War of 1992 was a foolish war, Campaign Journals

[Info-Prim Neo article from the series “20 years of the start of the war. When should we expect peace?”] When the war on the Nistru began, Vasile Batrincea from Corjova, Dubasari worked at the Dubasari Police Commissariat. He worked as a police officer responsible for several villages. He was 32, was married and had two children aged five and nine. Everything started with the demonstrations staged in Dubasari in September 1991. There were brought troops of guard members and Cossacks. They prepared for war. ”The Nistru war of 1992 was a foolish war. It wasn’t a war between people, but a foolish policy pursued by the then administration, which still negatively affects the residents of those settlements,” said Vasile Batrincea. He stated that if such a war repeats, there will be a natural reaction as everybody will have to defend their land and homes, but not many would want to take part in such a foolish war. “We often meet our war adversaries. We remember how we fought against each other and realize that we made a foolish mistake,” said Vasile Batrincea. [The first casualties appeared in 1991] The year 1991 saw the first victims. The Cossacks and guard members surrounded the Dubasari Police Commissariat. They drove the employees away and took some of them hostage. The special police brigade of Chisinau soon came to give help. A police post in Dubasari was occupied by the Tiraspol guard members. In the attempt to free the traffic police post, three policemen of the special brigade were wounded fatally. Vasile Batrincea said there was disquiet in the town after that incident. The Cossacks and the guard members caught police officers and held them in basements. After the authorities held a meeting at the end of December, peace established until March next year. “There was a clash between the police and the guard members on the night of March 2. The militia head was shot dead. It was a provocation aimed at besieging the building of the commissariat. I was at home, but went there immediately. A large part of the employees had been arrested and taken to basements in Tiraspol, where they were beaten and locked,” said the man. According to Vasile Batrincea, the guard members were well-prepared, while the police had only guns and rubber nightsticks. The police of Dubasari withdrew to Cocieri village. When the guard members found out about this, they went to Cocieri with two armored vehicles and tried to occupy the military unit. The police officers built up a front line in Cocieri. There were set up several police posts. Groups of volunteers came from the neighboring villages. [Many people died in the fields while hoeing] ”Many people who did not want to take the side of the guard members were killed. The people were caught and mutilated. In spring, they were to cultivate the land. Many persons died in the fields while hoeing. The people were scared. In the spring of 1993, after the war, the tractors took bodies out when plowing,” said the war participant. The Cossacks and the guard members had tanks and cannons with which they attacked from a distance. Many areas and roads were mined. They threw grenades and passersby were killed. The police officers of the post went home for several hours once a month. Vasile Batrincea remembered that a volunteer went home to see his mother and was found mutilated near the fence of his house. There was an unbearable atmosphere in villages. The people were afraid to go out as there were roars everywhere. Vasile Batrincea was close to losing his five-year-old daughter. Grenade splinters passed very near her, but she escaped death. “Every year on March 2, we meet to remember those who passed away. Combatants from different organizations and districts come to the commemoration. Unfortunately, our efforts weren’t appreciated,” said the man. In July, the authorities signed a ceasefire agreement. After the Nistru war of 1992, Dubasari district was divided into two – a part is controlled by the constitutional authorities of Moldova, while another part by the separatist authorities of Tiraspol. The villages controlled by Chisinau are: Cocieri, Vasilievca, Corjova, Cosnita, Pohrebea, Dorotcaia, Holercani, Marcaurti, Molovata, Molovata Noua, Roghi, Oxentea, Pirita, and Ustia. The villages controlled by the separatists are: Comisarovca Noua, Bosca, Cosnita Noua, Pohrebea Nouă, Krasnyi Vinogradari, Afanasievca, Alexandrovca Nouă, Calinovca, Lunga Noua, Doibani I, Doibani II, Coicova, Dubau, Goianul Nou, Dzerjinscoe, Iagorlyk, Harmatca, Lunga, Tibuleuca, and Goian. [Elena Nistor, Info-Prim Neo]