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[[Image:VladimirTismaneanu.jpg|thumb|right|Vladimir Tismăneanu, photograph by [http://www.eduardkoller.net/ Eduard Koller]]] |
[[Image:VladimirTismaneanu.jpg|thumb|right|Vladimir Tismăneanu, photograph by [http://www.eduardkoller.net/ Eduard Koller]]] |
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'''Vladimir Tismăneanu''' (b. [[July 4]], [[1951]]) is a [[Romania]]n-born [[United States|American]] political scientist, sociologist, and professor at the [[University of Maryland, College Park]]. A specialist in [[political system]]s and compared politics, he is editor of the ''East European Politics and Societies'' academic review and director of |
'''Vladimir Tismăneanu''' (b. [[July 4]], [[1951]]) is a [[Romania]]n-born [[United States|American]] political scientist, sociologist, and professor at the [[University of Maryland, College Park]]. A specialist in [[political system]]s and compared politics, he is editor of the ''East European Politics and Societies'' academic review, and director of University of Maryland's ''Center for the Study of Post-Communist Societies''. Tismăneanu is a contributor to several periodicals, including ''[[Journal of Democracy]]'', ''Studia Politica'', ''[[Sfera Politicii]]'', ''[[22 (magazine)|22]]'', and ''[[Cotidianul]]''. |
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In [[2006]], [[President of Romania|Romanian President]] [[Traian Băsescu]] appointed Tismăneanu president of the [[Presidential Commission for the Study of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania]], which presented its report to the [[Parliament of Romania|Romanian Parliament]] on December 18, 2006. |
In [[2006]], [[President of Romania|Romanian President]] [[Traian Băsescu]] appointed Tismăneanu president of the [[Presidential Commission for the Study of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania]], which presented its report to the [[Parliament of Romania|Romanian Parliament]] on December 18, 2006. |
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==Biography== |
==Biography== |
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Born in [[Braşov]], Vladimir Tismăneanu is the son of [[Leonte Tismăneanu]] |
Born in [[Braşov]], Vladimir Tismăneanu is the son of [[Leonte Tismăneanu]] and Hermina Marcusohn, both of whom were [[Jew]]ish and activists of the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]] and the [[Romanian Communist Party]]. His father, born in [[Bessarabia]], then [[Russian Empire]], settled in the [[Soviet Union]] at the end of the 1930s, worked in [[agitprop]] structures, returning to Romania at the end of [[World War II]], and becoming, under the [[Communist Romania|Communist regime]], chair of the [[Marxism-Leninism]] department of the [[University of Bucharest]].<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.polirom.ro/titluri.cgi?action=titluri&class=dosar&id=1873 Tismăneanu interviewed by Emilia Chiscop, 2005]</ref> |
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During his years of study at the present-day [[Bucharest]] [[Jean Monnet High School]], which was then largely attended by students belonging to the Romanian nomenklatura, Vladimir Tismăneanu was in the same class as [[Nicu Ceauşescu]], son of communist leader [[Nicolae Ceauşescu]], as well as the children of [[Leonte Răutu]], [[Nicolae Doicaru]] and [[Silviu Brucan]].<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.catavencu.ro/almanah/11/index.htm Tismăneanu, "Amintiri din copilărie: Liceul 24 şi destinul nomenclaturii", in ''Almanahul Caţavencu 2002'']</ref> |
During his years of study at the present-day [[Bucharest]] [[Jean Monnet High School]], which was then largely attended by students belonging to the Romanian [[Nomenklatura|nomenklatura]], Vladimir Tismăneanu was in the same class as [[Nicu Ceauşescu]], son of communist leader [[Nicolae Ceauşescu]], as well as the children of [[Leonte Răutu]], [[Nicolae Doicaru]] and [[Silviu Brucan]].<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.catavencu.ro/almanah/11/index.htm Tismăneanu, "Amintiri din copilărie: Liceul 24 şi destinul nomenclaturii", in ''Almanahul Caţavencu 2002'']</ref> |
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⚫ | He graduated as a [[valedictorian]]<ref name="cvpres">{{ro icon}} [http://www.presidency.ro/?_RID=htm&id=88 Profile at the Romanian Presidency site]</ref> from the University of Bucharest's Faculty of Sociology in 1974, and received his [[Ph.D.]] from the same institution in 1980, presenting the thesis "The [[Critical theory (Frankfurt School)|Critical Theory]] of the Frankfurt School and [[New Left|Contemporary Left-Wing Radicalism]]" (''Teoria Critică a Şcolii de la Frankfurt şi radicalismul de stînga contemporan'').<ref name="cvpres"/> During the period, he became a vice-president of the "Communist Student Association" belonging to the [[Union of Communist Youth]], and authored several articles supporting the communist regime and the rule of [[Nicolae Ceausescu]].<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.jurnalul.ro/articol_68723/tinerete_revolutionara___tismaneanu__intaiul_comunist_al_tarii.html Gabriela Antoniu, "Tinereţe revoluţionară - Tismăneanu, întâiul comunist al ţării", in ''Jurnalul Naţional'', December 20, 2006]</ref><ref name="Lavric">{{ro icon}} [http://www.adevarulonline.ro/2006-10-04/Adevarul%20literar%20si%20artistic/cum-se-investigheaza-crimele-comunismului-la-romani_200520.html Sorin Lavric, "Cum se investighează crimele comunismului la români", in ''Adevărul Literar şi Artistic'', October 4, 2006]</ref> |
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In his preface to the Romanian-language edition of his 2003 book ''Stalinism for All Seasons'', Tismăneanu indicated that, starting in 1970, he became interested in critiques of Marxism-Leninism and the Romanian communist regime in particular, after reading banned works made available to him by various of his acquaintances (among others, writer [[Dumitru Ţepeneag]] and his wife, translator [[Mona Ţepeneag]], as well as Ileana, the daughter of Communist Party dignitary [[Gheorghe Gaston Marin]]).<ref name="bizantinism">Tismăneanu, "Bizantinism şi revoluţie. Istoria politică a comunismului românesc", preface to ''Stalinism pentru eternitate. O istorie politică a comunismului românesc'', [[Polirom]], Iaşi, 2005, p.14-16</ref> He stated that, at the time, he was influenced by [[Ghiţă Ionescu]]'s ''Communism in Romania'', as well as by [[Marxism|Marxist]], [[Western Marxism|Western Marxist]], [[Democratic socialism|Democratic]] and [[Libertarian Socialism|Libertarian Socialist]] scholarship (among others, the ideas of [[Georg Lukács]], [[Leszek Kołakowski]], [[Leon Trotsky]], [[Antonio Gramsci]], and the [[Frankfurt School]]).<ref name="bizantinism"/> According to Tismăneanu, his family background allowed him insight into the hidden aspects of Communist Party history, which was comparing with the ideological demands of the Ceauşescu regime, and especially with the latter's emphasis on [[nationalism]].<ref name="bizantinism"/> |
