2009 Moldova civil unrest
Encyclopedia
The 2009 civil unrest in Moldova began on April 7, 2009, in major cities of Moldova
(including the capital Chişinău
and Bălţi
) before the results of the 2009 Moldovan parliamentary election were announced. The demonstrators claimed that the elections, which saw the governing Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova (PCRM) win a majority of seats, were fraudulent, and alternatively demanded a recount, a new election, or resignation of the government. Similar demonstrations took place in other major Moldovan cities, including the country's second largest, Bălţi
, where over 7,000 people protested.
The protesters organized themselves using an online social network service
, Twitter
, hence its moniker used by the media, the Twitter Revolution or Grape revolution. In Chişinău, where the number of protesters rose above 15,000, the demonstration escalated into a riot on April 7. Rioters attacked the parliament building
and presidential office
, breaking windows, setting furniture on fire and stealing property.
The PCRM has been in power since 2001. A series of protests have been organized by opposition parties in 2003, when the government attempted to replace the school subject "History of the Romanians" with "History of Moldova". Students protested for months before the government backed down on its plans.
Petru Negură
, a university professor of sociology at the Moldova State University
and the École des hautes études en sciences sociales
, pinpointed the origins of the crisis in an ethnic identity problem, as some people in Moldova identify as "Moldovans", while others as "Romanians".
The OSCE International Election Observing Mission declared the elections generally free and fair, although it also reported that the comparison of data on the voting age population provided by the MID with the number of registered voters provided by local executive authorities revealed a discrepancy of some 160,000. Nevertheless, a member of the OSCE observation team, Emma Nicholson, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne
disagreed with the assessment of the OSCE report on the fairness of the elections.
A number of voters have also reported cases of fraud where deceased and nonattendant persons were registered as having voted.
According to Vladimir Socor
, a political analyst for the Jamestown Foundation, the elections were evaluated as positive on the whole, with some reservations not affecting the outcome or the overall initial assessment. Exit poll
s had showed a comfortable win for the Communist Party, with the only uncertainty being the size of the winning margin.
Opposition parties pointed out that the lists of eligible voters included 300,000 more people that those of the previous elections, although the population of Moldova has been shrinking. Due to this, they claimed that around 400,000 fictive voters have been created in the last two months and, therefore, changed the voting result. The authorities have also printed more than one voting bulletin for centain persons.
by a 25-year-old Moldovan journalist Natalia Morar
, began in Chişinău on April 6, 2009, with a larger number of demonstrators arriving on the next day, April 7. The demonstration, numbering over ten thousand, most of them students and young people, gathered in the city center on Ştefan cel Mare boulevard. The protest against the announced election results turned into clashes with the police, who used tear gas and water cannons. However, the police were soon overwhelmed by the number of the protesters. Rioters broke into the nearby parliament building and the office of president. Entering the building through broken windows, demonstrators set parts of the building on fire, using documents and furniture both inside and outside. The building was retaken by the police later in the evening.
The protesters, some of which carried Romanian flags, chanted pro-Western, pro-Romanian
and anti-government slogans such as "We want Europe", "We are Romanians" and "Down with Communism".
Two teenagers, Ion Galaţchi and Dragoş Musteţea, with the alleged approval of the policemen, replaced the Flags of Moldova
at the Presidential and Parliament buildings with a Flag of Romania
and a Flag of Europe, claiming that they expected that this would calm the crowd.
The emergency hospital of Chişinău reported treating over 78 injured police officers and protesters on April 8, while the Moldovan president stated that 270 people were injured in the riots. Moldovan opposition called on the authorities to carry out new elections and on the demonstrators to cease violence. Moldovan national television had initially reported that a young woman died of carbon monoxide poisoning
due to the fires within the parliament building set off by the rioters. However, it was later reported that the woman was saved by a team of medics.
On the evening of April 7, a group of protesters organised a National Salvation Committee, consisting of student and civic representatives. Writer Nicolae Dabija
, a vice-president of the Committee said that the intended purpose of the Committee is to organise new elections. However, the protests died off as the police intervened during the night to arrest the protesters found in the square.
On April 7, Serafim Urechean
, leader of the opposition Party Alliance Our Moldova
, during a meeting with President
Voronin said that the riots were orchestrated by security services. However, former Moldovan President Petru Lucinski believes the violence was the spontaneous result of the actions of leaderless youths frustrated with the waning of Moldovan democracy. He said that there is no need to look further to explain the unrest and the movement "didn't have any leaders, one part went in one direction, a peaceful one and another part took a violent turn."
The protests continued on Sunday, April 12 when around 3,000 protesters gathered in the central square where the mayor of Chişinău
, Dorin Chirtoacă
, held a speech about how Moldova's youth reject Communism because they "understand that their future has been stolen". However, the students were notably absent from the crowd, having been sanctioned for their participation in the previous protests.
, formerly a political prisoner
in Transnistria
. An independent MP, Valentina Cuşnir
, was near the main street of Chişinău at about midnight on 7 April. She reported that she was abused by a police officer.
Amnesty International
accused the Moldovan government of violating human rights through the actions of the police, that it detained indiscriminately hundreds of protesters, including minors, who were subjected to torture
and other ill-treatment. The organization issuing a memorandum to the Moldovan government about this case.
On April 9, the Moldovan Prosecutor General's Office asked Ukraine
to extradite Gabriel Stati, a Moldovan businessman whom the Moldovan government accused of being involved in the organization and financing of the civil unrest. Stati was in Ukrainian custody along with another suspect, Aurel Marinescu, for their alleged "involvement in organizing an attempt to overthrow the Moldovan government." On April 16, the General Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine approved the extradition of Stati and Marinescu.
Romanian journalists from Antena 3
, TVR
, and newspaper Gândul
accused the Moldovan authorities of trying to intimidate them. On April 10, Moldovan authorities arrested journalist Rodica Mahu
(Editor-in-Chief of Jurnal de Chişinău
) and Romanian journalist Doru Dendiu, the permanent correspondent of TVR
in Moldova, for their alleged involvement in organizing the riots. However, Mahu and Dendiu were released from police questioning later that day, Dediu being announced that he must leave Moldova. Another journalist, Natalia Morar
, was put under house arrest.
On April 11, the Moldovan Ministry of Internal Affairs announced it arrested 295 people in Chişinău for their involvement in the protests.
On April 13, Chişinău mayor Dorin Chirtoacă made an appeal to international organizations regarding the arrests in Moldova, claiming that the protesters have been tortured, not given the right to talk to a lawyer and that NGOs were not allowed access to the detention centres. He also claimed that the real number of arrestees is higher than the official figures, as the list compiled by the press of missing protesters reached 800 names.
