3. Declarations of those who were investigated in a abusive way by the authorities: 41-55

Undersigned O. M., with residence in Bucharest, want to present the following situation on which I forcedly participated.

In the day of march 18th 2004, around 9 oclock, I was in an apartment on Bonea Constantin street,no. 26, when I saw from the window of the door of the room where I was, several masked gendarmes who were beating my colleague Nicu Varbanescu. Few minutes later I was threatened with guns by the covered gendarmes that also had knives and huge hammers with them. They shouted at me: Dont move! Stay here! Down! With the head downwards and hands on the back of your head! paralysing me  of panic and fear. Similarly, if I asked any explanation they shouted Shut up!, amplifying the terror state they created.

I specify that they did not introduce themselves nor an official legitimation (the prosecutor introduced himself only 10 hours later, when they brought us to the Parchet(Prosecuting Magistracy)), as well the search warrant. Furthermore, they did not explain the reason of their being there and did not let me to express my wish to be assisted by a lawyer. Being poorly dressed, they did not allow me to get dressed (even if I asked it repeatedly and intensively) until I started to shake because of the cold.

At the same time, the prosecutor who was leading their action (Vlad Mihai) threatened in different ways: Its really serious, girls! Be careful what you say! I dont think we have enough space for arresting all of you!, in this way creating a situation of danger and continuous stress.

I mention that after some time the gendarmes started to speak to us trying to make us speak: did you eat your tongue?; at one point they said they were expecting to find in the building others covered referring to the fact that they had been warned they will find violent and armed people, etc. Lots of objects from the house have been taken away without being recorded.

They did not tell me the reason why I was taken away from the building and loaded in the van, and also why they were bringing me to the Parchet(Prosecuting Magistracy) (I did not know if I was under arrest or how long time this situation is going to take). I went in a state of fear and panick.

At Parchet(Prosecuting Magistracy) I was forced to make a declaration without heving the right to be assisted by a lawyer, even if I asked for this. Making it clear, I did not write personally the declaration but the questionner being the one who elaborated it. Many words could give birth to dubious interpretations, for this I did not agree the fact I could not have a lawyer.

From my point of view, I believe there was a flagrant non respect of human rights, especially the right to defense.

 

I, O. V., having home address in Iaşi hereby declare:

In the morning of  the 18th of March 26, 2004 I was sleeping in a house on 64 Veseliei Street.

I was abruptly woken up by the terrified shouting of my room-mate and also by shakings (of the house). At first, I thought there was an earthquake, but I was terribly wrong.

I got off the bed, sleepy and horrified right next to the door where, together with my room-mate we got hurt by the hard knockings and banging given to the door by the guys who were kicking it!!

We were dragged down with a gun to the head and being threatened that we were going to be shot at any sudden move.

At that point I realized that we were set up. We were taken in a different room and forced to keep the hands behind the head, lying on the floor, with faces downwards. Here I found my other friends who were also threatened with guns.

A short while after a prosecutor from the“Organized Crime” Dept. arrived brought a syringe and told the guys who were filming to record that.

He put the syringe on a shelf and they told us not to move and threatened us with a gun so we would be filmed in that situation.

This prosecutor had a very vulgar and aggressive way of speaking and  by putting that syringe on the shelf he tried in a very abjectly to mislead the public and made it believe that we used it for drugs.

I asked why they were doing this, what we were accused of, what was going on, and we requested a lawyer. We were not answered anything clear, concrete, yet we were still threatened with the guns. It was a nightmare!!

At one moment I got very scared and started to shake very badly. One of the guards cruelly asked me why was I shaking and he took my arm to see if I was doped.

