Stan Democratic Delusions 51 Problems of Post-Communism, vol. 50, no. 6, November/December 2003, pp. 51–60. © 2003 M.E. Sharpe, Inc. All rights reserved. ISSN 1075–8216 / 2003 $9.50 + 0.00. LAVINIA STAN is director of the Center for Post-Communist Studies, St. Francis Xavier University, Nova Scotia. Democratic Delusions Ten Myths Accepted by the Romanian Democratic Opposition Lavinia Stan Democratic opposition parties prefer to blame the government rather than admit their own mistakes. S INCE the collapse of the Ceauºescu regime in December 1989, the Romanian democratic opposi- tion has been struggling to establish itself as a credible alternative to the National Salvation Front, the succes- sor to the Romanian Communist Party (RCP). In trying to make itself into a political force, the opposition has faced huge obstacles. Romania under Ceauºescu was one of the strictest and most dictatorial regimes in East- ern Europe. Dissent was prohibited, freedom of asso- ciation was severely restricted, and non-state organizations were not allowed. Any group or individual seen as a possible alternative to the Communist Party or a rival to the president was silenced, harassed, in- timidated, and eventually marginalized or driven into exile. The Securitate, Romania’s secret police, strictly monitored activities with political potential and kept the opposition from coalescing into a larger, better orga- nized, and more vocal force like Poland’s Solidarity or the Czech Charter 77 movement. The Securitate also blocked opposition efforts to develop ties to the broader society. In consequence of all this, Romania was domi- nated by a political culture of state paternalism, corrup- tion, passive obedience, and suspicion and distrust that did not bode well for the building of a democratic sys- tem. Almost no one understood the role that could be played by a political opposition, because the RCP had been the sole officially registered party for forty-five years. The first months of post-communist rule greatly com- pounded these problems. While the National Salvation Front (NSF) moved quickly to assert control over the political process, opposition groups had little money and few members able to formulate a campaign strategy,