Institute seeks removal of Adrian Păunescu statue, citing communist ties

The Institute for the Investigation of Communist Crimes and the Romanian Exile (IICCMER) is urging authorities to remove a monument dedicated to poet Adrian Păunescu from Grădina Icoanei park in Bucharest. The institute contends that the statue's continued public presence amounts to official recognition that clashes with the memory of victims of the communist regime.

IICCMER announced it is reviving a campaign initially launched in 2012, when the institute opposed the monument's inauguration. At that time, they cited Păunescu's significant role in promoting communist propaganda and fostering the personality cult surrounding Nicolae Ceaușescu. The institute clarified that its objection is not to Păunescu's literary merit but to the implications of honoring him publicly.

“

La acel moment, IICCMER s-a pronunțat împotriva inaugurării monumentului, arătând că omagierea în spațiul public a unei persoane care a avut un rol important în promovarea propagandei regimului comunist și a cultului personalității lui Nicolae Ceaușescu este incompatibilă cu respectul datorat memoriei victimelor dictaturii comuniste

"At that moment, IICCMER spoke out against the monument's inauguration, stating that honoring a person in public space who played an important role in promoting the communist regime's propaganda and the personality cult of Nicolae Ceaușescu is incompatible with the respect owed to the memory of the victims of communist dictatorship," the institution stated in a press release. IICCMER representatives emphasized that erecting a statue in a public area signifies official endorsement and must be evaluated in the context of the commemorated individual's entire public career.

“

Un astfel de gest reprezintă o formă de recunoaștere oficială și trebuie analizat în raport cu întregul parcurs biografic și public al persoanei omagiate

The institute recalled that Păunescu led the Flacăra magazine and founded the Flacăra Circle, cultural events that operated within the institutional framework of the communist regime. IICCMER believes these activities helped propagate the official ideology and solidify Ceaușescu's personality cult. "Maintaining this monument in public space highlights the difficulties Romanian society still faces in critically confronting its communist past and underscores the need to strengthen the understanding of recent history," the institution asserted.

IICCMER expressed concern that such tributes could fuel nostalgic sentiments about the communist regime, potentially obscuring the roles certain figures played in the dictatorship's propaganda apparatus. The institution pointed to its research, including the "Communist Nostalgia Barometer," which highlights the importance of understanding recent history and building a public memory grounded in research and respect for communist victims.

“

Menținerea acestui monument în spațiul public evidențiază dificultățile pe care societatea românească le întâmpină încă în asumarea critică a trecutului comunist și subliniază nevoia consolidării cunoașterii istoriei recente