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⚫ | Between 1974 and 1981, Tismăneanu worked as a sociologist, employed by the Urban Sociology Department of the Institute for Designing Typified Buildings in Bucharest.<ref name="cvpres"/> He was allegedly not given approval to hold an academic position.<ref name="cvpres"/><ref name="tapalaga">{{ro icon}} [http://www.cotidianul.ro/index.php?id=6242&art=15498&cHash=3bc4b61a8f Dan Tapalagă, "Turnat de prieteni, demonizat de Securitate: Vladimir Tismăneanu"], in ''[[Cotidianul]]'', July 24, 2006</ref> |
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⚫ | He graduated as a [[valedictorian]]<ref name="cvpres">{{ro icon}} [http://www.presidency.ro/?_RID=htm&id=88 Profile at the Romanian Presidency site]</ref> from the University of Bucharest's Faculty of Sociology in 1974, and received his [[Ph.D.]] from the same institution in 1980, presenting the thesis "The [[Critical theory (Frankfurt School)|Critical Theory]] of the Frankfurt School and [[New Left|Contemporary Left-Wing Radicalism]]" (''Teoria Critică a Şcolii de la Frankfurt şi radicalismul de stînga contemporan'').<ref name="cvpres"/> During the period, he |
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⚫ | In September 1981, while on a tourist trip to Spain, he didn't return to Romania.<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22">Tismăneanu, in {{ro icon}} [http://www.revista22.ro/html/index.php?art=2802&nr=2006-06-16 Armand Gosu, "N-am avut de-a face cu Securitatea", in ''22'', nr.849, June 2006]</ref> He left for [[Venezuela]], before ultimately settling in the United States in 1982.<ref name="cvpres"/><ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/>. |
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⚫ | Between 1974 and 1981, Tismăneanu worked as a sociologist, employed by the Urban Sociology Department of the Institute for Designing Typified Buildings in Bucharest.<ref name="cvpres"/> He was not given approval to hold an academic position.<ref name="cvpres"/><ref name="tapalaga">{{ro icon}} [http://www.cotidianul.ro/index.php?id=6242&art=15498&cHash=3bc4b61a8f Dan Tapalagă, "Turnat de prieteni, demonizat de Securitate: Vladimir Tismăneanu"], in ''[[Cotidianul]]'', July 24, 2006</ref> |
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⚫ | In September 1981, |
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He lived first in [[Philadelphia]], where he was employed by the [[Foreign Policy Research Institute]] (1983-1990), while teaching at the [[University of Pennsylvania]] (1985-1990).<ref name="cvpres"/> At the time, he began contributing comments on local politics to [[Radio Free Europe]] and [[Voice of America]],<ref name="cvpres"/><ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> beginning with an analysis of the "dynastic [[socialism]]" in Romania, centered on the political career of [[Nicu Ceauşescu]].<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> In 1990, Tismăneanu received a professorship at the [[University of Maryland, College Park]] and moved to [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref name="cvpres"/> Since the [[Romanian Revolution of 1989]], he has been visiting his native country on a regular basis. |
He lived first in [[Philadelphia]], where he was employed by the [[Foreign Policy Research Institute]] (1983-1990), while teaching at the [[University of Pennsylvania]] (1985-1990).<ref name="cvpres"/> At the time, he began contributing comments on local politics to [[Radio Free Europe]] and [[Voice of America]],<ref name="cvpres"/><ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> beginning with an analysis of the "dynastic [[socialism]]" in Romania, centered on the political career of [[Nicu Ceauşescu]].<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> In 1990, Tismăneanu received a professorship at the [[University of Maryland, College Park]] and moved to [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref name="cvpres"/> Since the [[Romanian Revolution of 1989]], he has been visiting his native country on a regular basis. |
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The [[Marxism-Leninism|Marxist-Leninist]] texts authored by Tismăneanu and his position as propaganda lecturer for the [[Union of Communist Youth]] are the topic of a major controversy, in light of his [[Presidential Commission for the Study of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania|Presidential Commission]] appointment. |
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According to an article by Victor Gaetan, a [[Romanian-American]] businessman, published in ''[[The Washington Post]]'' |
According to an article by Victor Gaetan, a [[Romanian-American]] businessman, published in ''[[The Washington Post]]'',<ref name="Gaetan"> [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/25/AR2006082501244.html?referrer=delicious Victor Gaetan, "Vinegar on Old, Open Wounds", in ''The Washington Post'', August 26, 2006]</ref><ref name="Teodora Georgescu">{{ro icon}} [http://www.9am.ro/revistapresei/Politica/39645/Felix-prezentat-Americii Teodora Georgescu, "Felix, prezentat Americii", in ''Curentul'', July 31, 2006]</ref> Tismăneanu's doctoral thesis is "a vitriolic sermon against [[Western culture|Western values]]".<ref name="Gaetan"/> University of Bucharest professor [[Daniel Barbu]] considers that Tismăneanu was "a [[Libertarian socialism|liberal]] student of [[Western Marxism|Euro-Marxism]]".<ref name="dbarbu">[http://www.cee-socialscience.net/archive/politicalscience/romania/report1.html#16 Daniel Barbu, ''Political Science in Romania, Country Report 1''], at the Knowledge Base Social Sciences in Eastern Europe</ref> |
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Among |