A United Nations
report, based on a visit to one detention center, said that the hundreds of people arrested following the civil unrest were subject to "cruel, inhuman or degrading" treatment, being beaten with clubs, water bottles, fists and feet, were denied food and access to legal counsel, and brought before judges in batches of six and collectively charged
. The UN representatives were denied access to other detention centers, despite legislation which allows them to conduct such visits. Edwin Berry, the UN human rights adviser for Moldova said that during the visit to the detention center almost everyone he talked to had visible marks that show that they have been beaten.
On April 15, President Voronin called for a general amnesty and "an end to all forms of prosecution against participants in street protests", however, Chirtoacă announced that no protesters have been freed by April 17.
Marian Lupu
, the speaker of Moldova's parliament, admitted that the arrested protesters were subjected brutality from the police and he announced that the police officers involved would not be punished, being covered by the amnesty announced by President Voronin.
Following his arrest, a 23-year old protester, Valeriu Boboc, died in a Chişinău hospital on 8 April 2009. The official cause was smoke poisoning from the riot, but his family insisted that he was beaten to death by the police, his body being full of contusions. An investigation was opened into the case and a policeman was arrested on charges of Boboc's murder. As of November 2010, the case is still ongoing.
The body of another protester, Ion Ţâbuleac, with multiple wounds and fractures, was allegedly dumped from a car belonging to the Moldovan Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The body of a third protester, Eugen Ţapu, was handed to the relatives by the police on April 16. The official cause of death was given as suicide by hanging
, however, the relatives disputed this because they claim that he had no marks on the neck to suggest this. According to Victor Său, the mayor of Ţapu's home village Soroca
, there is a link between Eugen Ţapu's death and the protest from April 7 because the police refuse to provide further explanations and the dates of his death and the protest’s day are the same. Său stated that police refused to provide any explanations on the reasons behind the death of Eugen Tapu, and that according to the papers he died on 7 April, the day when police begin the mass arrests of young protesters. The police say they found the decomposing body of Eugen Ţapu on 15 April, hanging from his bootlaces in the attic of a building in the capital. "They killed him, that's for sure, and they must answer for what they've done" said Eugen's father.
Maxim Canişev (born 1989, Hristoforovca) died on 8 April, but was found with his spinal column broken in Ghidighici Lake only on 18 April.
The Moldovan government strongly denied any involvement in the deaths. The executive director of Amnesty International
Moldova, Evghenii Golosceapov, does not believe the minister's denials. Three of the dead showed signs of violence on their faces and bodies. The causes of their deaths remain unknown as of 2010.
On October 8, 2009 hundreds of people came to Stephen the Great Monument
in Chişinău to mark 6 months from the bloody events. While attending the ceremony, the prime minister
Vlad Filat
said that the Ministry of the Interior has already started a domestic investigation into the police’s actions on April 7, 2009 and especially during subsequent days and weeks.
, in an address on April 7, 2009, described the events in the capital as a coup d'état
organised by "a handful of fascists drunk with anger" and declared that the Moldovan authorities will defend themselves against the "leaders of the pogrom". The President also urged the West to help restore order and resolve the conflict.
Following the escalation of the riots and the burning down of the parliament building, Voronin said "we tried to avoid bloodshed, but if yesterday's situation will be repeated, we will respond accordingly".
Later on April 8, Voronin
made the following statement: "For the first time, the Moldovan people saw the opposition openly betray their own people and their own country by taking the path of provoking open civil war. The whole country saw that there is no opposition whatsoever in Moldova — neither anti-Communist, nor anti-Voronin. There is only opposition to the state." The President also commented on the displaying of Romanian flags: "What happened yesterday brought indelible shame on our politicians, on the whole of our democracy. The entire Moldovan nation witnessed the greatest humiliation of its own sovereignty and its own democracy when the state standards were ripped from the flagpoles of Parliament and the President's Office and replaced with the flags of Romania." In an interview with the Spanish newspaper El País, Voronin claimed the professors and teachers, especially in Chişinău, have a very destructive role as "continuators of Ion Antonescu
".
On 10 April 2009, Voronin called on the Constitutional Court of Moldova
to authorise a recount of the votes. On 12 April 2009, it decided that there would be a recount. The recount was then set to take place on 15 April 2009. On 14 April, Serafim Urechean
announced that the three main opposition parties would boycott the recount, citing fears that the government would use it to increase its majority to the 61 seats required to elect the next president. The recount is scheduled to finish by 16 April 2009 and results will be submitted by 21 April 2009 to the CEC
. The result of the election was not changed through the recount, as no serious errors were determined. The opposition maintain that the ballot was rigged, saying that recounting fraudulent ballots could only yield fraudulent results.
Transnistria
n president Igor Smirnov
accused the Moldovan government of failing to "protect Transdniestrians from nationalists."
of being the force behind the riots in Chişinău. Romania denied all charges of being involved in the protests.
The Romanian ambassador in Moldova, Filip Teodorescu
was declared persona non grata
by the Moldovan government, being required to leave the country within 24 hours. The following day, the Romanian parliament nominated a senior diplomat, Mihnea Constantinescu, as the new ambassador to Moldova, but two weeks later, the Moldovan government rejected him without any explanation, deepening the crisis.
The Moldovan government instituted visa requirements for Romanian citizens and closed the border between Romania and Moldova on April 7. Moldovan students studying in Romania and international journalists were not allowed to enter the country. The following day, train connections between Romania and Moldova were cancelled for undefined period, because of "technical" issues. Romania announced that it will not reciprocate on the expelling of the ambassador and it will keep the same visa regime, with visas free-of-charge for Moldovan citizens. It also condemned as "arbitrary and discriminatory" the new measures brought against Romanian nationals in Moldova and has stated that the visa scheme was "reckless" and broke a Moldova-EU pact.
On a press conference from July 22, 2009, Moldova's state prosecutor, Valeriu Gurbulea, declared that Romania was not involved in the riot.
The Romanian government changed the regulations which allow foreigners who had ancestors who had Romanian citizenship (including most Moldovans) to gain the Romanian citizenship
. The new law allows people with at least a Romanian great-grandparent (instead of just a grandparent as before) to request Romanian citizenship, while it added a maximum term of five months for giving a response to the request.
