The last surviving inmate from a notorious communist-era Romanian prison told a court Wednesday its one-time boss "must pay" for his cruelty at the jail where at least 14 died of cold and hunger.
Valentin Cristea, 84, was testifying at the trial of Alexandru Visinescu, who is charged with crimes against humanity over his time running the Ramnicu Sarat prison from 1956 to 1963.
The conditions were much harsher than the other brutal jails in the then communist country due to "close surveillance, bad food, isolation and cold," Cristea said.
Like all the other inmates at what was dubbed the "prison of silence", Cristea was kept completely isolated from fellow inmates and the outside world during his six years behind bars.
That Cristea is even testifying is remarkable in Romania, as the trial is the first attempt since the fall of communism a quarter of a century ago to bring to justice anyone from the leadership of a prison system.
The regime locked up more than 600,000 people -- intellectuals, opponents of communism and priests -- for political reasons between 1947 and 1989, when the regime fell.
According to the charges against him, Visinescu, now 89, installed a "regime of extermination" in the prison, with at least 14 inmates dying due to poor treatment.
If convicted Visinescu could face spending what remains of his life behind bars.
He had failed to attend a hearing last month saying he was too ill, but the court issued a warrant forcing to turn up.
- 'Only following orders' -
In previous hearings Visinescu said he was not guilty of mistreating the inmates because he had only been following orders from the prison system's leaders.
"The food rations and the (amount) of firewood were set by the prison service, as was the policy of total isolation the inmates were subject to," he once said, adding: "None of it is true."
Visinescu admitted some deaths occurred while he was in charge, but attributed them to natural causes.
During his testimony, Cristea said he "believed Visinescu was only following orders, knowing that if he refused to carry them out, he would have ended himself ended up in prison".
His remark prompted Visinescu to shout "bravo" from his seat in the courtroom.
But the former prisoner continued, saying the Visinescu was violent and bore guilt "because not just anyone would have agreed to do such a job".
"One can go overboard or, on the contrary, show a little bit of indulgence" towards prisoners, said Cristea, adding that Visinescu meted out harsh punishment for the slightest infractions.
Visinescu has shown little emotion during the at times heartrending testimony from people directly impacted by the harsh conditions at Ramnicu Sarat.
He did not react when Nicoleta Eremia testified that her husband, the military commander Ion Eremia, had been the victim of "terrible suffering" and "indescribable humiliations" during his three years at Ramnicu Sarat.
"One day he told me: 'If hell exists, I am there'."
The last surviving inmate from a notorious communist-era Romanian prison told a court Wednesday its one-time boss “must pay” for his cruelty at the jail where at least 14 died of cold and hunger.
Valentin Cristea, 84, was testifying at the trial of Alexandru Visinescu, who is charged with crimes against humanity over his time running the Ramnicu Sarat prison from 1956 to 1963.
The conditions were much harsher than the other brutal jails in the then communist country due to “close surveillance, bad food, isolation and cold,” Cristea said.
Like all the other inmates at what was dubbed the “prison of silence”, Cristea was kept completely isolated from fellow inmates and the outside world during his six years behind bars.
That Cristea is even testifying is remarkable in Romania, as the trial is the first attempt since the fall of communism a quarter of a century ago to bring to justice anyone from the leadership of a prison system.
The regime locked up more than 600,000 people — intellectuals, opponents of communism and priests — for political reasons between 1947 and 1989, when the regime fell.
According to the charges against him, Visinescu, now 89, installed a “regime of extermination” in the prison, with at least 14 inmates dying due to poor treatment.
If convicted Visinescu could face spending what remains of his life behind bars.
He had failed to attend a hearing last month saying he was too ill, but the court issued a warrant forcing to turn up.
– ‘Only following orders’ –
In previous hearings Visinescu said he was not guilty of mistreating the inmates because he had only been following orders from the prison system’s leaders.
“The food rations and the (amount) of firewood were set by the prison service, as was the policy of total isolation the inmates were subject to,” he once said, adding: “None of it is true.”
Visinescu admitted some deaths occurred while he was in charge, but attributed them to natural causes.
During his testimony, Cristea said he “believed Visinescu was only following orders, knowing that if he refused to carry them out, he would have ended himself ended up in prison”.
His remark prompted Visinescu to shout “bravo” from his seat in the courtroom.
But the former prisoner continued, saying the Visinescu was violent and bore guilt “because not just anyone would have agreed to do such a job”.
“One can go overboard or, on the contrary, show a little bit of indulgence” towards prisoners, said Cristea, adding that Visinescu meted out harsh punishment for the slightest infractions.
Visinescu has shown little emotion during the at times heartrending testimony from people directly impacted by the harsh conditions at Ramnicu Sarat.
He did not react when Nicoleta Eremia testified that her husband, the military commander Ion Eremia, had been the victim of “terrible suffering” and “indescribable humiliations” during his three years at Ramnicu Sarat.
“One day he told me: ‘If hell exists, I am there’.”
