The MPs had a dispute over the language they speak. The Liberals asked that only Romanian should be spoken in Parliament, while the Communists insisted on Russian, saying Moldova is a multiethnic country and Russian is the communication language of the ethnic minorities, IPN reports.
Presenting a relevant bill, the rapporteur answered in Russian a question put by the Communist MP Oleg Reidman. Liberal MP Valeriu Munteanu asked the rapporteur to speak the official language because there are interpreters in Parliament who are paid to translate the speeches into Russian.
In reaction, Oleg Reidman went onto the central rostrum and spoke to the MPs in Russian, French, English and Romanian, saying he will speak all the languages he knows, especially Russian.
His faction colleague Eduard Musuc said the Liberal lawmakers at every sitting press the rapporteurs into speaking the official language. He underlined that Moldova is a multiethnic state and Russian is known and spoken by the majority of the population. He requested the Speaker to ban the xenophobic statements, naming the Liberal leader Mihai Ghimpu fascist.
Mihai Ghimpu replied that there is only one official language in Moldova, while the other languages were official during the Soviet period. He called on the Communists to moderate their Russian aspirations or to go to Crimea. He added that the Liberal Party will put forward a bill that will ban persons who do not know Romanian from applying for the seat of MP.