's Czech presidency expressed deep concern about the developments in Moldova, calling "on the Government of Moldova, the opposition and the people of Moldova, to refrain from any action that could lead to further escalation of the tensions in the country". EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana
called on all parties to the conflict to refrain from violence and provocation. He argued that "violence against government buildings is unacceptable." He added that "international election observers noted in their preliminary findings that the elections met many international standards and commitments, but that further improvements were required." The Party of the European Left
expressed its solidarity to President Voronin, stating that "The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) itself admits the conformity of this election to international standards. Being of course understood the legitimacy and everyone's right to manifest his/her opinion freely, there is though no reason for such violence and destruction inside the parliament building." Marianne Mikko
, member of the European Parliament
and leader of its Moldova delegation, has called for new elections, emphasising the importance of full enfranchisement among people of Moldova. The European Parliament announced that Moldova would participate in the Eastern Partnership
summit in Prague
on May 7, which will see the EU upgrade relations with Moldova. http://euobserver.com/9/27953 But European Parliament
"strongly condemned the massive campaign of harassment, grave violations of human rights and all other illegal actions carried out by the Moldovan Government in the aftermath of the parliamentary elections." Romania
also backed the European Union assessment of concern and urged a cessation of violence. Several thousand Bucharesters gathered in the University Square
to show support for the Moldovan protesters. Hundreds of people also mobilized in the major Romanian cities of Iaşi
, Timişoara
, Cluj-Napoca
, Braşov
, Galaţi
, Craiova
, Ploieşti
, Arad
, Suceava
and Bacău
, as well as in Petroşani
. President Traian Băsescu
said that Moldova is trying to build an "Iron Curtain
" across the Prut and that Romania will act responsibly toward the "four million Romanians that live in Moldova".
Russia
n Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Grigory Karasin
, said that Russia is concerned about developments in Moldova, while Alexey Ostrovsky, the Chairman of the Committee of the State Duma
for CIS, accused Western secret services of trying to destabilise CIS countries in order to attract them towards NATO. He also claimed that Romania helps the process in order to swallow Moldova and create a new unified country. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent out this statement on April 8: "Judging by the slogans shouted in the squares, plenty of Romanian flags in the hands of organizers of these outrages, their aim is to discredit the achievements in strengthening the sovereignty of Moldova. The Russian foreign ministry hopes that common sense will prevail, public and constitutional order will be restored in the next few days and the choice of the Moldovan citizens will be confirmed by all politically responsible forces." Ukraine
's Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko
announced an increase in patrols along the state border with Moldova. "Right after the events in Chişinău, the Ukrainian police significantly increased its presence along the Ukraine-Moldova state border in Odessa region to prevent the trespassing of armed extremist groups on the territory of Ukraine." Ukrainian police and customs officers arrested two Moldovan citizens for their alleged "involvement in organizing an attempt to overthrow the Moldovan government." They were extradited a week later. United States
State Department spokesman Robert Wood said "we’re calling on the parties to refrain from further violence and resolve their differences peacefully and through peaceful means." In regard to the way the election was handled, Wood declared that the State Department is "still assessing" and that, at the moment of the briefing, "he thinks [...] we basically share that assessment that the OSCE gave." Asif Chaudhry, the US ambassador, stated that "the authorities acted with restraint on Tuesday, as the demonstration in front of the Presidential Palace and the Parliament building went out of control resulting in property damage and injuries. Thus, the potential for more grave consequences was avoided." He also expressed concerns about the arrests that took place after the riot. United States
Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton wrote to president Vladimir Voronin
: "As our Embassy and the Department of State noted in public statements, we condemn the violence which occurred in the days following the election. We believe it would be helpful for your Government to address the concerns that have been raised about the conduct of the election, as well as the treatment of detainees, journalists, and representatives of civil society following the violence" Students and activists hoisted picket signs in Boston
, Washington, D.C.
, and New York City
on April 13, to protest the incumbent Communist Party’s victory.
became very polarized. The parliament
failed to elect a new president
. For this reason, the parliament was dissolved and snap elections
were held. The July 29 polls
were won by the Communist Party with 44.7% of the vote. That gave the former ruling party 48 MPs, and the remaining 53 seats in the 101-member chamber went to four opposition parties. Opposition parties agreed to create the Alliance for European Integration
that pushed the Communist party into opposition. The Communists were in government since 2001.
The original Moldovan Declaration of Independence approved and signed on 27 August 1991 was burned during the civil unrest, but an identical document was restored in 2010.
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
(including the capital Chişinău
Chisinau
Chișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
and Bălţi
Balti
Balti can refer to:* Balti language, a language spoken in Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir* Balti people, Muslims of Ladakhi/Tibetan origin from Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir...
) before the results of the 2009 Moldovan parliamentary election were announced. The demonstrators claimed that the elections, which saw the governing Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova (PCRM) win a majority of seats, were fraudulent, and alternatively demanded a recount, a new election, or resignation of the government. Similar demonstrations took place in other major Moldovan cities, including the country's second largest, Bălţi
Balti
Balti can refer to:* Balti language, a language spoken in Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir* Balti people, Muslims of Ladakhi/Tibetan origin from Baltistan in Pakistan and Ladakh in Kashmir...
, where over 7,000 people protested.
The protesters organized themselves using an online social network service
Social network service
A social networking service is an online service, platform, or site that focuses on building and reflecting of social networks or social relations among people, who, for example, share interests and/or activities. A social network service consists of a representation of each user , his/her social...
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
, hence its moniker used by the media, the Twitter Revolution or Grape revolution. In Chişinău, where the number of protesters rose above 15,000, the demonstration escalated into a riot on April 7. Rioters attacked the parliament building
Parliament of the Republic of Moldova
The Parliament of the Republic of Moldova is a unicameral assembly with 101 seats. Its members are elected by popular vote every 4 years. The parliament then elects a president, who functions as the head of state...
and presidential office
President of Moldova
The President of the Republic of Moldova is the head of state of Moldova.-Description of the post:According to the Article 77 of the Constitution of Moldova , the President of Moldova is the head of the State and represents the State and is the guarantor of national sovereignty, independence, of...
, breaking windows, setting furniture on fire and stealing property.
Background
The unrest began as a public protest after the announcement of preliminary election results on April 6, 2009, which showed the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova victorious, winning approximately 50% of the votes. Final results, published on April 8, showed that the PCRM garnered 49.48% of the vote, gaining 60 parliament seats – one less than the three-fifths required for the party to control the presidential election. The opposition rejected the election results, accusing the authorities of falsification in the course of counting the votes and demanded new elections.The PCRM has been in power since 2001. A series of protests have been organized by opposition parties in 2003, when the government attempted to replace the school subject "History of the Romanians" with "History of Moldova". Students protested for months before the government backed down on its plans.
