Evidence of the fruits of moral leadership. Lessons applicable to China? You decide.
Funderburk honored
David Funderburk, the former congressman from North Carolina who served as ambassador to Romania from 1981 to 1985, received a standing ovation from the Romanian Parliament on Wednesday and the highest honor that country can bestow.
Romanian President Emil Constantinescu, in a ceremony in Bucharest, presented Mr. Funderburk with the Romanian Star in the rank of commander. Mr. Constantinescu called the American "a great friend of Romania."
"He submitted his diplomatic career to an even higher ideal, that of getting to know a people, to understand a culture, to consolidate the bond between two nations. And last, but not least, to contribute to the success of a democratic society within this part of the world," Mr. Constantinescu said.
Earlier in the day, the Republican former congressman received an impromptu standing ovation when he entered the gallery of the Parliament.
Mr. Funderburk, as ambassador during the Reagan administration, was an outspoken critic of human rights abuses by the communist regime of President Nicholae Ceausescu, which fell in 1989.
washtimes.com
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