A lot has been written in the Romanian mass media about the recent protest of the miners. The majority of the so claimed Romanian "intelligentsia" are against them, due to their class bias.
Let me try to do a (as objective as possible, due to my class bias) report about the so called "the fifth mineriad".
1. A bit of history.
The oldest coal deposits in Romania are in Valea Jiului, near Petrosani - a 100,000 inhabitants (now) monoindustrial town. They have been exploited for 200 years. It is a bituminous coal (huila) and its caloric power is about 70% from the Polish huila.
In 1929 Romania was governed by a national peasant party (NPP) team. In those times, there were two major parties: the national peasant one and the national liberal one (NLP). The national peasant party considered itself to be at center - left. At the elections, the miners from Valea Jiului supported the NPP, which claimed that , once in power, they will protect the mine industry. They did not respect their engagement and the miners went to strike. The government sent the army against them and 30 were killed in August 5, 1929.
After the war, new deposits of coal were discovered (lignit) in Oltenia. It is easier to exploit - being closer to the surface, it is exploited in open carriers. The real coal miners remained in Valea Jiului, because you cannot make coke from lignit.
In August, 1977 the coal miners went to strike again - this time against Nicolae Ceausescu's government. They wanted Ceausescu at their mines, to see the living and working conditions. Ceausescu was forced to obey and satisfy their demands after his prime minister, Ilie Verdet was taken hostage for a couple of days. Their prestige was at top.
2. After 1989
After 1989, when Ceausescuās regime crushed, there was an unstable period until the first "free" elections. I put the quotation mark because there were no openly declared left party at those times. A part of the working class supported the National Salvation Front (NSF) which they considered to be a kind of "human face" left party.
But in 1990, among other parties, the ghosts of the past appeared again: the "historical parties" NPP and NPL. They considered themselves to be the real exponents of the young Romanian democracy and accused the NSF of Iliescu and Roman to be "neo-communist" and "crypto-communist". Lead by a former political prisoner (Corneliu Coposu) and an emigree (Radu Campeanu) they thought that now their time has come. The idea was simple: everything was done by the socialist regime was bad and should be destroyed. The collective farms were bad because the farmers were "slaves of the state" and the industry was bad because it was a "bunch of rotten iron". Romania was a republic? Of course, that was bad because we have a king (Mihai, in Switzerland) and we are a monarchy.
Beside these two parties a plethora of "anti-communist" "non political" and "revolutionary associations" emerged. Their rethoric was even more primitive. They were sponsored with money from the international imperialism. All of them have a messianic goal: to implement the democracy in Romania and fight the "communism".
In January 28, 1990 the anti-communist forces tried their fortune in a meeting in Bucharest, Victoria place. Their purpose: to deny the right of NSF to participate at the elections and, if possible, to seize the power. The anti - communists are - and were - a minority, but a well organized one. Several tens of thousands of Bucharest anti - communists took part at that demonstration with the aim : seize the power and make "shock - therapy". The other forces riposted: they did a counter - demonstration and, after an unsure night , they seemed to win ö Romania will not destroy itself for the nbenefit of anti - communist forces. The TV- at that time dominated by NSF peeople presented alarmist news about what was going on in Bucharest (a tentative of coup dāetat) and the miners reacted. Organized by their trade - unions, they came in Bucharest in 1990 , January 29 and expressed their support for Iliescu. That was the first mineriad. Then they went home.
The anti - communists rebuked again in 1990 february, 18 (after three weeks).This time the pretext was a demonstration against the "securitate" , the ex - security services. The demonstration was held in the same place, in the front of the government building, infested (that was what they claimed) with securists and communists. It degenerated in a riot with arson: the government building was put on fire. The TV showed the events and the, the miners striked again: the nexday, Monday February 19 the coal miners were again in Bucharest to express their anti - capitalist mood and to warn the power that next time it will be worse: they will come armed with their mine devices. The political forces promised that there will be no "next time": the things will be under control until the elections.