Petru Negură
Petru Negură
Petru Negură is a sociologist from the Republic of Moldova.- Biography :Petru NEGURA held a M.ph. and Ph.D. in Sociology at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales . He authored a book...
, a university professor of sociology at the Moldova State University
Moldova State University
The Moldova State University is a university located in Chişinău, Moldova. It was founded in 1946.-Organization:The university is organized into eleven faculties:*1. Biology and Pedology...
and the École des hautes études en sciences sociales
École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales
The École des hautes études en sciences sociales is a leading French institution for research and higher education, a Grand Établissement. Its mission is research and research training in the social sciences, including the relationship these latter maintain with the natural and life sciences...
, pinpointed the origins of the crisis in an ethnic identity problem, as some people in Moldova identify as "Moldovans", while others as "Romanians".
The OSCE International Election Observing Mission declared the elections generally free and fair, although it also reported that the comparison of data on the voting age population provided by the MID with the number of registered voters provided by local executive authorities revealed a discrepancy of some 160,000. Nevertheless, a member of the OSCE observation team, Emma Nicholson, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne
Emma Nicholson, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne
Emma Harriet Nicholson, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne is a British politician. Formerly the Conservative then Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Torridge and West Devon she is a now life peer, and a former Liberal Democrat Member of the European Parliament for South East England.-Early...
disagreed with the assessment of the OSCE report on the fairness of the elections.
A number of voters have also reported cases of fraud where deceased and nonattendant persons were registered as having voted.
According to Vladimir Socor
Vladimir Socor
Vladimir Socor is a political analyst of East European affairs for the Jamestown Foundation and its Eurasia Daily Monitor, currently residing in Munich, Germany...
, a political analyst for the Jamestown Foundation, the elections were evaluated as positive on the whole, with some reservations not affecting the outcome or the overall initial assessment. Exit poll
Exit poll
An election exit poll is a poll of voters taken immediately after they have exited the polling stations. Unlike an opinion poll, which asks whom the voter plans to vote for or some similar formulation, an exit poll asks whom the voter actually voted for. A similar poll conducted before actual...
s had showed a comfortable win for the Communist Party, with the only uncertainty being the size of the winning margin.
Opposition parties pointed out that the lists of eligible voters included 300,000 more people that those of the previous elections, although the population of Moldova has been shrinking. Due to this, they claimed that around 400,000 fictive voters have been created in the last two months and, therefore, changed the voting result. The authorities have also printed more than one voting bulletin for centain persons.
Demonstration and riot
The first demonstrations, organized as a flashmobFlashMob
FlashMob is a band formed in Nashville, Tennessee featuring Meghan Kabir. The band signed a record deal with Warner Brothers in spring 2010....
by a 25-year-old Moldovan journalist Natalia Morar
Natalia Morar
Natalia Morari is a Moldovan investigative journalist for the Russian magazine New Times. She was a permanent resident of Russia until she was expelled in December 2007, presumably for exposing corruption in Russia. Born in Moldova, she moved to Russia in 2002 to study sociology at the Moscow...
, began in Chişinău on April 6, 2009, with a larger number of demonstrators arriving on the next day, April 7. The demonstration, numbering over ten thousand, most of them students and young people, gathered in the city center on Ştefan cel Mare boulevard. The protest against the announced election results turned into clashes with the police, who used tear gas and water cannons. However, the police were soon overwhelmed by the number of the protesters. Rioters broke into the nearby parliament building and the office of president. Entering the building through broken windows, demonstrators set parts of the building on fire, using documents and furniture both inside and outside. The building was retaken by the police later in the evening.
The protesters, some of which carried Romanian flags, chanted pro-Western, pro-Romanian
Movement for unification of Romania and Moldova
A movement for the reunification of Romania and Moldova began in both countries after the Romanian Revolution of 1989 and the beginning of glasnost policy in the Soviet Union...
and anti-government slogans such as "We want Europe", "We are Romanians" and "Down with Communism".
Two teenagers, Ion Galaţchi and Dragoş Musteţea, with the alleged approval of the policemen, replaced the Flags of Moldova
Flag of Moldova
The state flag of Moldova is a vertical tricolor of blue, yellow, and red, charged with the coat of arms of Moldova on the center bar. The obverse is mirrored. The flag ratio is 1:2...
at the Presidential and Parliament buildings with a Flag of Romania
Flag of Romania
The national flag of Romania is a tricolour with vertical stripes: beginning from the flagpole, blue, yellow and red. It has a width-length ratio of 2:3....
and a Flag of Europe, claiming that they expected that this would calm the crowd.
The emergency hospital of Chişinău reported treating over 78 injured police officers and protesters on April 8, while the Moldovan president stated that 270 people were injured in the riots. Moldovan opposition called on the authorities to carry out new elections and on the demonstrators to cease violence. Moldovan national television had initially reported that a young woman died of carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning occurs after enough inhalation of carbon monoxide . Carbon monoxide is a toxic gas, but, being colorless, odorless, tasteless, and initially non-irritating, it is very difficult for people to detect...
due to the fires within the parliament building set off by the rioters. However, it was later reported that the woman was saved by a team of medics.
On the evening of April 7, a group of protesters organised a National Salvation Committee, consisting of student and civic representatives. Writer Nicolae Dabija
Nicolae Dabija
Nicolae Dabija is a Moldovan politician. He is the president of the Democratic Forum of Romanians in Moldova.- Biography :He served as member of the Parliament of Moldova. Nicolae Dabija is editor in chief of Literatura şi Arta....
, a vice-president of the Committee said that the intended purpose of the Committee is to organise new elections. However, the protests died off as the police intervened during the night to arrest the protesters found in the square.
On April 7, Serafim Urechean
Serafim Urechean
Serafim Urechean is a Moldovan politician.-Education and career:Urechean was born on February 2, 1950, in Larga, Briceni. In 1974, he graduated from the Polytechnic Institute in Chişinău. He carried out the compulsory military service in the Soviet army, at Tolyatti...
, leader of the opposition Party Alliance Our Moldova
Party Alliance Our Moldova
The Party Alliance Our Moldova was a social liberal political party in Moldova led by Serafim Urechean, former mayor of Chişinău. It merged into the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova in 2011.-History:...
, during a meeting with President
President of Moldova
The President of the Republic of Moldova is the head of state of Moldova.-Description of the post:According to the Article 77 of the Constitution of Moldova , the President of Moldova is the head of the State and represents the State and is the guarantor of national sovereignty, independence, of...