Among the critics of Tismăneanu's early activities stands the philosopher [[Gabriel Liiceanu]], who stated that they were incompatible with the moral status required from a leader of the Commission.<ref name="Lavric"/> However, Liiceanu endorsed the incrimination of Communist regime and eventually the report itself,<ref name="apelmemorie">{{ro icon}} [http://www.ziua.net/display.php?id=195466&data=2006-03-11 Şerban Orescu, "De ce este nevoie de un apel la memorie?"], in ''[[Ziua]]'', March 11, 2006</ref><ref name=fati>{{ro icon}} [http://www.observatorcultural.ro/infoframe.phtml?xid=16865&xrubrica=POLITICA&return=pescurt Sabina Fati, "Politicienii, intelectualii şi condamnarea comunismului", in ''Observator Cultural'']</ref><ref name="tudorpopescu">{{ro icon}} [[Cristian Tudor Popescu]], [http://www.protv.ro/bloguri/editorialisti/2006/12/21/cuvantul-care-naste-gandul ''Cuvântul care naşte gândul'', hosted by ProTV]</ref> engaging in a public debate with [[Cristian Tudor Popescu]] and [[Octavian Paler]] over its implications.<ref name="tudorpopescu"/> |
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Tom Gallagher, a |
Tom Gallagher, a Professor of Ethnic Conflict and Peace at the [[University of Bradford]] and author of influential works on Romanian politics authored a series of articles critical of Tismăneanu's involvement in local Romanian issues in the post-1989 era, and especially of his relations with former [[President of Romania|President]] [[Ion Iliescu]] (one of the leaders of the [[Social Democratic Party (Romania)|Social Democratic Party]], PSD).<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.romanialibera.ro/index.php?a=1&fct=1&complet=1&idx=39839&tab= Tom Gallagher, "Standardele judecăţii - altele pentru intelectuali?", in ''România Liberă'', September 15, 2006]</ref><ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.romanialibera.ro/index.php?a=1&fct=1&complet=1&idx=34389&tab= Tom Gallagher, "Politolog fără bisericuţe", in ''România Liberă'', October 13, 2006]</ref><ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.romanialibera.ro/index.php?a=1&fct=1&complet=1&idx=2334&tab= Tom Gallagher, "Netulburat de propria-i mistificare", in ''România Liberă'', November 01, 2006]</ref> According to Gallagher, Tismăneanu "was useful to Iliescu in 2004 because the then President recognised the type of figure he was beneath the western reformist image he has cultivated",<ref name="Gallagher 2"> [http://www.ziua.net/display.php?data=2006-04-15&id=197967 Tom Gallagher, "A historian indispensable for two Romanian presidents (II)", in ''Ziua'', April 15, 2006]</ref> Gallagher argued that Tismăneanu's book of interviews with Iliescu, ''Marele Şoc'', "was ready to depict [[Ion Iliescu]] as an enlightened leader who, despite some flaws, had been instrumental in consolidating Romanian democracy", and that the volume, which he called "one of the strangest books to emerge from the Romanian transition", did not include, to Iliescu's advantage, any mentions of the controversial aspects of his presidency "any serious enquiries about the [[Mineriad|mineriade]], the manipulation of [[nationalism]], the denigration of the historic parties [the [[National Peasants' Party]] and the [[National Liberal Party (Romania)|National Liberal Party]]], civic movements and the [[King of Romania|monarchy]], the explosion of [[Political corruption|corruption]], or indeed the continuing political influence and fabulous wealth of the heirs of the pre-1989 intelligence service."<ref name="Gallagher 1"> [http://www.ziua.net/display.php?data=2006-04-14&id=197889 Tom Gallagher, "A historian indispensable for two Romanian presidents (I)", in ''Ziua'', April 14, 2006]</ref> |
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Gallagher expressed further criticism on Tismăneanu, writing that "he wishes to build up a vast [[Clientela|patron-client network]] in contemporary history and political science not dissimilar to what the PSD did in those areas where it desired control".<ref name="Gallagher 2"/> |
Gallagher expressed further criticism on Tismăneanu, writing that "he wishes to build up a vast [[Clientela|patron-client network]] in contemporary history and political science not dissimilar to what the PSD did in those areas where it desired control".<ref name="Gallagher 2"/> |
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Tismăneanu replied to Gallagher's accusations in an interview with ''[[Jurnalul Naţional]]'', arguing that ''Marele Şoc'' largely reflected Iliescu's own beliefs, which he had wanted to render accurately, and stating that "all I could do was to obtain the maximum of what can be obtained through dialog with [Iliescu]".<ref name="tismgalla1">{{ro icon}} [http://www.jurnalul.ro/print.php?id=8878 Monica Iordache, "Nu cred că găsim în această carte adevărul"], in ''[[Jurnalul Naţional]]''</ref> He depicted Gallagher's attitude as "an outbreak of resentments",<ref name="tismgalla1"/> and indicated that "the only praise I could offer [Iliescu]" was in regard to the latter's respect for [[pluralism]] in front of [[authoritarianism]].<ref name="tismgalla1"/> In later statements on the issue, he argued that Gallagher concerns about a supposed change in political views had been unfounded, while expressing regret over the fact that "I had not highlighted [...] in those sections I authored, certain elements that would have made it clear for the reader where I stand".<ref name="tismgalla2">{{ro icon}} [http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=13501&xrubrica=INTERVIU&print=&return=arhiva&xnrrevista=273 Ovidiu Şimonca, "«Există un mare interes să înţelegem din ce lume venim». Interviu cu Vladimir Tismăneanu", in ''Observatorul Cultural'']</ref> |
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Referring to Tismăneanu's books, Tom Gallagher also wrote: "But what about the role of the Securitate? In his books, [Tismăneanu] has never been especially interested in their role. Much of the time, he has seemed far more concerned with creating a psycho-biography of the life and times of his illegalist<ref>In this context, the term refers to committed Communist Party members of the [[interwar period]], when the group had been outlawed.</ref> family in order to overcome the long lasting shock of having been cast into the wilderness for over twenty years when his family fell from grace under [[Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej|Gheorghiu-Dej]]."<ref name="Gallagher 1"/> |