In March 8, 1990 the anti - communist organization "Timisoara" issued a Proclamation. Its main point was that no Communist should have the right to compete in free elections for parliament or Presidency. Then in April 24, 1990 a long demonstration started in Bucuresti, Piata Universitatii . The goal: to express the support for the Proclamation of Timisoara and to fight the "communism". The slogans: "Down with Iliescu", "Down with communism". In May, 20, after the free elections, Iliescu was plebiscited by the Romanians : 85% from the ballots. The demonstrants did not want to accept the result : the Romanians were fools, handicapated, infected with the communist virus and thy were the saviors. In June 12, 1990 , the government decided to finish the demonstration (which has lasted more than Tian An Men one) and to arrest the demonstrants, which blocked public roads. It was an unhappy idea: the police was not able to fight the rioters which put fire (in June 13, 1990) at TV, Police , Internal affairs headquarters and at some parties considered to be "communist" : NSF, Socialist Democratic Party. Iliescu appeared at TV and claimed that a fascist rebellion was going on (maybe he was not very wrong) and invited the citizens of Bucharest to defend the democracy. The majority of Bucharest citizens did not answer to the invitation, but the miners did. In the morning of June 14 they came in Bucharest armed with their mine devices to establish the order. Their chief was not Miron Cozma, but other guys. That was the 3rd mineriad. It is true that some of the Bucharest citizens were beated: those suspected to be sympathizers of the reactionary forces which lost the elections. A sure method to be beaten by them those times was not to present your documents when invited to, or to be insolent to them: to call them lazy, stinking and to invite them to go to work. All the western mass - media shifted the real horror day of June 13, when people were killed and presented only the miners violences. Regretably, but minersā violence was there : a ripost one, but violence, however. Could they not to come to Bucharest to defend the power, which they feeled to be theirs? I doubt it : they promised that next time it will be worse and that they will teach a lesson to the Bucharest hooligans.
The miners departed in June 16. The Bucharest people (I mean the majority ) supported them. My point is that the majority of violences were not did by coal miners, but by Bucharest people, exasperated by the insolence of the anti - communists. I was a witness.
Unfortunately, the new government (The Roman one) was not a left one. Its goal was to make the "reform" - that is, to implement the capitalism in Romania.
From an underdeveloped socialism you cannot have a developed capitalism as, say, in Sweden or United Kingdom. The new prime minister begun with the liberalization of prices (november 1990) - that is the start of the hyperinflation with no gain. That was the start from socialism to nowhere. The Romanians had to accept that their government was not their, but belonged to the international finance. They begun to experiment something they knew only from the books or TV : the unemployment, the price explosion and the degradation of life. That affected the coal miners, too. They made a list of demands which they presented to what they considered to be "their" prime minister : hadn't they saved him once?
Surprise: Petre Roman did not care to visit them in Petrosani. Not only that, he rejected with arrogance all the demands of the coal miners. But this time, the miners had a new trade - union leader . It was the young Miron Cozma, a mine assistant engineer, a charismatic person who did not like to be despised. The coal miners came to Bucharest on September 26, 1991 to demand their rights. Petre Roman cowardly ran out the government headquarters - the same Piata Victoriei building - and called the police . The fighting between the police and the miners ended with the resignation of Petre Roman. That was the fourth mineriad. It was greeted with enthusiasm by the anti - communist opposition. The old ghosts hoped again that their time has come : they invited the coal miners at their Congress ( there was the Congress of NPP at Bucharest, National Theatre) , made peace with Cozma and tried to keep them in Bucharest to overthrow the Iliescu regime. Cozma did not agree and retired at Petrosani.
The next prime ministers were Theodor Stolojan (1991 - 1992) and Nicolae Vacaroiu (1992 - 1996). At those time there were a relative social peace in Valea Jiului.
The political earthquake came in November, 1996 when the right coalition won the elections. Strangely enough, the coalition was between the "historical parties". the Democratic Party of Petre Roman (a branch of the ex - NSF ) and the UDMR - the hungarian party. Miron Cozma has its part of guilt , because he counselled his miners to vote for the right coalition (Name: Democratic Convention of Romania) . Now all the specialists of the ex - government were labelled "communists" and thrown away. The next prime - minister (Victor Ciorbea) begun a desindustrialization policy. To begin with, he closed the pig and chicken factories (they were not profitable) (1997) ; then he bribed the miners to go unemployed (1997 - 1998) and transform themselves into prosperous bussinessmen. He paid about $2000 to each miner which gave up is work. That was his idea of "reform".
The last prime - minister (Radu Vasile - from April 1998) promised to close the "black - holes" of the Romanian economy. It seems that any industry was a black - hole, including the coal industry . Supported by mass media , he declared that he will close 38 mines , two of them from Valea Jiului (Dâlja and B÷rb÷teni) because they were not profitable. The paradox was that the previous government invested $3 million in the last one , and that it was profitable. We are in november 1998. The minister of the industry was a "social democrat" of Petre Roman, called Berceanu. Berceanu claimed that is cheaper to import coal from Poland than to produce ours.
