Pensioners resume protests, UPDATE

After a five-day pause, the pensioners Thursday resumed the protests against the rise in water and sewerage charges and the annulment of concessions on trips by public means of transport, as they promised. Elderly persons gathered in front of the Chisinau City Hall though they earlier announced they will stage new protests in the Great National Assembly Square. Police officers in uniform and in civies formed a human chain around the protesters so as not to allow them to block the traffic, Info-Prim Neo reports. The protesters chant “Down with the Fascism!”, “Down with the Genocide!”, “Shame on the Municipal Council!”. “We announced we will protest in the Great National Assembly Square, but yesterday evening the police banned protests there,” said protest organizer Maia Laguta, the head of NGO “Salvgardare”. She expressed her dissatisfaction with the fact that the local authorities did nothing for the pensioners since the protests were suspended. “How does the Chisinau City Hall work?” she asked from the megaphone. [UPDATE] In a letter to the head of NGO “Salvgardare”, Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca says that the protests planned for October 8 and 9 cannot be held in the announced place as access to certain zones and streets, including Stephan the Great Blvd., will be limited in connection with the CIS summit held in Chisinau. Iurie Crijanovschi, the head of the Public Order Division, tried to persuade the pensioners to abandon the protesters, but unsuccessfully. The pensioners said they will protest all day long, but will not block the street. They stressed they will continue protesting until the Municipal Council annuls the decision. An old woman told the protesters their actions were unjustified. She was named 'traitor' and 'Romanian' and was forced to leave. [UPDATE] The protests go on. Maia Laguta said they will continue on October 9 as well. “I was not arrested this morning only because I was surrounded by pensioners and the police officers could not get to me,” she said. [UPDATE] Deputy police commissioner of Centru district Lilian Luca has told Info-Prim Neo that on Wednesday evening Laguta received the given letter and promised she will try Thursday to convince the pensioners and other participants to postpone the protests. He said Laguta will not be arrested as she committed minor violations. Pensioners' protests started on September 29 and were suspended on October 2. The organizers said the protests will be resumed when the CIS Summit will open in Chisinau in order to make them resounding.