reelected as leader of the Romanian Communist Party)
Ceaușescu was not re-elected on November 20, 1989. He was re-elected on November 24, 1989, at the close of the Romanian Communist Party’s 14th Congress.
Full reasoning
This date is incorrect.
The Romanian Communist Party’s 14th Congress ran from 20 to 24 November 1989. Contemporary reporting from the Los Angeles Times states that Ceaușescu "was reelected today" on 24 November 1989. A CVCE historical archive entry likewise says that on 24 November 1989 Nicolae Ceaușescu "est réélu à l'unanimité" (was unanimously re-elected) as general secretary at the end of the 14th Congress.
So 20 November 1989 was the opening day of the congress, not the day of Ceaușescu’s re-election.
2 sources
- WORLD : Unopposed Ceausescu Reelected - Los Angeles Times
Nov. 24, 1989 ... BUCHAREST, Romania - Communist Party chief Nicolae Ceausescu ... was reelected today. The party's Central Committee unanimously chose Ceausescu ... to another five-year term.
- Nicolae Ceausescu (Bucarest, 24 novembre 1989) - CVCE Website
Le 24 novembre 1989 ... Nicolae Ceausescu est réélu à l'unanimité au poste de secrétaire général à l'issue du quatorzième congrès du Parti communiste roumain (PCR).
After Ceaușescu was summarily executed, the National Salvation Front (FSN) quickly took power
This reverses the sequence of events: the FSN took power on December 22, 1989, while Nicolae and Elena Ceaușescu were executed on December 25, 1989.
Full reasoning
The chronology here is wrong.
The National Salvation Front (FSN) had already become the new ruling body before the Ceaușescus were executed. A U.S. State Department report on Romania for 1989 says Ceaușescu "was overthrown on December 22" and that the National Salvation Front "took power" then; it separately states that Nicolae and Elena Ceaușescu "were executed on December 25." AGERPRES likewise states that the FSN "was set up on the evening of December 22, 1989, as the new state power body."
So the article's wording incorrectly suggests that the FSN only came to power after the execution. In fact, the FSN was already in power for roughly three days by the time the Ceaușescus were executed on 25 December 1989.
2 sources
- USDOS - US Department of State (Author): "Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1989", Document #1096336 - ecoi.net
Nicolae Ceausescu ... was overthrown on December 22 ... and a group ... called the National Salvation Front (NSF) took power. Ceausescu and his wife ... were executed on December 25.
- POST-REVOLUTION ROMANIA, 1990: The National Salvation Front officially registers as political party - AGERPRES
The National Salvation Front was set up on the evening of December 22, 1989, as the new state power body.