After some hours of nightmare they took us to the prosecutor’s office where we were detained for a few hours. I didn’t know what we were “accused” of, but we found out soon… possession and traffic of drugs, weapons, prostitution, human beings, etcetera etcetera…all lies!! Where are the human rights?
Date: 19.03.2004

 

The undersigned O. P., resident in the city Avrig, I declare that: being on 18.03.2004, at 9 o’clock , in the building on Peleaga street no. 5, I was awaken from sleep because of the slam of the door and a man with mask on his face yelling at me to wake up, to put my hands to the back and not to say a word, without showing me the mandate or any other official paper which shows the reason of this actions.
After I stayed for 5-6 minutes with my hands to the back, and with the weapon he pointing at me, he yelled to me to close the phone and to come down from my room which was at the second floor of the building.
During the time I was going down the stairs, they recorded me on a tape disconsidering my will. I was taken to another room together with other 14 girls, where I was in captivity for 10 hours. During those 10 hours I asked for food and they told me that I was not going to die from hunger because they have not eaten since 3.00 o’clock. They opened the door and the window of the room keeping us in the blast of wind. Asked to close the window they said it smelled badly and they could not breathe. I was in pajamas, and they wouldn’t let me dress up.
During those 10 hours I passed through many ugly states physically, psychically and medically. During the time of sequestration, policemen  and the prosecutor together with a witness from that building entered the room taking personal and material goods.
They took from me money, mobile phones (2), notebooks with all kind of personal information, phone cards romtelecom and connex go, my passport, CDs, audio cassettes, photos, Kodak films without any proceedings for the money they took.

After 10 hours we were forced to go to the Prosecutor’s Office by a police car. I was  held for 4-5 hours in the prosecutor’s office; they told us that we would stay there for a long time.
Data : 19.03.2004

The undersigned O. A., bachelor of Philology, translator by trade, declares the following:

I’ve been practicing yoga within M.I.S.A. for 12 years. With this yoga practice I’ve improved a lot my health and my mental power of concentration.

In all these years, the abuses and the violent deeds of the Romanian authorities against M.I.S.A. have represented for me and for many other yogi friends of mine an almost permanent source of terror. One could even write a whole book only with the lies and calumnies that the press and the television have stated about M.I.S.A. and the yoga teacher, Mr. Gregorian Bivolaru. I CANNOT BEAR IT ANYMORE!

On the 18th of March 2004, the violence of the Romanian Gendarmerie was extreme. My yogi colleagues were treated like terrorists, threatened death, forced to give false statements, beaten and mocked by the order forces which should actually defend them! It’s even worse than in Ceauşescu’s day, because, furthermore, the press and the television lie shamelessly, accusing us of: drug use and trade (the yogis actually avoid even alcohol…), prostitution, arms trade and much more, without having brought any proof so far.

I beg you to help us, because IN ROMANIA THE COMUNISM IS STILL WORKING!!!
March 31st 2004

 

My name is O. F. and I attend the yoga courses organised by MISA. I have to declare that I’m deeply revolted by the abusive actions of the Romanian authorities against MISA.

These smear compaigns and especially the last one through mass-media affects seriously all my relationships cause the image created by mass-media is that MISA is some sort of terorist organisation.

This image degrades my relationships with my family, with my friends and with my neighbours and daily I am confronted with their reactions of suspiciousness, anger and rejection.

The irresponsible statements of mass-media and abusive actions of Romanian police against some practitioners of yoga cause me moral injuries. 

I consider that these violence actions against a very peaceful organisation who promote yoga in Romanian society are a flagrant breach of the human rights.

Data: 24.03.2004

 

The undersigned P. A. located in Otesani, I declare the following:

At the date 18.03.04. I was in the apartment situated in the Telita street nr.122 B sc. 2 ground floor ap.1. At 9 AM I heard the doorbell ringing repeatedly. I was not opening the door because the owner was not at home. The door was broke by the police forces. They have their faces covered and they entered by force in the room were I was at that moment. They were screaming “ With your face down on the sheet. Nobody moves!” I was terrified; the police forces were armed with machine guns ant their faces were covered.