Referring to Tismăneanu's books, Tom Gallagher also wrote: "But what about the role of the Securitate? In his books, [Tismăneanu] has never been especially interested in their role. Much of the time, he has seemed far more concerned with creating a psycho-biography of the life and times of his illegalist<ref>In this context, the term refers to committed Communist Party members of the [[interwar period]], when the group had been outlawed.</ref> family in order to overcome the long lasting shock of having been cast into the wilderness for over twenty years when his family fell from grace under [[Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej|Gheorghiu-Dej]]."<ref name="Gallagher 1"/> |
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When asked about the nomination of Tismăneanu as chair of the Presidential Commission, personalities like [[Lech Wałęsa]] and [[Vladimir Bukovsky]] indicated that they did not know who he was.<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.ziua.net/display.php?data=2006-12-20&id=213102& "Interview with Lech Walesa", in ''Ziua'', December 20, 2006]</ref><ref>[http://www.ziua.net/display.php?data=2006-05-15&id=199586& "Interview with Vladimir Bukovski", in ''Ziua'', May 15, 2006]</ref> |
When asked about the nomination of Tismăneanu as chair of the Presidential Commission, personalities like [[Lech Wałęsa]] and [[Vladimir Bukovsky]] indicated that they did not know who he was.<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.ziua.net/display.php?data=2006-12-20&id=213102& "Interview with Lech Walesa", in ''Ziua'', December 20, 2006]</ref><ref>[http://www.ziua.net/display.php?data=2006-05-15&id=199586& "Interview with Vladimir Bukovski", in ''Ziua'', May 15, 2006]</ref> |
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In 2006 and early 2007, ''[[Ziua]]'' newspaper repeatedly published accusatory claims that Tismăneanu had left with support from |
In 2006 and early 2007, ''[[Ziua]]'' newspaper repeatedly published accusatory claims that Tismăneanu had left with support from the Securitate, that he had settled abroad with assistance from the [[Communist Party of Venezuela]], and that, after escaping communist [[censorship]], he continued to publish materials supporting official communist tenets.<ref name="alexevolodea">{{ro icon}} [http://www.ziua.ro/display.php?data=2006-05-13&id=199511&ziua=97bf955979ba927942f42a1dcfc239ae Vladimir Alexe, "Agentul Volodea"], in ''[[Ziua]]'', May 13, 2006</ref><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> Tismăneanu has rejected all allegations, indicating that they contradicted data present in, among others, files kept on him by the Securitate and the official conclusion reached by the [[National Council for the Study of Securitate Archives]] (CNSAS).<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> Soon afterwards, ''Ziua'''s editor in chief, [[Sorin Roşca-Stănescu]], issued a formal apology for those particular claims (while expressing further criticism of various aspects of Tismăneanu's biography).<ref name="stanescu">{{ro icon}} [[Sorin Roşca-Stănescu]], [http://www.ziua.ro/display.php?id=202090&data=2006-06-22 "Vladimir Tismăneanu, punct şi de la căpat"], in ''[[Ziua]]'', June 22, 2006 (English-language version: [http://www.ziua.ro/prt.php?id=202137&data=2006-06-22&ziua=25f93535b7e48842e4b8018db841708 "Vladimir Tismaneanu: end and beginning"] [sic])</ref> |
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Based on data from his file, Tismăneanu also specified that he was the object of constant Securitate surveillance after his departure, that his mother was subject to pressures,<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> and that derogatory comments on him, including [[Antisemitism|antisemitic]] arguments, |
Based on data from his file, Tismăneanu also specified that he was the object of constant Securitate surveillance after his departure, that his mother was subject to pressures,<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> and that derogatory comments on him, including [[Antisemitism|antisemitic]] arguments,<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> were gathered from various informants and agents.<ref name="tapalaga"/><ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> He made mention of the fact that, according to the documents (the last of which were allegedly compiled in April 1990), the post-Revolution [[Serviciul de Informaţii Externe|Foreign Intelligence Directorate]] had continued to monitor him.<ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> Tismăneanu also indicated his belief that the author of a denunciation note, who used the name "Costin" and recommended himself as a Faculty of Sociology professor, was the same person who, after 1989, had sent a letter to his University of Maryland employer, in which he had called attention to the communist activities of [[Leonte Tismăneanu]] (according to Vladimir Tismăneanu, the letter was dismissed as "abject" and irrelevant by its recipient).<ref name="tapalaga"/> |
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In January 2007, ''Ziua'' published in facsimile a document presented as part of a separate file kept on Tismăneanu by the Counter-Espionage unit of the Securitate, dated 1987.<ref name=Alexe>{{ro icon}} [http://www.ziua.ro/display.php?data=2007-01-23&id=214592 Vladimir Alexe, "Documentul «fugii» lui Tismăneanu"; Dan Mureşan, "Unde a fost Tismăneanu patru ani, până a ajuns în SUA?"], in ''Ziua'', January 23, 2003. The facsimile and Dan Mureşan's letter are available as links on the article page</ref> According to this document, Tismăneanu was well appreciated for his professional and [[Romanian Communist Party]] work prior to 1981, and had held the position of lecturer on the Propaganda Commission of the Communist Party Municipal Committee for Bucharest.<ref name="Alexe"/> The same document also contradicts Tismăneanu's indication that he had not been allowed to travel to the West prior to 1981, by stating that he had been approved tourist visas for both the [[Eastern Bloc]] and "[[Capitalism|capitalist]] states".<ref name="Alexe"/> The facsimile was accompanied by an [[open letter]] containing similar accusatory claims made by Dan Mureşan, a political consultant for the [[United States Republican Party]],{{vc}} and relying on the assertion that Tismăneanu had settled in the United States only after 1985.<ref name="Alexe"/> |
