Another double arrest in much-disputed Corjova village

Two public works employees in Corjova village were arrested on Saturday, March 26, by the Transnistrian militia for no apparent reason as the men were installing playground equipment. Corjova Mayor Valeriu Mitsul has told Info-Prim Neo that the incident occurred at around 10:00am when the two men, both aged 25, were installing a couple of swings in the central part of the village. They were suddenly disrupted by Transnistrian militiamen, who took the workers away in an unknown direction. “Now we know that they were taken to the militia station, where they are being intimidated. They were aggressed and their tools were tossed all around. Then they were taken away by the militiamen without any explanations whatsoever”, said the mayor. Valeriu Mitsul added that he contacted the local police chief, who came to the scene and is now trying to get in touch with the peacekeeping body – the Joint Control Commission (JCC) – to settle the issue, so far unsuccessfully. Mayor Valeriu Mitsul and a local councilman, Iurie Cotsofan, were also arrested earlier this month by the Transnistrian militia during an event commemorating the 1992 Nistru war deaths. The local officials spent several days behind bars on public disorder charges before being released with the joint effort of the Moldovan authorities, civil society and international actors involved in the Transnistrian settlement process. The village of Corjova is located on the eastern side of the Nistru River but is under the jurisdiction of the Chisinau authorities. Under the 1992 Moldova-Russia ceasefire agreement, Corjova together with several other villages has been placed in a buffer zone, commonly known as the Security Zone, which is controlled by the JCC. The trilateral Commission, which includes Moldovan, Russian and Transnistrian peacekeepers, has been largely criticized by Moldovan civil society for repeatedly failing to promptly and adequately respond to incidents occurring in the Zone, including in the village of Corjova.