I believed for a few minutes that I was the victim of a terrorist attack. After 2-3 minutes in the room came the prosecutor Serbanoiu who presented himself as a prosecutor. He said that is supported by police forces to make a searching and requested our names (I and the other girls that were present in the apartment). Before I introduce myself I have requested to see the document that authorize the action and the documents of the prosecutor.

At that moment I found out that his name was Serbanoiu and that he is a prosecutor. He has not showed me the searching mandate and he did not tell why they are searching the house. I repeatedly ask this. I have told him that I believed that the action is a terrorist attack ant that I want to see searching mandate because a police badge can be fake. The prosecutor has an intimidating attitude he screamed very loud at me and refused to present the searching mandate. He does not tell me the searching reason. The next moment he brought a man dressed like a civilian who has a camera. The person gets very close to me with an intimidating attitude. He asked me to present myself in front of the camera.

I have told my name in front of the camera and I have requested that the tape not to be presented at the television. Because of the emotion I needed some water. I asked gently to bring me a bottle of water from the next door. The Policeman told me to wait. After ten minutes of waiting he told me the same thing. I have insisted and somebody brought me water from the other room. Because I repeatedly gently asked I obtained the permission to go to the bathroom in the presence of a policewomen to satisfy physiological needs. I have requested repeatedly to call the owner of the apartment and to call a lawyer. The answer was the same all the time “No!”

That morning 18/03/04 I was supposed to go to my job but I have not succeeded to do that because I was retained in the apartment. I requested to phone to my job to let them know that I was going to skip the day but I was not permitted to do that. From the police forces discussions I understood that they believed that the reason of my presence in the apartment is prostitution. At a certain moment they were approximating the earnings made by prostitution in the apartment. After I have presented myself ant told them my profession and where I was working they were very surprised and they asked me repeatedly “ What the hell you are doing here?” The same thing was asked the other girls after they said were they are working and their profession. After about 5 hours from the moment of the police force intervention in the apartment the prosecutor Serbanoiu has informed me that I must go to Police. I was waiting about 3-4 hours standing to make a declaration. After that I was brought at the apartment with the Police forces car.

Resulting from the discussion with the police forces they manifested even simphaty for us and they advised us to give up Yoga courses just to be protected in the future.
19.03.2004

 

The undersigned P. N., resident in Buzau, Romania, employee of the company S.C. Extaz SRL as a secretary, I state the following: in 18.03.2004, at around 9.00 AM, while I was at the company’s office, actually at the toilet, I heared punches in the door. I had no chance to get up from the toilet when I saw troops of police soldiers with masks and weapons opening suddenly the door of the bathroom. I raised from the toilet without the permission to rise my panties, and with my trousers down, they forced me to go into one of the offices in the firm. During all this time I was filmed by the cameraman which accompanied the prosecutor, even if I insisted very much not to be filmed in this way. They forced me to lay down on the floor, with my hands to the back, not allowing me to rise my panties and taking shoots further on.

Beside me, already lying down was the driver of the company Ilie Marian, who was in the firm as well. They asked me where the mobile phones are and they took them immediately and turn them off. Only after this, they allowed me to raise my trousers and get up.

To my insistence, the man who presented himself to be the prosecutor Neagu Tomita (without showing me any personal paper)showed me quickly a mandate of search. Even if they didn’t tell me a word about what they were looking in the firm and the reasons we are suspected for, they started the search.

The search was between 9.00 – 22.00, while I was not allowed to eat, and to  toilet I was permitted after many insistences.

At one moment, when they found a mobile phone in my bag, even if I already told the prosecutor about its existence, I was menaced  with beating by the prosecutor because I haven’t told him about it.

During the search they took from me the 2 mobile phones – one of them a nokia 6510 and one siemens – together with my personal watch BVLGARI, which I consider not necessary to be taken.

In the end of the search a proceeding was made in which I was mentioned as a witness and I was forced to sign it, I didn’t get any copy of this minute. I was forced to sign the boxes which contained the objects taken from the firm. They have already sealed them without letting me check their content.

