Human rights in Moldova – ignored between two polls

A recently presented report prepared by several human rights NGOs says that 700 persons were detained by the police after the April 7 events. But the figures presented by the central authorities are 2-3 times lower. Human right experts say that the fundamental human rights have been massively violated between the April 5 elections and the coming early polls set for July 29. [(In)action or actions of the police can be condemned] Sergiu Ostaf, executive director of the Resource Center of NGOs for Human Rights (CreDO), says that there are sufficient proofs that the police did not take action to facilitate the holding of the April 7 protest, especially in the area between the Parliament and the Presidential Office, so that everything went smooth. Different actions by the police sparked violence. There is no other evidence to draw other conclusions, but we can speak about the incompetence of the law enforcement bodies. The role of the police was clear: to act in order to prevent the escalation of the situation, but this did not happen. Ion Manole, president of Promo-LEX Association, considers that the authorities represented by the police had an abnormal behavior. “Instead of taking measures to defend the state buildings, the police incited to crowd to destruction. It is not yet known who destroyed the buildings. No persons that participated in the devastation were identified among the victims that asked for help. The victims are persons that did not take part in the acts of vandalism.” Veronique North-Minca, First Secretary of the Embassy of France in Moldova, stated that even if she is not an expert to trenchantly say if the human rights have been respected or not in this period, there are enough examples that clearly show that certain rights have not been observed, as for instance the right to move freely on the street. “I mean those that were violently taken away in the middle of the day from behind certain buildings in Chisinau – MP Valentina Cusnir or journalist Oleg Brega for example. There were reported cases when persons taken from the street to police stations had been missing for several days. For me, such cases are evident cases of violation of the human rights. Another worrisome fact is the detention of certain persons for many months without having proofs. They have not yet presented clear evidence to demonstrate that those persons deserve being held in penitentiaries. Many accusations were made against many persons, but no proofs were provided. Simply the words cannot prove the guilt. Only an independent investigation commission can establish who is to blame,” said Veronique North-Minca. [The most violated human rights: all of them] “I was kidnapped, illegally arrested, maltreated and held in the remand center,” said Iurie Craciuneac, president of the Association for Combating Informational Isolation, who repeatedly declared he had been ill-treated. “I was placed under arrest, banned from leaving the settlement. I could not do my job anymore. After the April 7 events, I had to show the identity card and write a statement, saying where and why I go every time I wanted to leave Cahul, where I have my domicile. Thus, my right to free movement was violated, not mentioning the right to free expression as they shut me up every time I wanted to speak. “Before April 7, I personally considered that I have rights in Moldova. Afterward, I convinced myself that practically no right is being observed,” Craciuneac said. [Fear prevents people from protesting] Ion Manole says that after the events that followed April 5 elections, the people are afraid to take part in any kind of assemblies. Such a conclusion was reached after a campaign aimed at informing the people about the anti-torture week. ”I noticed that the people are afraid to take part in such events. On the other hand, certain media outlets misinform the people and make them hate those that participate in rallies. The population does not have a culture and an appropriate behavior because it was educated so by the mass media with national coverage. Those that used torture and suppressed the peaceful protests achieved their goals. Not many assemblies were held after April 7,” the expert said. But there are also courageous persons. Iurie Craciuneac says that nothing will make him renounce his constitutional rights. “If the assemblies are peaceful and aim to influence the public opinion so that the human rights are observed, why should I be deprived of the rights that I have as citizen of this country?” he asked. [Post Factum] There were many cases of maltreatment, but few of them were investigated. Sergiu Ostaf said that the significant difference between the number of arrests documented by NGOs from different sources, including official, and the number of those investigated by the authorities shows that the law was not observed in many situations. The arrests were not reported to the Ministry of the Interior for different reasons. It is hard to explain such a phenomenon, the CReDO director added. [Scenario for after July 29] If the scenario repeats after the July 29 elections, things will develop in the same way, experts say. “The developments that followed the April elections make us think that the state did not learn the lesson and is not ready to respect the human rights in accordance with the Constitution of Moldova, the national legislation and international documents,” Ion Manole said. His opinion is shared by Sergiu Ostaf, who said that no official was discharged from the law enforcement bodies following the April events. Therefore, those actions and reactions could repeat. He explained the lack of reaction by the fact that the police was systemically engaged in the detention and mistreatment of the people and violation of their rights. “The number of such violations is larger than all the violations committed during the last two years. This shows that something happened and the politicians, together with the administration of the Ministry, consented to such actions on the part of the police,” the CReDO director said. “If the police system worked normally and presuming that the first time the police acted benevolently, but it did not have enough powers, if such a situation repeats after July 29, the police should act more efficiently and ensure the observance of the human rights at public assemblies – access to equipment. If we assume that the April 7 events stemmed from political pressure exerted on the police so that they left the situation to degrade, there are reasons to believe that such events could repeat,” Sergiu Ostaf said. According to him, the system is very vulnerable to political influence. If the politicians intervened in the police system once, this could happen again. [French lesson] For the French official, the situation is yet unclear and open to question. “In France, which has traditions as regards the assemblies, the agitators and provokers are recognized immediately as they have a different behavior. “The major difference between the violence here and there is that two buildings were destroyed in Chisinau, nothing more. There were luxury cars, a cinema, kiosks, the bus station nearby. It is strange that they were not destroyed. In France, they would have destroyed everything around. “It is weird that the vandals in Chisinau attacked only two buildings and nothing else. I cannot explain this ‘selectivity’. The violent persons usually destroy everything. If they are vandals, they are true vandals. It seems that in Chisinau, certain individuals were instructed do destroy only certain things. It is the only conclusion I can draw,” the official said. “In addition, if the building of the Senate or the Elysée Palace burned in France, no one would have access to the areas nearby. The police would be there to hinder the vandals from entering the building, while the firefighters would be on the spot immediately. It is hard to understand what and how it happened,” Veronique North-Minca added. [Still living hopes] Torture can be justified in no way and in no situation, experts say in unanimity. Those that probe and those that were victims regret that the authorities do not want to admit that Moldova witnessed cases of maltreatment and torture after the April 5 elections. Veronique North-Minca said that the people in France, in Moldova and in the whole world must have freedom of expression, a right that the state should guarantee. Iurie Craciuneac hopes that the July 29 elections will radically change the situation, in Moldova if the current administration of the country is removed.