Voronin said that the riots were orchestrated by security services. However, former Moldovan President Petru Lucinski believes the violence was the spontaneous result of the actions of leaderless youths frustrated with the waning of Moldovan democracy. He said that there is no need to look further to explain the unrest and the movement "didn't have any leaders, one part went in one direction, a peaceful one and another part took a violent turn."
The protests continued on Sunday, April 12 when around 3,000 protesters gathered in the central square where the mayor of Chişinău
Mayor of Chişinău
The Mayor of Chişinău is head of the executive branch of Chişinău City Council.- History :The first mayor of Chişinău was Anghel Nour in 1817. In 1941, the office was abolished. After the Soviet era and the re-establishment of the office in 1990, Nicolae Costin became the first democratically...
, Dorin Chirtoacă
Dorin Chirtoaca
- Biography :His mother is Valentina, sister of Gheorghe Ghimpu and Mihai Ghimpu. During high school he studied in Iaşi and graduated in 2001 from University of Bucharest. Between 2001 and 2003 Chirtoacă worked for Surprize, Surprize , a show broadcast on TVR1...
, held a speech about how Moldova's youth reject Communism because they "understand that their future has been stolen". However, the students were notably absent from the crowd, having been sanctioned for their participation in the previous protests.
Arrests and accusations of torture
On the night following April 7, around 1 AM, police forces routed the remaining crowds in the main square and arrested about 200 of participants. On the following day, more arrests were issued, with demonstrators beaten and transported away in police cars. Similarly, footage showed demonstrators getting dragged away and beaten by what appears to be plain-clothes police officers. Among the protesters to be hospitalized after being beaten was Andrei IvanţocAndrei Ivantoc
Andrei Ivanţoc is a republic of Moldovan politician. He was among the four leaders of the Tiraspol branch of the pro-Romanian Christian-Democratic People's Party of Moldova who were accused of terrorism by the authorities of the breakaway Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic .- Biography...
, formerly a political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
in Transnistria
Transnistria
Transnistria is a breakaway territory located mostly on a strip of land between the Dniester River and the eastern Moldovan border to Ukraine...
. An independent MP, Valentina Cuşnir
Valentina Cuşnir
- Biography :Valentina Cuşnir studied at the Technical University from Moldova and worked as an engineer in Călăraşi . She served as member of the Moldovan Parliament.She has the citizenship of the Republic of Moldova and Romania....
, was near the main street of Chişinău at about midnight on 7 April. She reported that she was abused by a police officer.
Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
accused the Moldovan government of violating human rights through the actions of the police, that it detained indiscriminately hundreds of protesters, including minors, who were subjected to torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
and other ill-treatment. The organization issuing a memorandum to the Moldovan government about this case.
On April 9, the Moldovan Prosecutor General's Office asked Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
to extradite Gabriel Stati, a Moldovan businessman whom the Moldovan government accused of being involved in the organization and financing of the civil unrest. Stati was in Ukrainian custody along with another suspect, Aurel Marinescu, for their alleged "involvement in organizing an attempt to overthrow the Moldovan government." On April 16, the General Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine approved the extradition of Stati and Marinescu.
Romanian journalists from Antena 3
Antena 3 (Romania)
Antena 3 is a Romanian TV channel, which focuses on news and current events. It was launched in May 2005 and is part of the Intact group. Antena 3 is also distributed in Serbia in the Romanian language-extra package of the DTH platform Digi TV...
, TVR
Romanian television
Romanian television may refer to:* Communications media in Romania* Televiziunea Română, TVR, the national television network* List of Romanian language television channels...
, and newspaper Gândul
Gândul
Gândul is a Romanian daily newspaper published in Bucharest. It was founded in May 2005 by Mircea Dinescu, who used to write a daily editorial called "Vorba lu' Dinescu", and Cristian Tudor Popescu, who was also the editor-in-chief until January 2008. Its initial circulation was about 52,000...
accused the Moldovan authorities of trying to intimidate them. On April 10, Moldovan authorities arrested journalist Rodica Mahu
Rodica Mahu
Rodica Mahu is a journalist from the Republic of Moldova. She is the editor in chief of Jurnal de Chişinău.On 10 April 2009, Rodica Mahu was kidnapped while sending information for the publications' website through the phone from behind the Government building; she was interrogated by the police...
(Editor-in-Chief of Jurnal de Chişinău
Jurnal de Chişinău
- Overview :Its head is Val Butnaru, the Jurnal Trust Media president. The Trust comprises also Jurnal TV, newspapers ECOnomist, Apropo Magazin and radio station Jurnal FM. Its headquarters are in Chişinău...
) and Romanian journalist Doru Dendiu, the permanent correspondent of TVR
Romanian television
Romanian television may refer to:* Communications media in Romania* Televiziunea Română, TVR, the national television network* List of Romanian language television channels...
in Moldova, for their alleged involvement in organizing the riots. However, Mahu and Dendiu were released from police questioning later that day, Dediu being announced that he must leave Moldova. Another journalist, Natalia Morar
Natalia Morar
Natalia Morari is a Moldovan investigative journalist for the Russian magazine New Times. She was a permanent resident of Russia until she was expelled in December 2007, presumably for exposing corruption in Russia. Born in Moldova, she moved to Russia in 2002 to study sociology at the Moscow...
, was put under house arrest.
On April 11, the Moldovan Ministry of Internal Affairs announced it arrested 295 people in Chişinău for their involvement in the protests.
On April 13, Chişinău mayor Dorin Chirtoacă made an appeal to international organizations regarding the arrests in Moldova, claiming that the protesters have been tortured, not given the right to talk to a lawyer and that NGOs were not allowed access to the detention centres. He also claimed that the real number of arrestees is higher than the official figures, as the list compiled by the press of missing protesters reached 800 names.
A United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
report, based on a visit to one detention center, said that the hundreds of people arrested following the civil unrest were subject to "cruel, inhuman or degrading" treatment, being beaten with clubs, water bottles, fists and feet, were denied food and access to legal counsel, and brought before judges in batches of six and collectively charged
Collective punishment
Collective punishment is the punishment of a group of people as a result of the behavior of one or more other individuals or groups. The punished group may often have no direct association with the other individuals or groups, or direct control over their actions...
. The UN representatives were denied access to other detention centers, despite legislation which allows them to conduct such visits. Edwin Berry, the UN human rights adviser for Moldova said that during the visit to the detention center almost everyone he talked to had visible marks that show that they have been beaten.
On April 15, President Voronin called for a general amnesty and "an end to all forms of prosecution against participants in street protests", however, Chirtoacă announced that no protesters have been freed by April 17.