At around 22.00 o’clock, me and the driver Ilie Marian, we were transported by a police car to the Prosecutor’s Office Bucharest. To the question why we were there, they answered that we had to make a statement as witnesses of the search.

When we reached the Prosecutor’s Office, after we had been waiting for 2 hours, they received us for audience. Even if they told me it would be a simple statement I have to write, the prosecutor that interrogated me was trying to pull out from me totally different kind of information. He wanted to associate my name with different kind of porno sites and video productions for adults.

Since I refused to make this kind of statements which were completely fake, the prosecutor threatened me that I would be arrested, that I will not leave the building of Prosecutor’s Office and he put his hand immediately on the phone to finalize his threatening. Even if I solicited many times my lawyer, they refused me this right.

Finally, I succeeded to make a statement which was in some way according to my will and I left the prosecutor’s office at around 2.00 AM.

My personal objects, which were retained abusively during the search, were not returned to me even at this moment.

I think all this leaves a big question mark for everybody regarding the applying and respecting the law in Romania.

19.03.2004

I , P. R., resident in Sibiu, declare the following :

In the morning of March 18,2004, about  8.45 a.m. ,I was in the house  from str. Peleaga nr.5, sector 5, Bucharest .I was with another girl in the room where I lived ,when there entered a troup of masked gendarmes with guns which they pointed at us .At my question : what was going on, as I was shocked by their appearance, they told me not to move and to lie down on my belly ,without showing me any warrant  which allowed them to enter by force and search the house.

They used tough words .I was taken out  of the room and  together with the other persons taken to a room on the ground floor. We were terrorized psychically by people who used dirty words and made vile remarks about us .I was filmed with a video camera without my consent , without being told why, as a “delinquent”.

They confiscated my personal goods in my absence  without giving me any document by which I would be able to take my things back after the so-called investigation .They confiscated my money,approximately 250$ without  putting down the numeric series of the banknotes.

They confiscated my personal mobile phone. hey also confiscated my books, compact discs, tapes, even pieces of lingerie (were they so important for the investigation?).I was  disregarded, offended, calumniated, umiliated. They made me get  into the police car ,as if I were an animal, without being told why I was  taken.

How  is it possible to treat  a human being in such an abusive , dictatorial ,brutal way? How is it possible  in an European country , in the year 2004 , to violate the elementary human rights? If I ask back my money ,my phone and my personal objects ( compact discs, tapes ,books, pieces of underwear) who will take away from me the pain and the shame of being treated as a “ criminal beast” (with a gun at my back) , without being accused of anything and without being shown any document  which  gave them  the right to enter by  force and search that house?

There existed  the shameful possibility of being  filmed by the TV channels and presented together with some prostitutes ,as being one of them .Who can erase and how an image publicly and agressively defamed? Who can take away the  pain of the people who love me and who,finding out about these so-called searches were worried for me ?

Freedom  and the right to answer back when accused of something are democratic principles which were not taken into consideration in this situation.

I was taken to the Prosecutor’s Office  and forced to give a declaration  without being present my personal lawyer and without knowing what I was accused of. Now ,at 24 hours after the event ,I feel deeply affected by all these acts of injustice.

I have not completely recovered  from  that shock. I risked having soiled my image as a human being,profession,etc.I  repeat, I am shocked and have no answer to my questions.

Data: 20.03.2004

 

I,  P. A., resident in Mun.Caracal, Bucharest, by  a group of gendarmes armed as if for a war, with bullet-proof vests and guns, things which generated  a state of  terror  and  a terrifying  mental  state.

They  threatened  me with guns, threw me  against  the floor, took  my  mobile  phone , my documents  and my  personal money . They  behaved as if I  would have been armed or   a ruffian  from  the streets. In those moments  I forgot  everything  about  being a citizen  of Romania , about having any  right  as  a human  being , because those “ beasts”  with masks  and  guns  terrified my soul, keeping me in  tension  for at least 10 hours , prisoner  in a room with foul air , together with other 14 or 15 girls .

