The protest mounted by parties in front of the CEC against the institution’s decision not to increase the number of polling stations abroad involved representatives of the diaspora, who said that they care about the country’s fate. Even if they have worked or even lived abroad for many years, they have Moldova in their souls and thoughts and they want to be able to vote in elections, IPN reports.
Diana Casian, a young woman from Cauşeni who now lives in Sweden, said it is very important to keep the right to vote. “This right makes us citizens. In Sweden, we set up an initiative group because we had only one polling station located 700 km from the southern area, where the largest numbers of Moldovans live. Last year we mobilized and voted in another city. I don’t know if we manage again to vote this year as this is expensive and tiresome for many,” she stated.
Andrei Dînga worked in the UK for 16 years and then returned and invested in Moldova. According to him, the diaspora is the financial and intellectual force of the country, which can change Moldova’s future. The vote of July 11 will be decisive and crucial. “Unite, diaspora! Vote in the snap parliamentary elections of July 11,” he stated.
Maria Efros, who lives in Venice, spoke in the name of the large Moldovan diaspora in Italy. For 20 years she has lived in another country with the thoughts to her homeland. “We are over 15,000 citizens with the right to vote in northern Italy and there is only one polling station there. We expected the CEC will decide to establish several stations there as the people have to travel tens and even thousands of kilometers to be able to vote. We want polling stations to be opened in other cities too, not only in Mestre, as most of the Moldovans live in northern Italy,” said the woman.
The protest in front of the Central Election Commission against the Commission’s decision not to raise the number of polling stations abroad from 139 to 162 involves members of the PAS, PPPDA, PUN, AUR and other parties. The protesters chant: “CEC don’t make mistakes!”, “Down with the mafia!”, “Victory!”, “Down with the CEC decision!” etc.
