“No one could believe Romania could sink into such backwardness”: Secretly filmed interview from 1989 resurfaces

“It is hell. You can’t do anything, you can’t talk to anyone.” That was how Alex Petre described life in Romania in an interview secretly filmed only months before Nicolae Ceaușescu’s regime collapsed.

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It is hell. You can’t do anything, you can’t talk to anyone. Everyone is suspicious.

The interview was conducted by British journalist Peter Bass with a Romanian family. A 12-minute version of the footage, adapted from a documentary made in 1989, has recently returned to public attention and prompted strong reactions from Romanians who watched it more than three decades after the Revolution.

Petre described a society dominated by suspicion. People questioned why others spoke to them, helped them or brought them something. He said children were subjected to propaganda from kindergarten through school and university, including participation in the Pioneers of the Homeland organization.

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There is not enough food. People with children go without so they can raise them properly.

Food shortages shaped everyday life. Tania Mag said families with children often went without in order to feed them. Meat was rationed to one kilogram per person each month, alongside one packet of butter, half a kilogram of cheese and 10 eggs.

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Meat is rationed and the ration is very small. One kilogram of meat per month for one person.

Obtaining food, clothing and medicine consumed hours in queues. Tania said medical facilities existed only formally, with shortages of aspirin, children’s fever medicine, nasal drops and stomach dressings. Even saline solution required a prescription and was difficult to find. Many neighborhoods lacked gas, apartments could fall to nine degrees, and low pressure made it difficult to light even one burner. Preparing a pot of food could take hours.

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There are periods when you cannot find aspirin, children’s fever medicine, nasal drops or stomach dressings.