At my normal questions: who they were ,what they were looking for and why  I  was  kept   like that , they mocked at me ,saying that I showed no respect ,and they became angry ,intimidating me.

After the terrifying hours which I spent like that without water or food ,there followed  other hours when they told me that there would come days on end spent at the Prosecutor’s Office and who knows when we would be allowed to return home.

Hours and hours in terror ,followed by other hours spent in the halls from the Prosecutors’Building, where I was asked to give a declaration which in fact was dictated  to me  by a  Police officer, Mr. Beicuş Cristian.

He  was not at all impressed by the fact that during that day  my personal things had been confiscated ,depriving me of the  human  right  of calling a lawyer , right stipulated by law, or by the prolonged psychic  torture , which they recorded with a video camera without my consent .

This Police officer manipulated me ,saying that if I do not give this statement I will appear suspect to the people from the Justice department .

He also looked very nervous ( he smoked  about 3 cigarettes in 10 minutes). He suggested that he wished me to write  about my preferences for holidays at the seaside or in the mountains ,implying that I would go in such places to prostitute myself . I am revolted and terrified by all these things.
Data :  March  19, 2004

 

I, the undersigned, S. G., with place of residence in Baia Mare, I declare:

In the morning of 18/03/2004, at 9:00 a.m., I was in the building situated on Peleaga Str., nr.5, district 5, Bucharest. I was in a room at the first floor, when I heard noises of striking in the door, shouts and people running over the corridors.

Somebody, (two masked gendarmes), forced the door kicking it with the feet. I went out of the room and I shouted at them that it was not necessary to destroy the doors as we have keys for unlocking them.

A gendarme has come to me and knocked me down, slapping me on the back of my head. In that moment, I started to shout that I wanted to speak with the person in charge with this action. Also I shouted that I wanted to call a lawyer and that it was not necessary to destroy anything because I had keys for the doors.

They came to me and asked me where I had the key. I answered them that the key was on the shelf and I needed only 30 seconds to go there and bring it. They did not allow me to bring the key and they broke the door.

During all this period of time I was repeatingly asking for a lawyer, pleading that I was entitled to one. I kept saying, again and again, that I have the right to a lawyer and I want to call one.

The two gendarmes came back to me. They started to hit me and told me ”if I  continue to say anything, they will smash me with their fists and they will also kill me”.

I kept shouting and for this reason they started to hit my feet with their boots, to slap my head and to jump on me with their boots. In a short break, they even threatened me with their guns-and this was only the first stage of this treatment. At a certain moment, they seized my head and struck it on the floor to make me remain silent. As a result of this brutal treatment, my left arm and my head were hurt.

Medical expert certified later the bruises I had as a result of this brutal treatment. Eventually, they took me in another room were the prosecutor who was in charge with this action entered.  For going to this room I was forced to walk with my trousers torn in the genital area, they didn’t allow me to change, and humiliated me forcing me to walk while the female witnesses were looking at me on the corridors.

So, I was forced to try to avoid their eyes and I don’t think that a search should be performed in such a humiliating way. I wasn’t allowed to call a lawyer who could have defended my rights.

I have to mention that when I asked for a lawyer, the gendarmes undertook threatening positions, telling me that I offend the prosecutor who represents the law there. I consider this a serious violation of the rights of the defendant. I was the witness that was appointed as a representative of the people in the residence for witnessing the drawing up of the official report. Between the objects that were confiscated, I have to mention mobile phones, money, audio and video tapes, CD’s, Cd-players, tapes with personal recordings, Yoga course identification cards, identity cards, official private papers, the test papers of the students of a colleague that was teaching, private pictures, etc. I have to underline that a serious breach of the law is the fact that the sum of money and their denomination and series were not written at all. Also, they did not properly register the confiscated items (telephones, appliances, video and audio tapes, etc.).

The gendarmes had a very scornful behaviour: mounted with their boots on the sheets over the beds, and insulted me saying words that implied I was guilty of extremely serious offences. Their attitude was due to the fact that I was practicing Yoga.

