Area Handbook for Romania Part 20

Maintenance of friendly relations with the People's Republic of China has also gained the Ceausescu regime support from other communist parties that have been critical of the Soviet Union in its conflict with the Communist Chinese, most notably the French and Italian parties. The PCR has taken special pains to cultivate relations with nonruling communist and workers' parties, efforts that were reflected in visits of top leaders from at least thirty of these parties to Romania during 1970. All of these visitors were received personally by Ceausescu.

Observers pointed out that the cultivation of relations with the nonruling parties was an important means of gaining support for Romania's independent policies.

Relations With Noncommunist States

Romania has continued to improve relations with Western nations and has sought to cultivate ties with the developing countries of Africa and Asia. The expansion of relations beyond the Soviet alignment system was cautiously initiated in the mid-1950s by the Gheorghiu-Dej regime when pressures were building for Romania's full economic integration into COMECON. In addition to the desire to develop trade relations with Western nations, the government was interested in utilizing Western technology and in seeking an increased measure of detente in the cold war.

West Germany

In the period that followed the initiation of limited relations with noncommunist states, Romania's resistance to the Soviet Union contributed to a receptive att.i.tude on the part of several Western states. Aside from the gradual development of trade relations, however, significant political relations with Western Europe did not materialize until January 1967, when the Ceausescu regime agreed to establish formal diplomatic relations with West Germany, becoming the first of the Warsaw Pact states, other than the Soviet Union, to do so.

Romanian leaders based the establishment of relations with West Germany on the so-called Bucharest Declaration issued by the leaders of the Warsaw Pact countries in 1966. The declaration affirmed that there were in West Germany "circles that oppose revanchism and militarism" and that seek the development of normal relations with countries of both the East and the West as well as a normalization of relations "between the two German states." Also included in the declaration was a statement affirming that a basic condition for European security was the establishment of normal relations between states "regardless of their social systems." The Ceausescu regime interpreted this as implying that bilateral relations could be developed between Eastern European states and West Germany.

Although the West German government made overtures to other Eastern European communist states, Romania was the only one to agree to the establishment of formal diplomatic ties at that time. Political observers saw the move as a means for Romania to dramatically demonstrate independence from the Soviet Union and, as well, a means of avoiding COMECON integration pressures by increasing trade and the possibility of obtaining economic aid from the West.

The establishment of diplomatic ties with West Germany did not alter the PCR position on the existence of two German states. Each country, at the time the diplomatic exchange was made public, simply rea.s.serted its own positions: the West German government reiterated its right and obligation to speak for the entire German people, and the Bucharest government a.s.serted that one of the fundamental realities of the post-World War II era "is the existence of two German states." Although Romania reaffirmed the existence of East Germany as a separate state, it did not make recognition of the East German regime by West Germany a precondition for the establishment of diplomatic relations with the West German government.

The East German regime was highly critical of the Romanian establishment of relations with West Germany, and there followed a serious decline in Romanian-East German relations. PCR leaders responded to East German criticisms by declaring that "the foreign policy of a socialist state is laid down by the party and the government of the country in question and they need render account only to their people."

In the period since 1967 relations with West Germany have continued without major difficulties. Although the Ceausescu regime has not hesitated to criticize elements of German policy with which it does not agree, the two governments have sought to minimize differences in ideology and in foreign and domestic policies in the interest of maintaining good relations. In economic exchanges between the two countries Romania has had a continuous balance of trade deficit, a situation that both countries were attempting to correct. In mid-1970 Prime Minister Maurer paid an official visit to Bonn, becoming the first Eastern European head of government to do so. In May 1971 the West German government reciprocated, President Gustav Heinemann making a state visit to Romania.

The United States

Relations with the United States were initiated on a limited scale in the early 1960s, and amba.s.sadors were exchanged in 1964, but relations declined with the increasing United States role in the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). After the opening of the Paris peace talks and particularly after the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia that same year, relations between the two states improved significantly. Trade relations remained minimal, however, partly because of United States legal restrictions on trade with Eastern European countries.

