Alliance of Orthodox Associations prepares Great National Assembly

The Alliance of Orthodox Associations warns it will stage a Great National Assembly if the authorities do not satisfy their demands, Info-Prim Neo reports. The Alliance requested the Government, the Ministry of Justice and the UN Representative Office in Moldova to set up a metropolitan-governmental commission that will consist of representatives named by the Synod of the Orthodox Church of Moldova and the Government, who would work out a mechanism for enforcing paragraph 5 of Article 15 of the Law on Denominations, which says that the state recognizes the special importance and major role of the Christian-Orthodox religion and, respectively, of the Orthodox Church of Moldova in the life, history and culture of the Moldovan people. The Alliance also demanded rejecting the antidiscrimination bill and adjusting the legislation of Moldova to the Christian values of the people. In the meeting with the protesters, the Government’s representative Victor Lutenko, adviser to Prime Minister Vlad Filat, said the executive has a serious attitude towards their demands and the situation will be analyzed. “They made promises earlier too, but we are patient. If they ignore us this time again, we will organize a Great National Assembly and take other measures allowed by the Christian religion,” said Ghenadie Valuta, chairman of the Alliance of Orthodox Associations of Moldova. About 1,000 faithful people and Church officials protested Friday in front of the Government, the Ministry of Justice and the UN Representative Office in Chisinau. They expressed their disagreement about the registration of the Islamic league in Moldova and about the antidiscrimination bill.