As a result of the fact that I was refused in a very threatening way the assistance of a lawyer, I was really afraid to request one.

I consider that my right to defense was violated and that I am socially discriminated as a result of the fact that I am practicing Yoga
Data :  22.03.2004                 

 

I, S. E., with home address in Focsani, hereby declare:

In the morning of March 18th 2004 at around 9-10 am I was together with some of my (girl) friends in an apartment on 122 Telita Street.

In that morning I witnessed a moment which left me with a trauma even today… I heard some terrifying rumble at door, which was soon blown away and some masked police officers broke into the house threatening us with their rifles.

We had to lie down to the floor with the hands behind the head. They took us completely unprepared; we just woke up by the noise, so we were in our lingerie.

We were filmed, against our will. When we tried to ask anything we were aggressively and abusively ordered to shut up which induced us a state of paralyzing fear…

I asked why were we searched but we were not given any explanation. We asked for the search warrant but they didn’t show us any.

We were sequestered in that room from 10 am till 10 pm. We were not allowed to get any food. We could use the necessities only together with a guard next to us.

Two girls were allowed to assist the search, but during all this time, while the search was taking place in one room, the rest of policemen were walking around in the house. They messed up the rooms, they moved the bed and then they said that they found it like that and they asked us why was it like that.

During the whole time they used a completely unorthodox, inappropriate language, treating us like prostitutes, telling us that they knew all too well what we were doing.

They took all our personal belongings: purses, cd’s, mobile phones, medicinal herbs.

They made a report and they forced us to sign it and they told us that if we don’t sign it
would be worse for us. After that we were taken to the prosecutor’s office.

There they told me to sign a declaration which was dictated to me so it looked like it was me who made it.
24.03.2004
                   

 

The undersigned S. G., resident in the Giurgiu district, I declare the following:

I practice yoga for 12 years within the Movement for Spiritual Integration in the Absolute, and during all this time I evidently succeeded in improving my state of health and in curing certain health problems thus harmonising my personality, my relationships with people around me.

Paradoxically, although this spiritual movement has as an aim to help people, for countless times there appeared in mass-media  articles containing groundless, defamatory accusations and shocking information also completely ungrounded.

And thus, in the beginning, at the place where I was working as an economist accountant, I could speak about the exceptional benefits of the practice of this millenary system of Oriental wisdom and about the naturalist methods of healing, gradually, because of these defamatory affirmations made in mass-media they began to look at me suspiciously. Although I was well-meaning, because of the repetition of certain completely ungrounded accusations against the yoga teacher Gregorian Bivolaru, people felt that they were negatively influenced. Thus, even my relationships with my parrents were affected, they believing that yoga is a sect.

The aggressive action which took place in March, this year, in some buildings in which were yoga students and all the abuses they made are breath-taking and have as an aim the inducing of terror, the split, the discrediting of this yoga course.

In all this period of time I watched the false, allarming news presented at the national televisions, through which was intended the manipulation of the public opinion.

These are the reasons for which I resorted to this way of protesting.

I firmly believe in your intervention in order to solve once and for all the serious problems of violation of the human rights in Romania.
Data :  26.03.2004

 

The undersigned S. A., with the dwelling place in Bucharest, I declare the following:

In the morning of the day of March 18, 2004, I was in a building placed on the Peleaga Street, No. 5. I was awakened with yells and shouts and threatened by persons wearing masks on their faces and guns, as if I had committed a crime.

I was forced to lay down facing the floor, hands at the back, without being allowed to move, not even one finger.

Afterwards I was sequestered together with other girls in one of the rooms for ten hours, while they have confiscated our personal things, such as: audio tapes, video tapes, CD’s, photographic films, photos and money, and last, but not least, they took all our documents, except the Identity Card.

We were not allowed to eat, to phone or to call the lawyer.

I mention that during these hours I was the subject of some psychic tortures whose consequences I feel even now.