The improved relations between the two nations were demonstrated by the visit of President Nixon to Romania in August 1969, marking the first visit of a United States head of state to a communist country since the 1945 Yalta Conference. Press reports indicated that the president received an enthusiastic welcome from the Romanian people and that in meetings with Ceausescu a wide range of international problems were discussed.

At the close of the visit President Nixon reaffirmed that the United States "respects the sovereignty and equal rights of all countries, large and small, as well as their right to preserve their own national character." The two heads of state agreed upon the reciprocal establishment of libraries, the opening of negotiations for the conclusion of a consular convention, and the development and diversification of economic ties.

The presidential visit was reciprocated by Ceausescu in October 1970 when the Romanian leader traveled to New York to attend the twenty-fifth anniversary session of the UN General a.s.sembly. Ceausescu followed the UN visit with a two-week coast-to-coast tour of the United States and talks at the White House with President Nixon. The Nixon administration moved to increase economic relations with Romania, and in early 1972 legislation was pending in the United States Congress to grant that country most-favored-nation status (see ch. 14).

Other States

As part of its campaign to improve relations among the Balkan states and in keeping with its policy of establishing relations with all states regardless of their political systems, the Ceausescu regime initiated efforts to ameliorate its relations with Greece and Turkey. The development of ties with Turkey has progressed without serious setback throughout the period of Ceausescu's rule, but Greco-Romanian relations have fluctuated. Although the regime has followed a policy of noninterference in the internal affairs of another state, it left the Romanian emba.s.sy in Athens without an amba.s.sador for a year after the 1967 Greek military coup. In July 1968 the Romanian government returned an amba.s.sador to Greece as a first step in improving relations between the two states. Increased trade and cultural exchanges followed, although the differing ideologies of the two regimes have kept official relations at a correct but cool level.

Although Turkey did not respond positively to the Romanian call for a nuclear free zone in the Balkans and the removal of foreign military bases from the area, a.s.serting that such an agreement would have to be included in a wider accord between NATO and Warsaw Pact nations, relations between the two states have continued to improve. Ceausescu paid a state visit to Turkey in 1969, and the Turkish president visited Romania in April 1970. The satisfactory political ties have resulted in a number of cultural and economic agreements, Romania obtaining Turkish raw materials, particularly iron, chrome, and manganese, and exporting machinery to Turkey.

Political, economic, and cultural ties were expanded with a number of other Western countries during the 1965-70 period, particularly with Austria, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom. The Ceausescu regime placed primary emphasis on the cultivation of economic relations with these states, and several substantial trade agreements were concluded and high-level visits were exchanged during 1970 and 1971.

PCR policy statements have proclaimed that one of the princ.i.p.al guidelines of Romanian foreign policy is the steady cultivation and broadening of political and economic relations with the young independent states of Asia and Africa as well as with the countries of Latin America. The regime has also repeatedly affirmed its support for "the struggle of the peoples of Africa, Asia and other regions of the world for liberation and national independence against neocolonialism and the aggressive actions of imperialism."

Policy statements have also consistently voiced support for the communist effort in South Vietnam. The communist Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam (Viet Cong) is recognized as the legitimate government of South Vietnam and maintains an emba.s.sy in Bucharest.

The Middle East situation has posed a dilemma for the Ceausescu government, which has sought to maintain relations with both sides in the conflict. When, in August 1969, Romania and Israel announced an agreement to elevate their relations to the amba.s.sadorial level, Syria and Sudan retaliated by breaking relations with Romania, and Iraq and the United Arab Republic reduced the level of their representation in Bucharest. Despite these actions by the Arab states, PCR leaders continued to voice support for "the struggle of the Arab people to defend their national independence and sovereignty" but called for a negotiated settlement of the conflict.

The Ceausescu regime systematically cultivated relations with the developing countries, and particular efforts were directed toward increasing relations with African nations during 1970 and 1971.