Marian Lupu
Marian Lupu
Marian Lupu is a Moldovan politician and is President of Parliament and Acting President since 2010.-Background and education:...
, the speaker of Moldova's parliament, admitted that the arrested protesters were subjected brutality from the police and he announced that the police officers involved would not be punished, being covered by the amnesty announced by President Voronin.
Deaths
Four deaths occurred at the time of the unrest and have been linked to the events by various sources.Following his arrest, a 23-year old protester, Valeriu Boboc, died in a Chişinău hospital on 8 April 2009. The official cause was smoke poisoning from the riot, but his family insisted that he was beaten to death by the police, his body being full of contusions. An investigation was opened into the case and a policeman was arrested on charges of Boboc's murder. As of November 2010, the case is still ongoing.
The body of another protester, Ion Ţâbuleac, with multiple wounds and fractures, was allegedly dumped from a car belonging to the Moldovan Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The body of a third protester, Eugen Ţapu, was handed to the relatives by the police on April 16. The official cause of death was given as suicide by hanging
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
, however, the relatives disputed this because they claim that he had no marks on the neck to suggest this. According to Victor Său, the mayor of Ţapu's home village Soroca
Soroca
Soroca is a Moldovan city situated on the Nistru river about 160 km north of Chişinău. It is the administrative center of Soroca District.- History :The city has its origin in the medieval Genoese trade post of Olchionia, or Alchona...
, there is a link between Eugen Ţapu's death and the protest from April 7 because the police refuse to provide further explanations and the dates of his death and the protest’s day are the same. Său stated that police refused to provide any explanations on the reasons behind the death of Eugen Tapu, and that according to the papers he died on 7 April, the day when police begin the mass arrests of young protesters. The police say they found the decomposing body of Eugen Ţapu on 15 April, hanging from his bootlaces in the attic of a building in the capital. "They killed him, that's for sure, and they must answer for what they've done" said Eugen's father.
Maxim Canişev (born 1989, Hristoforovca) died on 8 April, but was found with his spinal column broken in Ghidighici Lake only on 18 April.
The Moldovan government strongly denied any involvement in the deaths. The executive director of Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
Moldova, Evghenii Golosceapov, does not believe the minister's denials. Three of the dead showed signs of violence on their faces and bodies. The causes of their deaths remain unknown as of 2010.
On October 8, 2009 hundreds of people came to Stephen the Great Monument
Stephen the Great Monument
The Stephen the Great Monument is a prominent monument in Chişinău, Moldova.The monument to Stephen the Great was designed by architect Alexandru Plămădeală in 1923. It was erected near the main entrance of the Stephen the Great Park in Downtown Chişinău...
in Chişinău to mark 6 months from the bloody events. While attending the ceremony, the prime minister
Prime Minister of Moldova
The Prime Minister of Moldova is Moldova's head of government. The prime minister is formally appointed by the President and exercises executive power along with the cabinet subject to parliamentary support.-Moldavian Democratic Republic :...
Vlad Filat
Vlad Filat
Vladimir Filat is a Moldovan politician, the Prime Minister of Moldova since 25 September 2009.- Education and early career :...
said that the Ministry of the Interior has already started a domestic investigation into the police’s actions on April 7, 2009 and especially during subsequent days and weeks.
Government reaction
Moldovan President Vladimir VoroninVladimir Voronin
Vladimir Nicolaevici Voronin is a Moldovan politician. He was the third President of Moldova from 2001 until 2009 and has been the First Secretary of the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova since 1994...
, in an address on April 7, 2009, described the events in the capital as a coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
organised by "a handful of fascists drunk with anger" and declared that the Moldovan authorities will defend themselves against the "leaders of the pogrom". The President also urged the West to help restore order and resolve the conflict.
Following the escalation of the riots and the burning down of the parliament building, Voronin said "we tried to avoid bloodshed, but if yesterday's situation will be repeated, we will respond accordingly".
Later on April 8, Voronin
Vladimir Voronin
Vladimir Nicolaevici Voronin is a Moldovan politician. He was the third President of Moldova from 2001 until 2009 and has been the First Secretary of the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova since 1994...
made the following statement: "For the first time, the Moldovan people saw the opposition openly betray their own people and their own country by taking the path of provoking open civil war. The whole country saw that there is no opposition whatsoever in Moldova — neither anti-Communist, nor anti-Voronin. There is only opposition to the state." The President also commented on the displaying of Romanian flags: "What happened yesterday brought indelible shame on our politicians, on the whole of our democracy. The entire Moldovan nation witnessed the greatest humiliation of its own sovereignty and its own democracy when the state standards were ripped from the flagpoles of Parliament and the President's Office and replaced with the flags of Romania." In an interview with the Spanish newspaper El País, Voronin claimed the professors and teachers, especially in Chişinău, have a very destructive role as "continuators of Ion Antonescu
Ion Antonescu
Ion Victor Antonescu was a Romanian soldier, authoritarian politician and convicted war criminal. The Prime Minister and Conducător during most of World War II, he presided over two successive wartime dictatorships...
".
On 10 April 2009, Voronin called on the Constitutional Court of Moldova
Constitutional Court of Moldova
The Constitutional Court of Moldova represent the sole body of constitutional jurisdiction in the Republic of Moldova, autonomous and independent from the executive, the legislature and the judiciary....
to authorise a recount of the votes. On 12 April 2009, it decided that there would be a recount. The recount was then set to take place on 15 April 2009. On 14 April, Serafim Urechean
Serafim Urechean
Serafim Urechean is a Moldovan politician.-Education and career:Urechean was born on February 2, 1950, in Larga, Briceni. In 1974, he graduated from the Polytechnic Institute in Chişinău. He carried out the compulsory military service in the Soviet army, at Tolyatti...
announced that the three main opposition parties would boycott the recount, citing fears that the government would use it to increase its majority to the 61 seats required to elect the next president. The recount is scheduled to finish by 16 April 2009 and results will be submitted by 21 April 2009 to the CEC
Central Election Commission of Moldova
The Central Election Commission of Moldova is a permanent collegiate body of the Moldovan government.Eugeniu Ştirbu has been the chairman of the Central Election Commission since November 11, 2005.-External links:* *...
. The result of the election was not changed through the recount, as no serious errors were determined. The opposition maintain that the ballot was rigged, saying that recounting fraudulent ballots could only yield fraudulent results.
Transnistria
Transnistria
Transnistria is a breakaway territory located mostly on a strip of land between the Dniester River and the eastern Moldovan border to Ukraine...
n president Igor Smirnov
Igor Smirnov
Igor Nikolaevich Smirnov , is the President of the internationally unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldovan Republic, also known as Transnistria. He has held this post since 1990.- Childhood :...
accused the Moldovan government of failing to "protect Transdniestrians from nationalists."
