Amnesty International announces about freedom of speech restriction in Moldova

Freedom of speech restriction is one of the main actions that led in 2005 to violation of human rights in Moldova, the experts of the Organization Amnesty International Moldova (AIM) concluded in their annual report 2006, presented in Chisinau on Tuesday, 23 May. According to AIM executive manager Evgheni Golosceapov, torture and mistreating of arrested persons by policemen, opposition politicians persecution, trafficking in human beings for exploitation, including those of sexual nature are included in the list of violations of human rights. On freedom of speech matters it is mentioned that threatening with serious fines for „moral damage” or „honor and dignity insult” of the person, according to art. 16 of the Civil Code, was used in cases of open defamation against journalists and mass media for publishing critics on politicians and other officials. AIM report mentions especially the example of PPCD chairman and parliament’s deputy chairman Iurie Rosca, who sued at law, on the basis of this article, the newspapers „Timpul de dimineata” and „Jurnal de Chisinau”, requiring compensations of 50,000 and 62,000 euro. AIM report also shows the lack of certain positive developments in the Transnistrian region, where Moldovan citizens Tudor Petrov-Popa and Andrei Ivantoc are still imprisoned, in spite of the decision of the European Court for Human Rights. Concomitantly, AIM mentions that, despite of the increasing number of sentences for human traffic, reported by Moldova, protection of traffic victims is still inappropriate, and the government did not implement the Law on witnesses’ protection. AIM experts refer to resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe where Moldova is called to continue the reform of legal bodies and to improve the arrest conditions, as well as to investigate the multiple cases started against opposition leaders. At the same time, it is welcomed starting the procedure of abolishing definitely at legislative level of sentencing to death, though it was not implemented in RM. In „ Amnesty International Annual Report 2006”, presented in dozens of countries of the world, is mirrored the situation in the field of human rights in 150 countries of the world, on January–December 2005, and other related problems. AI is an independent apolitical organization, pleading for protecting and awareness of fundamental human rights of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It was created in 1961 in Great Britain and has 1.800.000 members in 150 countries of the world.