Members of the Civic Platform “Dignity and Truth” said peaceful protesters are persecuted and intimidated by law enforcement bodies controlled by the oligarchic system. In a news conference at IPN, members of the Platform “Dignity and Truth” and of the Great National Assembly Council said they will not abandon the protesters and will not permit their arrest.
Valentin Dolganiuc, one of the leaders and founders of the Platform, said the members of the Great National Assembly Council signed a statement which says that namely the wrongdoings of the government, such as the ignoring of protesters’ demands, corruption of MPs and illegal vote for the Government, made the people take to the streets. Now the police persecute the protesters, trying thus to intimidate them. “The attempt to arrest the protesters is equal to the limitation of the constitutional right to protest,” he stated.
In its statement, the Council demands that the development partners and embassies working in Chisinau should follow attentively the way in which the legitimate right to protest is being restricted. The people are urged not to yield to provocations and intimidation by the government. The Council considers Minister of the Interior Alexandru Jizdan and the chief of the General Police Inspectorate Gheorghe Cavcaliuc should be dismissed for the brutality with which the protesters were attacked during the vote for the Government.
Vasile Nastase, another leader and founder of the Platform, said the police made public huge sums of money at which the damage caused by protesters in the Parliament Building on January 20 was assessed, but these figures are not true. Protesters’ leaders will support each of the protesters till the end and will not allow these to be arrested because they protest to say their sorrow.
Platform member Liviu Vovc said the people, even if they are out of patience, always protested peacefully during the demonstrations staged by the Platform. “Our protesters will not devastate public institutions and will not attack the police,” he stated. He added that the mass media controlled by politician Vlad Plahotniuc present distorted information, saying the protesters weren’t peaceful. The Platform members are preparing a model application form that will be filled out by all those who want to subscribe to the request for the Broadcasting Coordination Council to withdraw the licenses of the TV channels that do not present the truth.
Platform members Andrei Nastase said that Romania is now following attentively the developments in Moldova and the protesters are waiting for drastic measures and requirements on the part of the Romanian authorities for providing assistance to Moldova.
The deadline set by the protesters for the authorities to initiate early parliamentary elections expires on January 28. If this demand is not satisfied, the Platform “Dignity and Truth” will resort to more drastic protest measures, which will be decided in a Civic Forum on January 29.
