[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 38 (Thursday, March 30, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1976-S1977]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         IN MEMORY OF ION RATIU

 Mr. ROTH. Mr. President, I rise today to honor the life and 
accomplishments of Ion Ratiu of Romania who passed away on the 16th of 
January.
  I had the honor of developing a close friendship with Ion. He was an 
outstanding politician, a very successful businessman, a philanthropist 
and, above all, a freedom fighter and a leader devoted to deepening 
relations between Romania and the United States.
  Born in Romania at the end of World War II, Ion Ratiu spent a good 
part of his life in the United Kingdom and the United States. Here in 
Washington he developed many friendships and many of us have benefited 
from the warm hospitality of his Georgetown home.
  Those of us who had the pleasure of his friendship can only have been 
impressed by the tremendous personal energy he directed against the 
dictatorship that dominated his homeland until the Velvet Revolutions 
of 1989. Ion was himself an incarnation of many elements of democracy's 
powerful arsenal. He was a journalist reporting on Romania's tragedy. 
He was a protector and rescuer of its dissidents. He was the founder of 
the ``Free Romania Movement.'' He was the unyielding proponent of human 
rights in Romania.
  In addition to tearing down Communism and building democracy in 
Romania, Ion Ratiu was also one who contributed to the foundation of 
deeper ties and links between Romania and the West, particularly the 
United States.
  In London he led the British-Romanian Association for 20 years, and 
with his wife and sons established the Romanian Cultural Center. Here 
in Washington, Ion endowed the Ion Ratiu Chair at Georgetown 
University, a lighthouse for Romanian-American relations.
  After the Romanian Revolution, Ion Ratiu was elected a member of 
national Parliament in Bucharest. He even was a strong contender for 
the Romanian presidency. Ion benefited from the respect of all his 
colleagues in the Romanian Parliament. He was appreciated for his 
commitment to democracy and unyielding efforts to earn for his country 
membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It was no 
surprise for me that Ion, a member of the opposition, led his 
parliament's delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
  The Romanian nation is mourning and so are Ion Ratiu's friends in the 
United States and the United Kingdom.

[[Page S1977]]

We will remember his for the warm enthusiasm and gentle manners he 
brought to every event. We will miss his soft and unique sense of 
humor.
  And, we will always be grateful to him for keeping the torch of 
liberty, democracy, and freedom alive and vibrant. Ion always stayed 
true to his principles and beliefs and to his love for Romania.
  Ion Ratiu is truly one of the heroes of not only Romania, but also 
the relationship between Romania and the United States.

                          ____________________