Meanwhile, Cozma was imprisonned for attack at state institutions (1997 - 1998). In november 1998 he was elected again as the leader of the coal minersā trade union from Valea Jiului. This time there was another trade union - of the lignit miners from Oltenia, headed by Condescu.
Cozma tried to show the government that Barbateni was profitable and that the miners will not accept that about 2000 of them to lose their jobs without fighting. He vainly tried to talk with the minister Berceanu . The last one claimed that he will not talk with a outlaw as Cozma. In December Cozma warned that if the government continued to declare that it would close the mines, the coal miners would go to a general strike on January, 4. The "social democrats" were insolent: they challenged the miners with wary declarations. Namely, they will not ttalk to Cozma, they would close the mines because they only produced losses, they invite the miners to strike to make economies, and similar insanities.
On January, 4, the strike begun. The miners invited the government for talks in Valea Jiului. The ministers rejected all the demands with arrogance. The miners warned that they would come to protest in Bucharest. The government was not worried: they declared that the times of Iliescu had passed, and that the coal miners had no chance to arrive Bucharest.
The enslaved mass media began a campaign of lies against the miners : that our national debt (8 billions) was because of them (4 billions were put into the mines, declared Berceanu) ; that every year Romania has to pay 400 mill. dollars because of them; that they killed people in 1990 and it will be better to keep their mouth shut a.s.o.
It looked as insane forces tried to provoke a civil war. The miners were insulted and challenged. That was a good time for the Romanians to see that the class struggle exists.
The interior minister, an ape formed anti-communist called Dejeu declared that the police and the army will use the guns against the protesters and he ordered his people to block the roads to Petrosani (January 10)
Between January 4 and January 16 the miners marched and demonstrated in Petrosani. They decided that if the prime minister will not come to Petrosani, they will go to Bucharest.
The transport minister, Basescu (another "social democrat of Petre Roman) ordered the cancel of any trains to Petrosani. In January 16, Petrosani was an isolated city. Nobody could enter or leave Petrosani. The main road to Bucharest was blocked with rocks and Gendarmerie.
The Romanian Government infringed the Constitution and the Romanian laws. They were sure on the repression forces and on mass media.
The coal miners decided to march to Bucharest (more that 300 km). After the last warning, they started the long March on Monday, January 18. The first manned barrage was at Bumbesti Jiu, about 30 km from Petrosani. They were not armed and disciplined; they did not want trouble. There was another leader of them, Romeo Beja which is a very good speaker; he was treating with the police. Because they did not want trouble, they decided to spend the night near Bumbesti near fires and busses.
Unpleasant news waited the government: the local inhabitants expressed solidarity with the miners. Many expected them as liberators! Another piece of bad news: the policemen did not want to fight for Dejeu against their kin.
The next day, Tuesday January 19 , at 8 oāclock they started to Bucharest. The policemen tried to stop them with tear - gases, but they did not manage. The people from Bumbesti attacked the policemen!
The march continued , as in the legends: the peasants wellcome them, the priests did the same. The night of 19 they spent at Targu Jiu, the capital of the judet Gorj. The same : the majority of the inhabitants looked at them as to a liberation army.
Wednesday Jan. 20: they marched from Targu Jiu to Horezu (jud. Valcea).
Thursday Jan 21: tha day of the fight of Costesti. The governor of Valcea was confident that "the coal miners will not pass". More than 3000 policemen and special troops made a barrage near Costesti. Aside from tear gase, they had military hounds. About at 11 in the morning the protesters (originarry 10000, but with the sympathizers and coal miners from Oltenia, about 15 000) arrived at the barrage. After a short fight the policemen ran away and the coal miners took the governor of Valcea as a prisoner. In the afternoon, they were at Ramnicu Valcea (about 100 ooo inhab.), the capital of Valcea County. The local population were enthusiastic. They had occupied the headquartes of the governor.
Friday Jan. 22. The president Emil Constantinescu declared the emergency situation. Fortunately, the prime minister Radu Vasile accepted to go to Cozia, at a monastery to have talks with the protesters. He accepted their demands and the coal miners went back to Valea Jiului.
That is, in short what happenned.
ZG from Romania