In January 2007, ''Ziua'' published in facsimile a document presented as part of a separate file kept on Tismăneanu by the Counter-Espionage unit of the Securitate, dated 1987.<ref name=Alexe>{{ro icon}} [http://www.ziua.ro/display.php?data=2007-01-23&id=214592 Vladimir Alexe, "Documentul «fugii» lui Tismăneanu"; Dan Mureşan, "Unde a fost Tismăneanu patru ani, până a ajuns în SUA?"], in ''Ziua'', January 23, 2003. The facsimile and Dan Mureşan's letter are available as links on the article page</ref> According to this document, Tismăneanu was well appreciated for his professional and [[Romanian Communist Party]] work prior to 1981, and had held the position of lecturer on the Propaganda Commission of the Communist Party Municipal Committee for Bucharest.<ref name="Alexe"/> The same document also contradicts Tismăneanu's indication that he had not been allowed to travel to the West prior to 1981, by stating that he had been approved tourist visas for both the [[Eastern Bloc]] and "[[Capitalism|capitalist]] states".<ref name="Alexe"/> The facsimile was accompanied by an [[open letter]] containing similar accusatory claims made by Dan Mureşan, a political consultant for the [[United States Republican Party]],{{vc}} and relying on the assertion that Tismăneanu had settled in the United States only after 1985.<ref name="Alexe"/> |
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An extended polemic was sparked between the Tismăneanu Commission and the [[dissident]] writer [[Paul Goma]]. Goma, who initially accepted an invitation to become a Commission member, |
An extended polemic was sparked between the Tismăneanu Commission and the [[dissident]] writer [[Paul Goma]]. Goma, who initially accepted an invitation to become a Commission member, issued by Tismăneanu on behalf of the Commission,<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.cotidianul.ro/index.php?id=4805&art=11494&cHash=146db92a2b Silviu Mihai, "Goma: 'Eu nu am amănunte de studiat'", in ''Cotidianul'', April 11, 2006]</ref> was excluded shortly after by Tismăneanu himself.<ref>Goma, in {{ro icon}} [http://www.gandul.info/articol_9163/paul_goma_ii_desfiinteaza_pe_membrii__comisiei_tismaneanu__de_cercetare_a_ororilor_comunismului_din_romania.html Adrian Popescu, "Paul Goma îi desfiinţează pe membrii "Comisiei Tismăneanu" de cercetare a ororilor comunismului din România", in ''Gândul'', May 9, 2006]</ref> According to Tismăneanu, this happened only after Goma engaged in and publicized personal attacks, calling Tismăneanu "a [[Bolshevik]] offspring",<ref name="Tismăneanu22"/> based on his family history; Goma denied having said these exact words, but later confirmed that he supported such views.<ref name="Goma">{{ro icon}} [http://paulgoma.free.fr/includes/Despre_Tismaneanu_11_puncte_HTML.php Paul Goma, ''Despre Vladimir Tismăneanu - şi nu numai - în 11 puncte'']</ref> |
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Tismăneanu invited on the Commission's panel his collaborator [[Sorin Antohi]], a confirmed former collaborator of the Communist regime's Securitate, and known to have falsified his academic credentials. Antohi resigned in September 2006.<ref>{{ro icon}} [http://www.curentul.ro/curentul.php?numar=20060913&cat=1&subcat=100&subart=43242 Dana Carbelea, "Antohi nu mai e în Comisia Tismăneanu", in ''Curentul'', September 13, 2006]</ref> As of February 2007, Antohi is still an editor for the scientific journal ''East European Politics and Societies'', where Tismăneanu is chair of the Editorial board. |
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Several commentators have argued that the negative reception was partly due to the investigation's implications, as the latter's overall condemnation of the [[Communist Romania|Communist regime]] has opened the road for further debates regarding the links between various contemporary politicians and the former Communist structures<ref name="Betlevy">{{ro icon}} [http://www.epochtimes-romania.com/articles/article_7425.html Dana Betlevy, "România condamnă în mod oficial comunismul", in ''The Epoch Times'' - Romanian edition, December 18, 2006]</ref><ref name="Teodora Georgescu"/><ref name="fati"/><ref name="Manolache">{{ro icon}} [http://www.expres.ro/article.php?artid=284694 Lica Manolache, "Efectul Comisiei Tismăneanu", in ''Evenimentul Zilei'', December 17, 2006]</ref> (examples cited include the [[Social Democratic Party (Romania)|Social Democratic Party]]'s [[Ion Iliescu]],<ref name="Betlevy"/><ref name="Manolache"/> former [[President of Romania]], and [[Adrian Păunescu]],<ref name="Manolache"/> as well as [[Greater Romania Party]] leader [[Corneliu Vadim Tudor]]<ref name="Betlevy"/> and [[Conservative Party (Romania)|Conservative Party]] leader [[Dan Voiculescu]], owner of both ''[[Jurnalul Naţional]]'' and [[Antena 1]]).<ref name="Teodora Georgescu"/> |
Several commentators have argued that the negative reception of the report was partly due to the investigation's implications, as the latter's overall condemnation of the [[Communist Romania|Communist regime]] has opened the road for further debates regarding the links between various contemporary politicians and the former Communist structures<ref name="Betlevy">{{ro icon}} [http://www.epochtimes-romania.com/articles/article_7425.html Dana Betlevy, "România condamnă în mod oficial comunismul", in ''The Epoch Times'' - Romanian edition, December 18, 2006]</ref><ref name="Teodora Georgescu"/><ref name="fati"/><ref name="Manolache">{{ro icon}} [http://www.expres.ro/article.php?artid=284694 Lica Manolache, "Efectul Comisiei Tismăneanu", in ''Evenimentul Zilei'', December 17, 2006]</ref> (examples cited include the [[Social Democratic Party (Romania)|Social Democratic Party]]'s [[Ion Iliescu]],<ref name="Betlevy"/><ref name="Manolache"/> former [[President of Romania]], and [[Adrian Păunescu]],<ref name="Manolache"/> as well as [[Greater Romania Party]] leader [[Corneliu Vadim Tudor]]<ref name="Betlevy"/> and [[Conservative Party (Romania)|Conservative Party]] leader [[Dan Voiculescu]], owner of both ''[[Jurnalul Naţional]]'' and [[Antena 1]]).<ref name="Teodora Georgescu"/> |
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==Works== |
==Works== |
Revision as of 09:08, 2 February 2007
Vladimir Tismăneanu (b. July 4, 1951) is a Romanian-born American political scientist, sociologist, and professor at the University of Maryland, College Park. A specialist in political systems and compared politics, he is editor of the East European Politics and Societies academic review, and director of University of Maryland's Center for the Study of Post-Communist Societies. Tismăneanu is a contributor to several periodicals, including Journal of Democracy, Studia Politica, Sfera Politicii, 22, and Cotidianul.