Diplomatic row with Romania
The civil unrest in Moldova led to a diplomatic row with Romania, after President Voronin accused RomaniaRomania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
of being the force behind the riots in Chişinău. Romania denied all charges of being involved in the protests.
The Romanian ambassador in Moldova, Filip Teodorescu
Filip Teodorescu
Filip Teodorescu is a Romanian diplomat. He was the Romanian Ambassador to Moldova .- Biography :Filip Teodorescu was appointed as the Romanian ambassador to Chişinău in March 2003 and arrived at post in April 2003...
was declared persona non grata
Persona non grata
Persona non grata , literally meaning "an unwelcome person", is a legal term used in diplomacy that indicates a proscription against a person entering the country...
by the Moldovan government, being required to leave the country within 24 hours. The following day, the Romanian parliament nominated a senior diplomat, Mihnea Constantinescu, as the new ambassador to Moldova, but two weeks later, the Moldovan government rejected him without any explanation, deepening the crisis.
The Moldovan government instituted visa requirements for Romanian citizens and closed the border between Romania and Moldova on April 7. Moldovan students studying in Romania and international journalists were not allowed to enter the country. The following day, train connections between Romania and Moldova were cancelled for undefined period, because of "technical" issues. Romania announced that it will not reciprocate on the expelling of the ambassador and it will keep the same visa regime, with visas free-of-charge for Moldovan citizens. It also condemned as "arbitrary and discriminatory" the new measures brought against Romanian nationals in Moldova and has stated that the visa scheme was "reckless" and broke a Moldova-EU pact.
On a press conference from July 22, 2009, Moldova's state prosecutor, Valeriu Gurbulea, declared that Romania was not involved in the riot.
The Romanian government changed the regulations which allow foreigners who had ancestors who had Romanian citizenship (including most Moldovans) to gain the Romanian citizenship
Romanian nationality law
Romanian nationality law is based on the 1991 Romanian Citizenship law. It is based on the social policy of jus sanguinis , by which nationality or citizenship is not determined by place of birth, but by having an ancestor who is a national or citizen of the state. It contrasts with jus soli...
. The new law allows people with at least a Romanian great-grandparent (instead of just a grandparent as before) to request Romanian citizenship, while it added a maximum term of five months for giving a response to the request.
International reaction
The European UnionEuropean Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
's Czech presidency expressed deep concern about the developments in Moldova, calling "on the Government of Moldova, the opposition and the people of Moldova, to refrain from any action that could lead to further escalation of the tensions in the country". EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana
Javier Solana
Francisco Javier Solana de Madariaga, KOGF is a Spanish physicist and Socialist politician. After serving in the Spanish government under Felipe González and Secretary General of NATO , he was appointed the European Union's High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy, Secretary...
called on all parties to the conflict to refrain from violence and provocation. He argued that "violence against government buildings is unacceptable." He added that "international election observers noted in their preliminary findings that the elections met many international standards and commitments, but that further improvements were required." The Party of the European Left
Party of the European Left
The Party of the European Left, commonly abbreviated to just the European Left, is a political party at European level and an association of democratic socialist and communist political parties in the European Union and other European countries. It was formed in January 2004 for the purposes of...
expressed its solidarity to President Voronin, stating that "The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) itself admits the conformity of this election to international standards. Being of course understood the legitimacy and everyone's right to manifest his/her opinion freely, there is though no reason for such violence and destruction inside the parliament building." Marianne Mikko
Marianne Mikko
Marianne Mikko is an Estonian politician and former Member of the European Parliament for the Social Democratic Party, part of the Party of European Socialists....
, member of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
and leader of its Moldova delegation, has called for new elections, emphasising the importance of full enfranchisement among people of Moldova. The European Parliament announced that Moldova would participate in the Eastern Partnership
Eastern Partnership
The Eastern Partnership is a project which was initiated by the European Union . It was presented by the foreign minister of Poland with assistance from Sweden at a the EU's General Affairs and External Relations Council in Brussels on 26 May 2008...
summit in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
on May 7, which will see the EU upgrade relations with Moldova. http://euobserver.com/9/27953 But European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
"strongly condemned the massive campaign of harassment, grave violations of human rights and all other illegal actions carried out by the Moldovan Government in the aftermath of the parliamentary elections." Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
also backed the European Union assessment of concern and urged a cessation of violence. Several thousand Bucharesters gathered in the University Square
University Square, Bucharest
University Square is located in downtown Bucharest, near the University of Bucharest.Four statues are located in the University Square, in front of the University; they depict Ion Heliade Rădulescu , Michael the Brave , Gheorghe Lazăr and Spiru Haret .The square was the site of the 1990 Golaniad,...
to show support for the Moldovan protesters. Hundreds of people also mobilized in the major Romanian cities of Iaşi
Iasi
Iași is the second most populous city and a municipality in Romania. Located in the historical Moldavia region, Iași has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Romanian social, cultural, academic and artistic life...
, Timişoara
Timisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
, Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, Braşov
Brasov
Brașov is a city in Romania and the capital of Brașov County.According to the last Romanian census, from 2002, there were 284,596 people living within the city of Brașov, making it the 8th most populated city in Romania....
, Galaţi
Galati
Galați is a city and municipality in Romania, the capital of Galați County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, in the close vicinity of Brăila, Galați is the largest port and sea port on the Danube River and the second largest Romanian port....
, Craiova
Craiova
Craiova , Romania's 6th largest city and capital of Dolj County, is situated near the east bank of the river Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximately equal distances from the Southern Carpathians and the River Danube . Craiova is the chief...
, Ploieşti
Ploiesti
Ploiești is the county seat of Prahova County and lies in the historical region of Wallachia in Romania. The city is located north of Bucharest....
, Arad
Arad, Romania
Arad is the capital city of Arad County, in western Romania, in the Crişana region, on the river Mureş.An important industrial center and transportation hub, Arad is also the seat of a Romanian Orthodox archbishop and features two universities, a Romanian Orthodox theological seminary, a training...
, Suceava
Suceava
Suceava is the Suceava County seat in Bukovina, Moldavia region, in north-eastern Romania. The city was the capital of the Principality of Moldavia from 1388 to 1565.-History:...
and Bacău
Bacau
Bacău is the main city in Bacău County, Romania. It covers a land surface of 43 km², and, as of January 1, 2009, has an estimated population of 177,087. The city is situated in the historical region of Moldavia, at the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains, and on the Bistriţa River...