Ceausescu made a state visit to Morocco, and other high Romanian officials visited Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Kinshasa)--in late 1971 became the Republic of Zaire--Burundi, Kenya, the Malagasy Republic, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Zambia. Several prominent African leaders, among them President Jean Bedel Boka.s.sa of the Central African Republic and President Joseph Mobutu of Zaire visited Romania. Trade agreements were signed with a number of African nations, but little had been done to implement these agreements as of early 1972. As another means of increasing its influence in Africa and broadening relations there, the Ceausescu government established more than 400 scholarships for African students to study in Romania.

Relations With International Organizations

Romania became a member of the UN in 1955 and as of early 1972 also held membership in the following UN specialized agencies: the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). It also partic.i.p.ates in the work of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

The two most important communist organizations to which the country belongs are the Warsaw Pact and COMECON. The Warsaw Pact was established in 1955 as a twenty-year mutual defense pact between the Soviet Union, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania. (Albania ceased its partic.i.p.ation in the organization in 1961 and officially withdrew in 1968 as a symbol of protest against the invasion of Czechoslovakia). As an instrument of Soviet foreign policy, the Warsaw Pact has served to maintain Soviet hegemony in Eastern Europe and to provide the legal basis for the presence of Soviet troops on the territory of some of the partic.i.p.ating states.

Romania has consistently refused to acquiesce in Soviet proposals for greater integration of the military forces of the Warsaw Pact states and did not partic.i.p.ate in the invasion of Czechoslovakia. After the Czechoslovak invasion the Ceausescu government established a defense council and proclaimed that foreign troops were not to enter Romania for any purpose without prior approval of the Grand National a.s.sembly.

During the 1968-71 period the Romanians limited their partic.i.p.ation in pact activities as much as possible. Rather than Romanian troops taking part in joint maneuvers of pact forces, partic.i.p.ation has generally been limited to a small group of staff officers who attend the exercises as observers.

Official Romanian views on the integration of Eastern European communist forces under the pact were forcefully reiterated in early 1970 after the Soviet chief of staff spoke of "combined" or "unified" pact forces.

Ceausescu responded by declaring that Romania's armed forces are not subordinated to any authority other than "the Romanian party, government, and Supreme National Command." Although he pledged continued cooperation with the pact and a fulfillment of his country's responsibilities, he a.s.serted that no part of the party's and government's right to command and lead the armed forces would be ceded to any other body. In addition, Ceausescu gave emphasis to the defensive nature of the Warsaw Pact and reiterated the Romania position on noninterference in the internal affairs of another country.

Romanian policy toward COMECON has been cooperative in regard to mutually advantageous trade relations with the other member states but has consistently opposed pressures for the integration of their economies. The Soviet Union and the more industrialized of the Eastern European communist states have pressed for economic integration that would include a division of labor among COMECON members and a specialization of production. Romanian leaders, preferring to develop a diversified national economy, have refused the role of supplier of agricultural goods and raw materials that COMECON would have a.s.signed to their country.

During the mid-1960s Romania successfully reoriented a substantial share of its trade toward the West and reduced its partic.i.p.ation in COMECON.

Trade with the West, however, produced sizable deficits and, along with other economic problems, including the disastrous floods of early 1970, forced the Ceausescu regime to again rely on its economic ties with the COMECON states. Despite these difficulties, the country has continued to develop its trade relations with noncommunist nations and has continued to resist COMECON integration pressures.

In 1970 a prominent Romanian economist proposed that COMECON become an open-ended organization in which all countries, socialist and nonsocialist, could partic.i.p.ate on a voluntary basis. In mid-1971 an official PCR party spokesman declared that economic cooperation with COMECON must "in no way affect the national economic plans or the independence of the economic units in each country."

