Gheorghe Briceag
Encyclopedia
Gheorghe Briceag was a Moldova
n human rights activist notable for his opposition to Soviet
rule. In the 1940s, Briceag was given a ten-year sentence in the gulag
for distributing anti-communist flyers; he was forced to work in coal mines for the length of his sentence. His prisoner number was "P169". After his release, he was sentenced to seven more years of exile. He later became a symbol of resistance to Soviet occupation of Moldova.
In 2004, Briceag won the Homo Homini Award
of the Czech
NGO People in Need
, which recognizes "an individual who is deserving of significant recognition due to their promotion of human rights, democracy and non-violent solutions to political conflicts". The award citation described him as "a life-long activist for the defense of human rights and the defense of other former Gulag prisoners in Moldova". The following year, he served on the Rudolph Vrba Jury for People in Need's One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival
, serving with fellow Homo Homini-winner Ales Bialacki.
The same year, Briceag created controversy by opposing the re-installation of a Lenin statue in his hometown of Bălţi
. Briceag threatened to burn the statue down personally if it were completed. The Supreme Court of Moldova ultimately overruled the Bălţi City Council's decision to allow the statute.
Briceag also worked with Amnesty International
and served as the Bălţi
coordinator of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights
.
Briceag was noted for his large "Solzhenitsyn-style" beard. A few months before his death, he pledged to shave it if Moldova united with Romania, a move Moldova's communist party opposed. He publicly requested that his body be donated to Chişinău
's Nicolae Testemiţanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy
following his death.
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
n human rights activist notable for his opposition to Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
rule. In the 1940s, Briceag was given a ten-year sentence in the gulag
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
for distributing anti-communist flyers; he was forced to work in coal mines for the length of his sentence. His prisoner number was "P169". After his release, he was sentenced to seven more years of exile. He later became a symbol of resistance to Soviet occupation of Moldova.
In 2004, Briceag won the Homo Homini Award
Homo Homini Award
The Homo Homini Award is given annually by the Czech human rights organization People in Need to "an individual in recognition of a dedication to the promotion of human rights, democracy and non-violent solutions to political conflicts"...
of the Czech
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
NGO People in Need
People In Need (Czech Republic)
People in Need is a Czech nonprofit, non-governmental organization that implements humanitarian relief and long term development projects in crisis regions all over the world, while working to defend human rights and democratic freedom....
, which recognizes "an individual who is deserving of significant recognition due to their promotion of human rights, democracy and non-violent solutions to political conflicts". The award citation described him as "a life-long activist for the defense of human rights and the defense of other former Gulag prisoners in Moldova". The following year, he served on the Rudolph Vrba Jury for People in Need's One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival
One World Film Festival
One World is the biggest human rights film festival in the world, held annually in Prague and other cities of the Czech Republic. Established in 1999 by the Czech NGO People in Need, the presents over 100 documentary films during nine days in Spring from around the world...
, serving with fellow Homo Homini-winner Ales Bialacki.
The same year, Briceag created controversy by opposing the re-installation of a Lenin statue in his hometown of Bălţi
Balti
Balti can refer to:* Balti language, a language spoken in Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir* Balti people, Muslims of Ladakhi/Tibetan origin from Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir...
. Briceag threatened to burn the statue down personally if it were completed. The Supreme Court of Moldova ultimately overruled the Bălţi City Council's decision to allow the statute.
Briceag also worked with Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
and served as the Bălţi
Balti
Balti can refer to:* Balti language, a language spoken in Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir* Balti people, Muslims of Ladakhi/Tibetan origin from Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir...
coordinator of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights
Helsinki Committee for Human Rights
The Helsinki Committees for Human Rights exist in many European countries as volunteer, non-profit organizations devoted to human rights and presumably named after the Helsinki Accords...
.
Briceag was noted for his large "Solzhenitsyn-style" beard. A few months before his death, he pledged to shave it if Moldova united with Romania, a move Moldova's communist party opposed. He publicly requested that his body be donated to Chişinău
Chisinau
Chișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
's Nicolae Testemiţanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy
Nicolae Testemiţanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy
Nicolae Testemițanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy is a university located in Chișinău, Moldova. The institution began its activity in 1945. It is named after Nicolae Testemițanu....
following his death.