, as well as in Petroşani
Petrosani
Petroşani is a city in Hunedoara County, Romania, with a population of 45,447 .-History:The city of Petroşani was founded in the 17th century...
. President Traian Băsescu
Traian Basescu
Traian Băsescu is the current President of Romania. After serving as the mayor of Bucharest from June 2000 until December 2004, he was elected president in the Romanian Presidential Elections of 2004 and inaugurated on December 20, 2004...
said that Moldova is trying to build an "Iron Curtain
Iron Curtain
The concept of the Iron Curtain symbolized the ideological fighting and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1989...
" across the Prut and that Romania will act responsibly toward the "four million Romanians that live in Moldova".
Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Grigory Karasin
Grigory Karasin
Grigory Borisovich Karasin is a career diplomat and is currently the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia,...
, said that Russia is concerned about developments in Moldova, while Alexey Ostrovsky, the Chairman of the Committee of the State Duma
State Duma
The State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
for CIS, accused Western secret services of trying to destabilise CIS countries in order to attract them towards NATO. He also claimed that Romania helps the process in order to swallow Moldova and create a new unified country. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent out this statement on April 8: "Judging by the slogans shouted in the squares, plenty of Romanian flags in the hands of organizers of these outrages, their aim is to discredit the achievements in strengthening the sovereignty of Moldova. The Russian foreign ministry hopes that common sense will prevail, public and constitutional order will be restored in the next few days and the choice of the Moldovan citizens will be confirmed by all politically responsible forces." Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
's Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko
Yuriy Lutsenko
Yuriy Vitaliyovych Lutsenko is a Ukrainian politician and statesman and former Minister of Internal Affairs, he occupied this post in the two Cabinets of Yulia Tymoshenko and in Cabinets of Yuriy Yekhanurov, and Viktor Yanukovych...
announced an increase in patrols along the state border with Moldova. "Right after the events in Chişinău, the Ukrainian police significantly increased its presence along the Ukraine-Moldova state border in Odessa region to prevent the trespassing of armed extremist groups on the territory of Ukraine." Ukrainian police and customs officers arrested two Moldovan citizens for their alleged "involvement in organizing an attempt to overthrow the Moldovan government." They were extradited a week later. United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
State Department spokesman Robert Wood said "we’re calling on the parties to refrain from further violence and resolve their differences peacefully and through peaceful means." In regard to the way the election was handled, Wood declared that the State Department is "still assessing" and that, at the moment of the briefing, "he thinks [...] we basically share that assessment that the OSCE gave." Asif Chaudhry, the US ambassador, stated that "the authorities acted with restraint on Tuesday, as the demonstration in front of the Presidential Palace and the Parliament building went out of control resulting in property damage and injuries. Thus, the potential for more grave consequences was avoided." He also expressed concerns about the arrests that took place after the riot. United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton wrote to president Vladimir Voronin
Vladimir Voronin
Vladimir Nicolaevici Voronin is a Moldovan politician. He was the third President of Moldova from 2001 until 2009 and has been the First Secretary of the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova since 1994...
: "As our Embassy and the Department of State noted in public statements, we condemn the violence which occurred in the days following the election. We believe it would be helpful for your Government to address the concerns that have been raised about the conduct of the election, as well as the treatment of detainees, journalists, and representatives of civil society following the violence" Students and activists hoisted picket signs in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on April 13, to protest the incumbent Communist Party’s victory.
Follow-up
After the civil unrest, the climate in MoldovaMoldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
became very polarized. The parliament
Parliament of the Republic of Moldova
The Parliament of the Republic of Moldova is a unicameral assembly with 101 seats. Its members are elected by popular vote every 4 years. The parliament then elects a president, who functions as the head of state...
failed to elect a new president
Moldovan presidential election, May–June 2009
An indirect presidential election was held in Moldova following the April 2009 parliamentary election.- Overview :The incumbent president, Vladimir Voronin, is term-limited and was elected to become speaker of the Parliament of Moldova in early May 2009; the ruling Party of Communists of the...
. For this reason, the parliament was dissolved and snap elections
Moldovan parliamentary election, July 2009
- Pre-election developments :The country's parliament, elected months earlier, was dissolved by president Vladimir Voronin on 15 June 2009, after it had twice failed to elect a new president....
were held. The July 29 polls
Moldovan parliamentary election, July 2009
- Pre-election developments :The country's parliament, elected months earlier, was dissolved by president Vladimir Voronin on 15 June 2009, after it had twice failed to elect a new president....
were won by the Communist Party with 44.7% of the vote. That gave the former ruling party 48 MPs, and the remaining 53 seats in the 101-member chamber went to four opposition parties. Opposition parties agreed to create the Alliance for European Integration
Alliance for European Integration
The Alliance for European Integration is the ruling coalition in Moldova since the July 2009 election.-Overall context :After April 2009 election and the civil unrest, the climate in Moldova became very polarised. The parliament failed to elect a new president. For this reason, the parliament was...
that pushed the Communist party into opposition. The Communists were in government since 2001.
The original Moldovan Declaration of Independence approved and signed on 27 August 1991 was burned during the civil unrest, but an identical document was restored in 2010.
Legacy
- The book of Stela PopaStela PopaStela Popa is a journalist and author from Moldova. She works for Jurnal TV and Vocea Basarabiei.-Biography:Stela Popa was born on August 7, 1982 in Coşcodeni, Sângerei District. She studied at Prometeu-Prim Lyceum and graduated from Moldova State University...
"100 de zile" (Tritonic, BucharestBucharestBucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, 2010, 464 pages) is dedicated to the events of April 7. - The Monument of LibertyMonument of Liberty, ChişinăuThe Monument of Liberty is a planned monument in Chişinău, Moldova.- Overview :The monument is to be dedicated to the victims of 2009 Moldova civil unrest. Among the deaths were Valeriu Boboc, Ion Ţâbuleac, Eugen Ţapu, and Maxim Canişev.-External links:...
is a planned monument to be dedicated to the victims of 2009 Moldova civil unrest. - The book of Maria-Paula Erizanu, "Aceasta e prima mea revoluţie. Furaţi-mi-o C'est ma première revolution. Volez-la à moi This is my first revolution. Steal it" (Cartier, ChișinăuChisinauChișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
, 2010, 140 pp) is dedicated to the events of April 7. - Publika TVPublika TVPublika TV is a Moldovan news television station.It is news television station in Moldova . It was launched on April 7, 2010.. In Romania Publika TV is carried by TV service of Ilink.-External links:* * *...
was launched on April 7, 2010, to recall the civil unrest.