American journalist traveling to Romania complains about graffiti on Revolution monuments

My name is Reginald Johnson, I am an American journalist who travels to Romania every few years with my wife. I wanted to write to you about something we are both concerned about and I hope you will publish this letter. Thank you.

“My wife and I travel to Romania occasionally and we always look forward to visiting Revolution Square in Bucharest.  The monuments such as the Memorial of Rebirth and others which honor the more than 1,500 people who died during the 1989 Romanian Revolution, which overthrew the brutal Communist regime of Nicolae Ceausescu, are extremely moving and impressive.

So it was very upsetting when we visited a few months ago to see that a number of these monuments, including those with the names of the martyrs, have been defaced with graffiti. This has spoiled one of the top tourist attractions in Romania and dishonors those who gave their lives to overthrow the oppressive communist regime and gain freedom for the Romanian people.

It is hard to know why anyone, even if they are young, would engage in such disrespectful behavior.

It is also very dismaying that Bucharest city officials or other government officials in charge of memorials have allowed this travesty to occur. We have read that there is supposed to be security in this area. But we saw none.

There should be security at all hours to watch these monuments. Anyone caught defacing these structures should be punished or, if the culprits are teenagers, their parents should pay a heavy fine.

We hope that the appropriate government officials will take steps to clean up these memorials, remove the graffiti and also make sure the security is in place so that these wonderful monuments are protected.”