Emil Hațieganu

Emil Haţieganu (December 9, 1878—May 13, 1959) was a Romanian politician and jurist, a prominent member of the Romanian National Party (PNR) and of its successor, the National Peasants' Party (PNŢ); he was physician Iuliu Haţieganu's brother. Before his arrest, he was an honorary member of the Romanian Academy.

Born in Tritenii de Jos, Transylvania (inside the Hungarian Kingdom in Austria-Hungary at the time), Haţieganu studied and practiced Law. He became a professor at the University of Cluj, and served as its rector in 1929-1930. Following World War I and the Aster Revolution in Hungary, he was present with PNR leaders at the Alba Iulia assembly that called for union with Romania, and served on the Directory Council designated by the participants.

A Minister of Labour and Social Security in the Iuliu Maniu cabinets in Bucharest, he was kept in the Gheorghe Mironescu one (that brought about the return of Carol II as King of Romania); he also held the office of Minister of State for Transylvania. In 1940, he became noted for his vocal protest against the cession of Northern Transylvania to Hungary (the signing of the Second Vienna Award).

Retreated from political life during World War II, he returned to the forefront of illegal opposition before the fall of the Ion Antonescu pro-Nazi dictatorship (see Romania during World War II). After the start of Soviet military occupation in Romania, Haţieganu held the position of PNŢ Minister without Portfolio in the first Petru Groza Romanian Communist Party-dominated cabinet; his appointment, like that of the National Liberal Mihail Romaniceanu, followed pressures on Groza to open executive structures to politicians from outside the Communist-led National Democratic Front alliance — both mandates were ended by the 1946 general election.

In front of mounting Communist influence, Haţieganu approached Iuliu Maniu with a proposal to establish direct contacts with the Western Allies by having Ion Mihalache evade the country (July 1947); the attempt, known as the Tămădău Affair, eventually led to the prosecution of the PNŢ leadership during a show trial and to an official ban on all party activities.

In November 1948, the authorities of Communist Romania prosecuted and sentenced him to three years in prison for "PNŢ activism" and "sabotage". In 1951, the term of his imprisonment in the infamous Sighet prison was increased by another 60 months; he was released in June 1955.

References

• (Romanian) Bio at the Sighet memorial
• Adrian Cioroianu, Pe umerii lui Marx. O introducere în istoria comunismului românesc ("On the Shoulders of Marx. An Incursion into the History of Romanian Communism"), Editura Curtea Veche, Bucharest, 2005
• (Romanian) Ioan Lăcustă, "În Bucureşti, acum 50 ani" ("In Bucharest, 50 Years Ago"), in Magazin Istoric, October 1997
• (Romanian) Ilarion Ţiu, "«A cui este ţara aceasta»?" ("«Whose Country is This?»"), in Jurnalul Naţional, August 29, 2005 (an insight into events following the Second Vienna Award)