Bucharest University requests damages in miners’ riot file

Bucharest University demands material damages from the perpetrators during the miners’ riot file. The representatives of the institution have told Realitatea TV that the action is motivated by the destruction of rare collections and of the furniture.

But, more importantly, they say, there are the violence suffered in the summer of 1990 by the teachers and students.

Several people have been charged in the miners’ riot file, including the former President Ion Iliescu and former Prime Minister Petre Roman.

“At the beginning of April, the University sent an address to the Prosecutor General’s Office, by which has become civil part in the miners’ riot file. The document draws attention to the material and moral prejudice suffered by the University of Bucharest: the illegal access, the destruction of the patrimony and, more importantly, the violence with serious injuries and inhumane treatments suffered by the teachers and students at that time. The material damage is difficult to quantify. Almost 30 years have passed. But we have experts who will work to assess the damages,” said Mirabela Amarandei, Bucharest University spokesman, realitatea.net informs.

In June this year 27 years will be marked since the bloodiest miners’ riot in Romania that claimed tens of people’s lives, of whom only six were identified. 746 persons were injured.

On May 20, 1990 Ion Iliescu and his party, the National Salvation Front, won the parliamentary and presidential elections. This prompted the right wing parties’ supporters to stage massive protests, denouncing the “neo-communist” ruling and asking for the state television’s independence and for the truth on the 1989 Revolution.

Later on the night of June 12, the authorities clashed with the protesters who have been staying in the University Square for 52 days. That night President Iliescu issued a release calling “all conscious and responsible” forces to intervene against “the extremist groups”.

Troops of the Anti-terrorist Fight Special Unit surrounded the square with Police’s buses, Molotov cocktails and stones were thrown and the Police buses set on fire. Bucharest Police, Interior Minister and SRI’s headquarters have been attacked and also set on fire.

In the evening of June 13, three sets of cars full of miners left from Petrosani to Bucharest, while another train left the next day from Motru train station to Bucharest.

Once they got to Bucharest, the miners led by Miron Cozma went to University Square, as Ion Iliescu had asked them to from the Government’s balcony: “I am addressing to you, thanking for your proletarian solidarity answer (…) The miner delegation, led by Mr. Cozma will go to University Square, that we want you to get back.”

In the University Square, the miners pretended to readjust the flower saplings destroyed by the protesters’ tents and broke into the Geology Faculty, where they occupied the balcony and devastated the Students League’ HQs. The same happened to the Philology and Maths Faculties, as well as at the Architecture Institute. Numerous professors and students were beaten back then. The miners also devastated the headquarters of the historic National Peasants’ Party and Liberal Party and occupied the state-owned Romanian TV broadcaster.

All who “were suspected as being intellectuals” were beaten, taken up in patrol wagons and interrogated at Magurele military unit.