European integration is a point of convergence in Moldovan society, and the authorities need to do more to explain the benefits of European integration in order to create social cohesion around this national project, said the political pundit Igor Boțan during an IPN debate on Monday.
In Moldova, the pundit noted, there are several points of divergence that antagonize society, one of them being the identity aspect. According to him, since Moldova declared independence, the topic of identity has been intensively debated, and following discussions, the number of people who identify as Romanians has increased.
“The authorities and society must be very cautious about the potential negative effects of radicalization. We need discussions, debates, because we also have the identity problem of Romanians vs Moldovans. It is a problem that persists since the declaration of Independence. But we see calm, natural developments. Over one million of the citizens of Moldova have regained their Romanian citizenship, so they agree that they are Romanians. If we look at opinion polls, 15 years ago there were 15%, and now there are almost 40% who would accept reunification with Romania. The question arises: why was the unification of Russian lands, starting with Ivan III, a positive historical process? Why was the unification of more than 300 German states in the second half of the 19th century a positive process? Why would the union of the Romanian provinces be a negative process? All these things must be discussed”, said the series’ standing expert, Igor Boțan.
He went on to explain that European integration is a subject that has the potential to strengthen society. According to the expert, the authorities of Moldova should do more to explain the benefits of joining the EU, so that the whole society is strengthened around this national project.
“For society not to become radicalized and prevent bad things from happening, we need discussions, debates. We are all different, we have different aspirations, but through discussions we can find compromise solutions, and prevent the radicalization of society. Regarding future aspirations, the only point of convergence is European integration, since 11 legislatures that we have had, all governments, without exception, after the Sangheli Government, have promoted European integration. It is the only event in Moldova when there was consensus at Parliament level, with all 101 deputies voting for the Declaration for European Integration. This is an argument that must be used by the authorities of Moldova to persistently promote European integration. The authorities must explain to the citizens why European integration is important for the economic and social development of Moldova and for protecting the country and increasing its security”, Igor Boțan added.
Igor Boțan explained that Moldova’s stability is endangered by political groups that act to the detriment of the national interest and by people who want to destabilize the country and antagonize society.
“The situation is complicated because we have an aggressor state in the region and we have a criminal group led by a man sentenced to 15 years in prison who pulls the strings. He tells us explicitly that he has 250 million dollars at his disposal to destabilize Moldova, but as he says, for social projects. Which must alarm us all and, above all, the competent authorities to combat this phenomenon. So, there are many problems for social cohesion in Moldova and for stability in the country”, Igor Boțan pointed out.
This was the 313th installment of the Political Culture Series, run by IPN with the support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