In 2006, Romanian President Traian Băsescu appointed Tismăneanu president of the Presidential Commission for the Study of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania, which presented its report to the Romanian Parliament on December 18, 2006.
Biography
Born in Braşov, Vladimir Tismăneanu is the son of Leonte Tismăneanu and Hermina Marcusohn, both of whom were Jewish and activists of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Romanian Communist Party. His father, born in Bessarabia, then Russian Empire, settled in the Soviet Union at the end of the 1930s, worked in agitprop structures, returning to Romania at the end of World War II, and becoming, under the Communist regime, chair of the Marxism-Leninism department of the University of Bucharest.[1]
During his years of study at the present-day Bucharest Jean Monnet High School, which was then largely attended by students belonging to the Romanian nomenklatura, Vladimir Tismăneanu was in the same class as Nicu Ceauşescu, son of communist leader Nicolae Ceauşescu, as well as the children of Leonte Răutu, Nicolae Doicaru and Silviu Brucan.[2]
He graduated as a valedictorian[3] from the University of Bucharest's Faculty of Sociology in 1974, and received his Ph.D. from the same institution in 1980, presenting the thesis "The Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School and Contemporary Left-Wing Radicalism" (Teoria Critică a Şcolii de la Frankfurt şi radicalismul de stînga contemporan).[3] During the period, he became a vice-president of the "Communist Student Association" belonging to the Union of Communist Youth, and authored several articles supporting the communist regime and the rule of Nicolae Ceausescu.[4][5]
Between 1974 and 1981, Tismăneanu worked as a sociologist, employed by the Urban Sociology Department of the Institute for Designing Typified Buildings in Bucharest.[3] He was allegedly not given approval to hold an academic position.[3][6]
In September 1981, while on a tourist trip to Spain, he didn't return to Romania.[6][7] He left for Venezuela, before ultimately settling in the United States in 1982.[3][6][7].
He lived first in Philadelphia, where he was employed by the Foreign Policy Research Institute (1983-1990), while teaching at the University of Pennsylvania (1985-1990).[3] At the time, he began contributing comments on local politics to Radio Free Europe and Voice of America,[3][6][7] beginning with an analysis of the "dynastic socialism" in Romania, centered on the political career of Nicu Ceauşescu.[6][7] In 1990, Tismăneanu received a professorship at the University of Maryland, College Park and moved to Washington, D.C.[3] Since the Romanian Revolution of 1989, he has been visiting his native country on a regular basis.
He is married to Mary Frances Sladek, and has fathered a son, Adam.[3]
Controversy
The Marxist-Leninist texts authored by Tismăneanu and his position as propaganda lecturer for the Union of Communist Youth are the topic of a major controversy, in light of his Presidential Commission appointment.
According to an article by Victor Gaetan, a Romanian-American businessman, published in The Washington Post,[8][9] Tismăneanu's doctoral thesis is "a vitriolic sermon against Western values".[8] University of Bucharest professor Daniel Barbu considers that Tismăneanu was "a liberal student of Euro-Marxism".[10]
Among the critics of Tismăneanu's early activities stands the philosopher Gabriel Liiceanu, who stated that they were incompatible with the moral status required from a leader of the Commission.[5] However, Liiceanu endorsed the incrimination of Communist regime and eventually the report itself,[11][12][13] engaging in a public debate with Cristian Tudor Popescu and Octavian Paler over its implications.[13]
Tom Gallagher, a Professor of Ethnic Conflict and Peace at the University of Bradford and author of influential works on Romanian politics authored a series of articles critical of Tismăneanu's involvement in local Romanian issues in the post-1989 era, and especially of his relations with former President Ion Iliescu (one of the leaders of the Social Democratic Party, PSD).[14][15][16] According to Gallagher, Tismăneanu "was useful to Iliescu in 2004 because the then President recognised the type of figure he was beneath the western reformist image he has cultivated",[17] Gallagher argued that Tismăneanu's book of interviews with Iliescu, Marele Şoc, "was ready to depict Ion Iliescu as an enlightened leader who, despite some flaws, had been instrumental in consolidating Romanian democracy", and that the volume, which he called "one of the strangest books to emerge from the Romanian transition", did not include, to Iliescu's advantage, any mentions of the controversial aspects of his presidency "any serious enquiries about the mineriade, the manipulation of nationalism, the denigration of the historic parties [the National Peasants' Party and the National Liberal Party], civic movements and the monarchy, the explosion of corruption, or indeed the continuing political influence and fabulous wealth of the heirs of the pre-1989 intelligence service."[18] Gallagher expressed further criticism on Tismăneanu, writing that "he wishes to build up a vast patron-client network in contemporary history and political science not dissimilar to what the PSD did in those areas where it desired control".[17]
Referring to Tismăneanu's books, Tom Gallagher also wrote: "But what about the role of the Securitate? In his books, [Tismăneanu] has never been especially interested in their role. Much of the time, he has seemed far more concerned with creating a psycho-biography of the life and times of his illegalist[19] family in order to overcome the long lasting shock of having been cast into the wilderness for over twenty years when his family fell from grace under Gheorghiu-Dej."[18]
