Harassment against civil society representatives has increased in frequency as NGOs are being intimidated and discouraged from carrying out their activities. Representatives of a number of NGOs held a press conference today to convey a message of solidarity, emphasizing the role of civil society as an important partner in advancing democracy.
Ilie Chirtoacă, of the Legal Resource Center, said the attacks include vilification in the media. “There are articles in the media, from politicians among others, who attack us on the way we work. We can see that often such actions take the form of articles published concertedly on certain portals with slightly altered headlines but identical content. In some cases those people have access to private information, which is very concerning”, said Ilie Chirtoacă.
Arcadie Barbăroșie, executive director of the Public Policy Institute, said civil society are citizens’ organizations that are there to protect people against potential government abuse. Amid increasing pressure, says Barbăroșie, civil society has split into NGOs that truly represent citizens’ interests, and organizations that align themselves with the government agenda. It has become known recently that several such GONGOs were awarded funding by the State Chancellery for research activity. “We are just a mirror that reflects citizens’ opinion. Admittedly, there could be errors and we accept them. However, we try to be as objective as possible”, said Arcadie Barbăroșie.
Veaceslav Tofan, executive director of Amnesty International Moldova, said the problem of harassment against NGOs is a global problem. Some examples include Russia, Turkey and even the EU member Hungary, where NGOs face unprecedented attacks. In Moldova, attacks against AI Moldova and other NGOs have intensified in particular after the deportation of a group of Turkish teachers last September, which was denounced by many as illegal.
Ion Manole, executive director of Promo-LEX, said that last year the organization and its election observation mission faced intimidation. This was discussed with relevant actors and Ion Manole hopes the issues will be ironed out. Manole believes a healthy environment of cooperation and mutual respect is needed between NGOs and the authorities.
“We are in favor of a strategic partnership between the government and civil society organizations. Obviously we condemn the attacks that have intensified in the last two years. We don’t think this helps to build a democratic society and overall develop the country. Once again, we want a culture of dialog and mutual respect so that we can contribute to our country’s growth”, stated Tatiana Savva, of the Expert-Grup think-tank.