CHAPTER 11

PUBLIC INFORMATION

In the early 1970s the media of public information, under complete party and government control and supervision, were utilized primarily to propagandize and indoctrinate the population in support of the regime's domestic and foreign policy objectives. The system of control was highly centralized and involved an interlocking group of party and state organizations, supervising bodies, and operating agencies whose authority extended to all radio and television facilities, film studios, printing establishments, newspapers, book publishers, and the single news agency. In addition, this control apparatus also regulated the access of the public to foreign publications, films, newscasts, books, and radio and television programs.

Freedom of information, although never fully recognized in precommunist Romania, completely disappeared under the Communists after 1948. In late 1971, as a result of an ideological campaign launched by the regime, the communications media experienced measures that served further to reemphasize their a.s.signed role as political tools in the indoctrination of the people. The effects of this campaign had not become fully evident in early 1972, but changes and modifications had begun to appear that tended to inhibit liberalizing trends, which had been incorporated gradually into the system during the 1960s.

GOVERNMENT AND FREEDOM OF INFORMATION

Although freedom of information was theoretically guaranteed by the early const.i.tutions of precommunist Romania, censorship of the press was not unusual and commonly took the form of banning or confiscating newspapers and periodicals considered hostile to the ruling group.

Newspapers had traditionally been published by political parties and special interest groups, only a few being uncontrolled and truly independent. In consequence, the public has long regarded the press as generally biased, tainted with propaganda, and not reliable as a source of objective news.

Under the dictatorship imposed by King Carol II in 1938 and during the wartime regime of Marshal Ion Antonescu, censorship was officially proclaimed and rigidly enforced. Since that time the communications media have enjoyed only one period of relative freedom, lasting only a few weeks following the coup d'etat of King Michael in August 1944.

After Michael's deposition and during the struggle for power that followed, the Communists effectively controlled the press and radio through the unions serving these facilities, which they had heavily infiltrated. After their seizure of power in 1948, the Communists inst.i.tuted a system of censorship and control that has continued without interruption.

The 1965 Const.i.tution, the third promulgated by the Communists since their takeover of the government, is less moderate in tone than its predecessors in preserving the fiction of the right of citizens to individual freedoms. The doc.u.ment states that freedom of speech, of the press, and of a.s.sembly "cannot be used for aims hostile to the socialist system and to the interests of the working people." This same article also prohibits a.s.sociations of a "fascist" or "anti-democratic" nature, as well as the partic.i.p.ation of citizens in such a.s.sociations. The Const.i.tution names the Romanian Communist Party (Partidul Communist Roman--PCR) as the leading political force in the country; by virtue of its position, the party has become the ultimate authority in determining actions that are "fascist," "anti-democratic," or "hostile to the socialist system."

In 1972 the regime continued to utilize the conventional information media--newspapers, magazines, books, radio, television, and motion pictures--as an integrated, governmental system for the indoctrination of the population and the molding of public opinion in support of the state and its policies. In keeping with this overall objective, a campaign for the increased ideological and political indoctrination of the public was undertaken in July 1971 that brought about a reenforcement of party authority over the highest information control and policymaking bodies in the government (see ch. 7). The former State Committee for Culture and Art, established with ministerial rank under the Council of Ministers, was reconst.i.tuted as the Council on Socialist Culture and Education and was made directly subordinate to the Central Committee of the PCR. Similar changes were made in the Committee of Radio and Television, which became the Council of Romanian Radio and Television.

Under the direct guidance of the press and propaganda sections of the Central Committee, these two councils formulate policy guidelines and supervise all publication and dissemination procedures throughout the communications media. The policies and directives, in turn, are implemented by other government-controlled operating agencies, such as the General Directorate for the Press and Printing, the Romanian press agency, and the individual publishing houses, printing establishments, book distribution centers, motion picture studios, and radio and television stations. To further a.s.sure a uniform collective effort consistent with the party line, and two national councils are also empowered to organize wherever necessary permanent commissions, temporary working groups, and local committees to a.s.sist the councils in "a.n.a.lyzing" the way decisions are applied and in "improving" local activities.