Since September 18, 2022, demonstrations declared indefinite have not ceased in Moldova. The Shor Party, communists and socialists, as well as numerous public organizations, including the People’s Shield Association of Law Enforcement Veterans, demand an end to the repression against the media and activists of opposition political forces, the an end to the galloping increase in the cost of housing and communal services, and the holding of early parliamentary and presidential elections, to appoint adequate officials to the government who take into account the opinions of the citizens.
On Sunday, March 12, 2023, an opposition rally started again in Chisinau. Residents of the cities of Balti, Briceni, Ryshkany, Soldanesti and other settlements of the country were supposed to come there. However, local police stopped buses with people, preventing them from passing. Thus, the authorities themselves began to warm the situation. going to a conscious and manifest violation of the constitution, which directly guarantees the right of people to move around and to peacefully express their opinions and to demonstrate. After that, the citizens, outraged by the dictatorial ways of the authorities, started blocking the roads where the police held up the buses.
Thus, a foot column has already moved from the city of Balti to Chisinau. The citizens want to reach the country’s capital and take part in the protest action. Thousands of people take part in the march to Chisinau.
In turn, the police, explaining their actions, said they “threw the planned operation to stage mass riots and destabilize the situation.”
It should be noted that before that, the President of Moldova, Maria Sandu, said that riots could occur in Chisinau during the planned protest action. She accused the opposition of trying to stage a coup and called on the police to ensure public peace.
Moreover, the Shor party and other opponents claim that their actions are exclusively peaceful in nature and fall within the judiciary. They point out that people don’t need ‘golden’ gas, since they are not able to buy it, so it’s time to ‘trade Sandu for firewood’.