Then we have been taken by force and brought to the Prosecutor’s Office, where we were forced to give a declaration.
Data : 19.03.2004

 

The undersigned S. D., residing in Piatra Neamţ, hereby declare as follows:

On March 18, 2004, at around 8:00 a.m. the police and the gendarmes entered by force breaking the windows at the upper floor and the doors in the building on Veseliei st. 64, where I was at that moment. The gendarmes attacked me and pushed me to the ground threatening me with guns. I was immobilized to the ground and held by force in this position, having a gun on my back and being threatened that if I move I get shot. Then I was submitted to body search, my mobile phone was confiscated and I was held into a room together with other persons in the building, being guarded by gendarmes.

I wasn’t allowed to contact my attorney or other persons, although I was hit with such a brutality that I couldn’t move my left arm anymore. After that I was brought to the Prosecutor’s  office pertaining to the Court of Appeal Bucharest, being escorted by gendarmes and interrogated. I was forced to write a statement, the prosecutor insinuated that this was the best for me and I wasn’t given the possibility to contact an attorney. I didn’t get back my mobile phone.

The prosecutor asked me to write the statement personally and in some cases he was insinuating and dictating me to write false things about the yoga course of MISA (the Movement for Spiritual Integration in the Absolute) and about mister Gregorian Bivolaru. On this occasion I found out that in fact I was investigated because of these reasons. Until that moment nobody told me why I was taken into custody, hit and brutalized. Also, the search warrant in Veseliei st. 64, didn’t mention the reason of the house search. When I asked the prosecutor about the reason I am taken into custody, he refused to tell me, saying that I’ll find out later because it’s a secret reason. 

Although the prosecutor DELCEA told me that we could come back after the investigation to take our personal things, after I had been abusively investigated at the prosecutor’s office, when  I came back to the building in Veseliei st. 64, the policemen and the gendarmes had sealed the building and I was not allowed to enter the building and I didn’t get back the confiscated personal things. In turn, all the valuable personal things, including money and jewels were confiscated and loaded in trucks. 
 
Because of these reasons I consider these actions abuses and a frame up, a violation of the human rights as I was hit, threatened with death with a gun on my back. and I didn’t have the possibility to contact an attorney to defend myself.

19.03.2004

 

I, S. A., Kobenhaun V, Denmark, hereby declare, that the Romanian police on 2004 March 18, in the morning broke in the house where I was staying, str. Turturica 123, Bucharest.
They did it brutally, kicking in a window on the first floor with machineguns and masks, not making clear that they were police, but going a scary impression. Under screaming, yelling and much tumult they gathered us first in my room, later in the yard. They scared me very much because they were brutal and threatening in their attitude, like they wanted to shoot us, acting in a terrorist-like manner, not declaring their reason for coming and treating us this way.
They didn’t allow us to put on clothes or take any belongings, and didn’t tell us about where we are going or what would happen to us, or why. It was very offending and ruthless.
After making us wait in a room and the yard for several hours and making us write our data and give our ID-s – they also took my money, but I managed to get it back – they put us, mashed together in their car, without telling us where they would take us. They took to the Police station where we again waited for hours. They took me with a Romanian girl to give a declaration. Two policeman was asking me questions in Romanian, trying to make the girl to translate for me, since they didn’t speak any word English themselves. They didn’t listen to my inquiry for a translator, and at last I refused to talk to them. They treated us disrespectfully. Then they made me wait long time again, and finally they took me in a room with several police officials, where they were again wrote details from my passport and asked me questions. They never told what was the reason for their inquiry and keeping us under their command. Finally they brought us back, but the police was still controlling the house, not allowing us to go to our rooms. They made a big mass searching in our room , still not telling what they searched for. I felt very frightened and abused throughout the entire day by the police, and never got an explanation for this search was about at all.
According to the TV, the reason for this had to do with drugs, prostitution and gambling
I declare that I never practiced prostitution, taken drugs, gambled or done anything criminal.

Data: 19.03.2004

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