A recent survey reveals 66.2% of Romanians believe Nicolae Ceaușescu was a good leader, despite his repressive regime.

Bucharest

A comprehensive survey has found that nearly two-thirds of Romanians consider Nicolae Ceaușescu, the former communist leader, to have been a good leader for the country. Respondents cited more efficient institutions, better state care for citizens, and greater social cooperation as reasons for their positive view of the communist era.

Despite this nostalgia, the majority of those surveyed also acknowledged the lack of freedom and the history of repression under the communist regime, including widespread knowledge of abuses in prisons. The president of Romania, Nicușor Dan, attributed this nostalgia to public dissatisfaction with the political leadership in the decades since communism's fall.

Shock poll claims Romanians nostalgic for communist dictator Ceaușescu

Two out of three Romanians believe that Nicolae Ceaușescu was a good leader for Romania. That's what a recent survey revealed. It is the most extensive sociological study dedicated to communist nostalgia. According to the respondents' perception, Romania in Ceaușescu's so-called golden age saw the country take better care of its citizens and foster more cooperation between Romanians. Almost 66% of those who completed the survey think that Ceaușescu was a good leader, just over 24% think he was not, and under 8% are unsure. The respondents' main arguments were that communist Romania had more efficient institutions, the state took better care of its citizens, and people helped each other more often. The perception that the past was better is not related to age. More than 48% thinks that life was better before the fall of communism in 1989, while almost 35% thinks it was worse. Despite the general positive takeaway, about 81% of the survey respondents are aware that there was less freedom before 1989, almost as many have heard about the hundreds of thousands of Romanians killed and tortured in communist prisons. The president of Romania, Nicușor Dan, also commented on the results of this survey. In his opinion, the main reason why some Romanians idealize communism is their deep disappointment with the political class of the last three decades. The communist regime was overthrown by a violent uprising in December 1989, and Niculae Ceaușescu and his wife Elena were executed after a summary judgment by a military court.

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