Some of my family visited Romania in communist times and found it grim.

It was indeed.

I am not sure how comparable the current situation is.

On the surface, even life in Romania was bearable, it wasn't a prison. And the freedoms weren't taken all at once, it was a so-called "Overtone window", they were slowly and gradually diminished.

At the moment, current restrictions are not at the "grim" level, but the trend is going clearly in that direction, that I can tell, based on my previous 19 years of experience. The "Overtone window" has been cracked open.

It still remains to be seen if this trend will continue, it will stop, or even be reversed in the direction of more self-sovereignty and freedom. Some of the reversal trends are starting to get traction (like trials against freedoms limitations during lockdowns, or the illegality of PCR tests for traveling, which are both popping up more often these days), but it's still early.

Peace and freedom!