When asked about the nomination of Tismăneanu as chair of the Presidential Commission, personalities like Lech Wałęsa and Vladimir Bukovsky indicated that they did not know who he was.[20][21]
In 2006 and early 2007, Ziua newspaper repeatedly published accusatory claims that Tismăneanu had left with support from the Securitate, that he had settled abroad with assistance from the Communist Party of Venezuela, and that, after escaping communist censorship, he continued to publish materials supporting official communist tenets.[22][7] Tismăneanu has rejected all allegations, indicating that they contradicted data present in, among others, files kept on him by the Securitate and the official conclusion reached by the National Council for the Study of Securitate Archives (CNSAS).[6][7] Soon afterwards, Ziua's editor in chief, Sorin Roşca-Stănescu, issued a formal apology for those particular claims (while expressing further criticism of various aspects of Tismăneanu's biography).[23]
Based on data from his file, Tismăneanu also specified that he was the object of constant Securitate surveillance after his departure, that his mother was subject to pressures,[6][7] and that derogatory comments on him, including antisemitic arguments,[6][7] were gathered from various informants and agents.[6][7] He made mention of the fact that, according to the documents (the last of which were allegedly compiled in April 1990), the post-Revolution Foreign Intelligence Directorate had continued to monitor him.[7] Tismăneanu also indicated his belief that the author of a denunciation note, who used the name "Costin" and recommended himself as a Faculty of Sociology professor, was the same person who, after 1989, had sent a letter to his University of Maryland employer, in which he had called attention to the communist activities of Leonte Tismăneanu (according to Vladimir Tismăneanu, the letter was dismissed as "abject" and irrelevant by its recipient).[6]
In January 2007, Ziua published in facsimile a document presented as part of a separate file kept on Tismăneanu by the Counter-Espionage unit of the Securitate, dated 1987.[24] According to this document, Tismăneanu was well appreciated for his professional and Romanian Communist Party work prior to 1981, and had held the position of lecturer on the Propaganda Commission of the Communist Party Municipal Committee for Bucharest.[24] The same document also contradicts Tismăneanu's indication that he had not been allowed to travel to the West prior to 1981, by stating that he had been approved tourist visas for both the Eastern Bloc and "capitalist states".[24] The facsimile was accompanied by an open letter containing similar accusatory claims made by Dan Mureşan, a political consultant for the United States Republican Party,[unreliable source?] and relying on the assertion that Tismăneanu had settled in the United States only after 1985.[24]
An extended polemic was sparked between the Tismăneanu Commission and the dissident writer Paul Goma. Goma, who initially accepted an invitation to become a Commission member, issued by Tismăneanu on behalf of the Commission,[25] was excluded shortly after by Tismăneanu himself.[26] According to Tismăneanu, this happened only after Goma engaged in and publicized personal attacks, calling Tismăneanu "a Bolshevik offspring",[7] based on his family history; Goma denied having said these exact words, but later confirmed that he supported such views.[27]
Tismăneanu invited on the Commission's panel his collaborator Sorin Antohi, a confirmed former collaborator of the Communist regime's Securitate, and known to have falsified his academic credentials. Antohi resigned in September 2006.[28] As of February 2007, Antohi is still an editor for the scientific journal East European Politics and Societies, where Tismăneanu is chair of the Editorial board.
Several commentators have argued that the negative reception of the report was partly due to the investigation's implications, as the latter's overall condemnation of the Communist regime has opened the road for further debates regarding the links between various contemporary politicians and the former Communist structures[29][9][12][30] (examples cited include the Social Democratic Party's Ion Iliescu,[29][30] former President of Romania, and Adrian Păunescu,[30] as well as Greater Romania Party leader Corneliu Vadim Tudor[29] and Conservative Party leader Dan Voiculescu, owner of both Jurnalul Naţional and Antena 1).[9]
Works
Originally published in Romanian
- Noua Stîngă şi şcoala de la Frankfurt (Editura Politică, 1976)
- Teoria Critică a Şcolii de la Frankfurt şi radicalismul de stînga contemporan (Ph.D. thesis, 1980)
- Mic dicţionar social-politic pentru tineret (co-author, under the direction of Virgil Măgureanu; Editura Politică, 1981)
- Condamnaţi la fericire. Experimentul comunist în România (Grup de edituri ale Fundaţiei EXO, 1991)
- Fantoma lui Gheorghiu-Dej (Editura Univers, 1995)
- Balul mascat. Un dialog cu Mircea Mihăieş (dialogue with Mircea Mihăieş; Polirom, 1996)
- Spectrele Europei Centrale (Polirom, 2001)
- Ghilotina de scrum (Polirom, 2002)
- Scrisori din Washington (Polirom, 2002)
- Marele şoc din finalul unui secol scurt. Ion Iliescu în dialog cu Vladimir Tismăneanu (dialogue with Ion Iliescu; Editura Enciclopedică, Bucureşti, 2004)
- Schelete in dulap (dialogue with Mircea Mihăieş; Polirom, 2004)
- Scopul şi mijloacele: Eseuri despre ideologie, tiranie şi mit (Editura Curtea Veche, 2004)
