Mihnea Berindei: un luptător pentru drepturile omului și democrație (dezbatere și lansare volum)
Mihnea Berindei: A Fighter for Human Rights and Democracy (Debate and book launch)

Summary/Abstract: Mihnea Berindei (1948-2016) was a highly respected historian with diverse scholarly interests, ranging from Turkish-Ottoman history to recent history. He was also a prominent figure of the Romanian exile in the late 1970s and 1980s, being totally committed to the struggle for protecting human rights. After the fall of totalitarian regimes, he became involved in rebuilding a democratic state and society in Romania, but also in the Republic of Moldova, Bulgaria, Albania, Kosovo, etc. During his career, Mihnea Berindei built up an impressive archive relating to both his professional and civic concerns. This archive was donated, in 2013 and especially in 2017, to the Iași branch of the National Archives of Romania, where a special collection bearing the name of its creator was established. It should be noted that, in terms of size and content, this is undoubtedly one of the most valuable collections assembled by the activists involved in the dynamics of the Romanian democratic exile. Also, most of his library was transferred to the “A. D. Xenopol” Institute of History in Iași, where it was integrated into the library of this important research center, under the guise of a separate, individualized collection. Bringing these collections together and their transfer to Iași was made possible due to the involvement of Mihnea Berindei’s wife, Catherine Berindei, and his close friends Dorin Dobrincu and Armand Goșu, with the support of several individuals and certain private and public institutions and organizations. The archive was catalogued and processed according to rigorous professional standards, resulting in an excellent working guide, published as Colecția Mihnea Berindei. Inventar arhivistic [The Mihnea Berindei Collection. Archival Inventory], in a special Supplement (2022) to the journal “Archiva Moldaviae”. It was compiled by Cătălin Botoșineanu, with Mihai Chiper’s editorial assistance. The event, organized by the Group for Social Dialogue, the Romanian Society for Historical Studies, the National Archives – Iași Branch, the “A. D. Xenopol” Institute of History in Iași, and the “Revista 22”, took place at the GSD headquarters on January 26, 2024. Gabriela Adameșteanu, Vlad Alexandrescu, Gabriel Andreescu, Cătălin Botoșineanu, Magda Cârneci, Mihai Chiper, Andrei Cornea, Dorin Dobrincu, Radu Filipescu, Armand Goșu, Nicolae Manolescu, Adrian Niculescu, Vasile Popovici, and Cristian Preda were among the speakers at the event. Most of the speakers had known Mihnea Berindei personally, having worked together with him on various civic or professional projects between 1989 and 2016, while some of them were very close to him. From the memories shared by those who attended the event, a distinct and moving image of Mihnea Berindei’s human profile emerged, coupled with a portrait of an accomplished and polished professional endowed with a rather unique civic conscience, seldom to be found in the context of the troubled times he lived through. The data and recollections resulting from the debate and book launch are extremely useful for reconstructing Mihnea Berindei’s life trajectory. These include relevant details about his career as a historian, both as an Ottomanist and as a historian of the recent period. His initiatives and efforts to defend Romanian dissidents subject to communist repression, his wide-ranging connections within the cultural and academic circles, in the mass media, and in the political realm, both on the all-European level and in France, in particular, allowed him to be extremely effective in his actions aiming to promote democracy and human rights, both before and after 1989. These efforts greatly contributed to the cause of freedom and human rights in Romania, but also beyond his native country. Besides Mihnea Berindei’s concrete actions, which are probably still insufficiently known, what remains essential – as many speakers have pointed out – is the image of a kind, modest, and empathetic person, devoted to several causes promoting the common good, particularly to supporting freedom, human rights, and democracy.

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