The Ribbon of Saint George has different meanings for the residents of Moldova and can cause dissention. The executive director of the Association for Participatory Democracy (ADEPT) Igor Botan, in the public debate “Ribbon of Saint George that unites and divides: motives and solutions”, said that for him this ribbon means whether you are with Europe or with Russia. The public debate was staged by IPN News Agency in cooperation with Radio Moldova.
Igor Botan, who is the project’s permanent expert, said that when we speak about symbolic things, we must understand that the symbols can create particular tension and there are significances hiding behind symbols. “This symbol – the Ribbon of Saint George – causes dissatisfaction among some, while for others it is an element for which they will show devotion. The people cannot be banned from wearing this ribbon and from showing thus their wish for Moldova to be near Russia. Another idea is that this symbol is associated with the separatist movement in Ukraine. It became popular after the President of Russia in 2007 said that the country will pursue a policy to restore Russia as a global power. Everything now depends on what we have in Moldova and we have here a number of geo-political not political parties that promote an integration course and everything depends on the wisdom of politicians here,” he said.
Igor Botan also said that until 2005 the Ribbon of Saint George wasn’t mentioned. That year the Russian journalists affiliated to the power launched this symbol. “Until 2008, this ribbon was used here and there, but in 2008 started to be used broadly. The association with the renaissance of that great Russia is evident. For me this ribbon means whether you are with Europe or with Russia and for the ordinary people it means the same. We cannot ban the people from using it. It is also a symbol showing that those who wear it are for the restoration of that great Russia and for Moldova being near Russia. Those who see a danger in this had six years to bring things in Moldova to normality. If we are angry with these symbols, it means we are angry with ourselves,” he stated.
The ADEPT executive director added that the Ribbon of Saint George should not be banned, but we must understand the reasons why this symbol is promoted and why such things happen in society so as to know how to act further.
The public debate “Ribbon of Saint George that unites and divides: motives and solutions” is the 38th of the series of debates “Developing political culture through public debates”, organized by IPN with support from the German foundation “Hanns Seidel”.