- Anul revoluţionar 1956: revolta minţilor şi sfîrşitulul mitului comunist (Editura Curtea Veche, 2006)
- Democraţie şi memorie (Editura Curtea Veche, 2006)
Originally published in English
- The Crisis of Marxist Ideology in Eastern Europe: The Poverty of Utopia (Routledge, 1988)
- Latin American Revolutionaries: Groups, Goals, Methods (with Michael Radu; Potomac Books, 1990)
- In Search of Civil Society (Routledge, 1990)
- Debates on the Future of Communism (with Judith Shapiro; Palgrave Macmillan, 1991)
- Uprooting Leninism, Cultivating Liberty (with Patrick Clawson; University Press of America, 1992)
- Reinventing Politics: Eastern Europe from Stalin to Havel (Free Press, 1994)
- Political Culture and Civil Society in Russia and the New States of Eurasia (M. E. Sharpe, 1995)
- Fantasies of Salvation: Democracy, Nationalism and Myth in Post-Communist Europe (Princeton University Press, 1998)
- The Revolutions of 1989 (Re-Writing Histories) (Routledge, 1999)
- Between Past and Future: The Revolutions of 1989 and Their Aftermath (with Sorin Antohi; Central European University Press, 2000)
- Stalinism for All Seasons: A Political History of Romanian Communism (University of California Press, 2003)
Bilingual
- Vecinii lui Franz Kafka. Romanul unei nevroze/The Neighbors of Franz Kafka. The Novel of a Neurosis (with Mircea Mihăieş; Polirom, 1998)
Other
Vladimir Tismăneanu has authored the screenplay for Dinu Tănase's documentary film Condamnaţi la fericire ("Condemned to Happiness"), released in 1992. With Octavian Şerban, he has also authored a series about Communist Romania, which was showcased by the Romanian Television Company.[3]
References
- ^ Template:Ro icon Tismăneanu interviewed by Emilia Chiscop, 2005
- ^ Template:Ro icon Tismăneanu, "Amintiri din copilărie: Liceul 24 şi destinul nomenclaturii", in Almanahul Caţavencu 2002
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Template:Ro icon Profile at the Romanian Presidency site
- ^ Template:Ro icon Gabriela Antoniu, "Tinereţe revoluţionară - Tismăneanu, întâiul comunist al ţării", in Jurnalul Naţional, December 20, 2006
- ^ a b Template:Ro icon Sorin Lavric, "Cum se investighează crimele comunismului la români", in Adevărul Literar şi Artistic, October 4, 2006
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Template:Ro icon Dan Tapalagă, "Turnat de prieteni, demonizat de Securitate: Vladimir Tismăneanu", in Cotidianul, July 24, 2006
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Tismăneanu, in Template:Ro icon Armand Gosu, "N-am avut de-a face cu Securitatea", in 22, nr.849, June 2006
- ^ a b Victor Gaetan, "Vinegar on Old, Open Wounds", in The Washington Post, August 26, 2006
- ^ a b c Template:Ro icon Teodora Georgescu, "Felix, prezentat Americii", in Curentul, July 31, 2006
- ^ Daniel Barbu, Political Science in Romania, Country Report 1, at the Knowledge Base Social Sciences in Eastern Europe
- ^ Template:Ro icon Şerban Orescu, "De ce este nevoie de un apel la memorie?", in Ziua, March 11, 2006
- ^ a b Template:Ro icon Sabina Fati, "Politicienii, intelectualii şi condamnarea comunismului", in Observator Cultural
- ^ a b Template:Ro icon Cristian Tudor Popescu, Cuvântul care naşte gândul, hosted by ProTV
- ^ Template:Ro icon Tom Gallagher, "Standardele judecăţii - altele pentru intelectuali?", in România Liberă, September 15, 2006
- ^ Template:Ro icon Tom Gallagher, "Politolog fără bisericuţe", in România Liberă, October 13, 2006
- ^ Template:Ro icon Tom Gallagher, "Netulburat de propria-i mistificare", in România Liberă, November 01, 2006
- ^ a b Tom Gallagher, "A historian indispensable for two Romanian presidents (II)", in Ziua, April 15, 2006
- ^ a b Tom Gallagher, "A historian indispensable for two Romanian presidents (I)", in Ziua, April 14, 2006
- ^ In this context, the term refers to committed Communist Party members of the interwar period, when the group had been outlawed.
- ^ Template:Ro icon "Interview with Lech Walesa", in Ziua, December 20, 2006
- ^ "Interview with Vladimir Bukovski", in Ziua, May 15, 2006
- ^ Template:Ro icon Vladimir Alexe, "Agentul Volodea", in Ziua, May 13, 2006
- ^ Template:Ro icon Sorin Roşca-Stănescu, "Vladimir Tismăneanu, punct şi de la căpat", in Ziua, June 22, 2006 (English-language version: "Vladimir Tismaneanu: end and beginning" [sic])
- ^ a b c d Template:Ro icon Vladimir Alexe, "Documentul «fugii» lui Tismăneanu"; Dan Mureşan, "Unde a fost Tismăneanu patru ani, până a ajuns în SUA?", in Ziua, January 23, 2003. The facsimile and Dan Mureşan's letter are available as links on the article page
- ^ Template:Ro icon Silviu Mihai, "Goma: 'Eu nu am amănunte de studiat'", in Cotidianul, April 11, 2006
- ^ Goma, in Template:Ro icon Adrian Popescu, "Paul Goma îi desfiinţează pe membrii "Comisiei Tismăneanu" de cercetare a ororilor comunismului din România", in Gândul, May 9, 2006
- ^ Template:Ro icon Paul Goma, Despre Vladimir Tismăneanu - şi nu numai - în 11 puncte
- ^ Template:Ro icon Dana Carbelea, "Antohi nu mai e în Comisia Tismăneanu", in Curentul, September 13, 2006
- ^ a b c Template:Ro icon Dana Betlevy, "România condamnă în mod oficial comunismul", in The Epoch Times - Romanian edition, December 18, 2006
- ^ a b c Template:Ro icon Lica Manolache, "Efectul Comisiei Tismăneanu", in Evenimentul Zilei, December 17, 2006
External links
- Vladimir Tismaneanu, home page at the University of Maryland
- Center for the Study of Post-Communist Societies
- Condamnaţi la fericire at the British Film Institute site
- Template:Ro icon The final report of the Presidential Commission for the Study of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania