The Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime and Special Cases (PCCOCS) started a criminal case over the kidnapping of journalists Viorica Tătaru and Andrei Captarenco by representatives of so-called law enforcement bodies on the left side of the Nistru, IPN reports.
“It happened on Wednesday, when the journalist of TV8 channel was documenting a public event in Tiraspol. A group of individuals dressed in the uniform of the so-called “law enforcement bodes” of the self-proclaimed authorities on the left aside of the Nistru approached the reporter and the cameraman. They used force, acted against the will of the victims and kidnapped and transported them to an unknown direction,” PCCOCS said in a press release.
TV8 journalists Viorica Tătaru and Andrei Captarenco were detained on Wednesday in Tiraspol while covering the protest organized by the so-called Transnistria authorities. They were held separately and interrogated for nearly three hours, being forced to remove everything they had filmed at the protest, being later released.
“They made us remove everything we managed to film up to the moment of detention. We don’t have the records of discussions we had with persons. Many people didn’t know why they were there or couldn’t explain the messages written on placards, which somehow intimidated those collaborators. Their first question was: why did you ask them if the message had been written by them or by someone else. They also interrogated us in front of the camera,” related the journalist.
The protest in Tiraspol was organized by the Transnistrian administration against the new provisions of the Customs Code of the Republic of Moldova, according to which all economic agents, including those from the Transnistrian region, will pay customs duties on general principles, taking into account the preferences granted in accordance with international treaties and agreements to which Moldova is a party. According to the official Chisinau, the provisions of the new Customs Code create equal treatment conditions for all companies from both banks of the Nistru. The administration in Tiraspol repeatedly leveled criticisms, noting that the new provisions are “unfriendly” and will losses of tens of millions of dollars to the region.
