They Come to Honor a Dead Dictator

Crunching over a snowy path to the grave of former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, children, former friends and retirees said Saturday that it was wrong to kill the late ruler on Christmas Day 10 years ago.

At first light, 43-year-old Dinel Staicu arrived at the Ghencea military cemetery in southwest Bucharest and placed a “Communist Almanac” on what is thought to be Ceausescu’s grave.

“He died a great hero,” said Staicu, from the southern city of Craiova. “ 1/8His death 3/8 was not an act of justice.”

Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, were executed, and while no notice has been given of where they are buried, most believe the site is in the Ghencea cemetery.

Ten years after his execution, some Romanians are asking whether it was morally right to kill their former leader. With poverty widespread and distrust in the politicians who rule the country, some hanker for the security of a dictatorship.