PROTESTS PEACEFUL, FOCUS TURNS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CHISINAU 000288 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/UMB E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM MD RO SUBJECT: PROTESTS PEACEFUL, FOCUS TURNS TO POLITICAL FALLOUT Q Summation to April 8 Sensitive but Unclassified. Please Protect Accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Political protest continued April 8, but the crowd remained peaceful, and was much smaller than the previous day. Speeches and slogans continued, but to a much smaller crowd in a relaxed atmosphere. The focus has now turned from the streets to political accusations. Both Russian media and official GOM statements blamed Romanian interference for yesterday's violent events, and relations with Romania have soured significantly. The Romanian Ambassador was declared persona non grata, and President Voronin announced that Romanians will now need visas to enter Moldova. Train service to Romania has been cut for today and tomorrow. Additionally, various political parties are trading accusations, blaming each other for the events. End Summary. A Dwindling Crowd Remained Peaceful -------------- ¶2. (SBU) By mid-day April 8 several thousand protesters had gathered in the main square. The crowd was waving flags and carrying signs, listening to speeches and chanting slogans. As of 5:00 P.M. there were no reports of violence during the day. An afternoon observer noted demonstrators were eating ice cream and police were relaxing and chatting. One incident where protesters near the parliament tried to throw stones was quickly subdued. Some protestors are threatening a violent takeover of the main government building, if the arrested protestors were not released, and if the Central Election Commission (CEC) did not release official results today. ¶3. (SBU) Some of the opposition leaders were trying to keep the focus on elections issues. During one speech Chisinau Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca (and Liberal Party deputy leader) said he was still appealing to the Central Election Commission for a recount and presented an old woman who said she had been paid 200 lei (USD 18) to vote Communist. Chirtoaca said that he also had a lot of other evidence to prove that the vote- count was fraudulent, and called for a repeat election. GOM Blames Romania, Relations Sour -------------- ¶4. (SBU) President Voronin convened rectors, professors, local authorities and NGOs and called on them to stop students from going to protests. He said that complaints about the election results were only a pretext for organizing a coup d'etat masterminded by "foreign secret services." As a result, the Romanian Ambassador was declared persona non grata and a new visa regime was introduced for Romanian citizens. Rail service to Romania was cut off, at least for today and tomorrow. Accusations and Counter-Accusations -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The GOM has officially blamed opposition leaders Chirtoaca, Urechean and Filat for the violence. PLDM leader Vlad Filat, accused PCRM and PPCD (Christian Democrats, in coalition with the PCRM) of devastating the Presidency CHISINAU 00000288 002 OF 002 and the Parliament buildings in order to distract people's attention from electoral frauds. In addition, opposition leader Filat said in an April 8 press conference, that the previous day's vandalism was organized by 50 members of the "New Generation" Organization of the PPCD. Filat claimed that these actions were possible only with the support of the police and the Service Information and Security (intelligence agency),which should have prevented the violence, but did not. PPCD leader Iurie Rosca said the events were orchestrated according to a Russian plan, and accused ex-president Petru Lucinschi of involvement in its organization. (Note: We've heard elsewhere that President Voronin is also accusing Lucinschi of organizing the events.) Comment -------------- ¶6. (SBU) By focusing on the Romanian angle, the GOM is shifting the focus away from opposition complaints of electoral fraud. The most effective way to put to bed the allegations of fraud would be to allow a recount, publish data by polling station to show how national totals were calculated, and review voter lists. By shifting blame to Bucharest, the government can try to avoid addressing the accusation of electoral fraud. A souring of Moldova's relations with Romania will also jeopardize Moldova's interactions with the EU. The Russians have joined in the accusations against the Romanians, allying with Voronin's suspicions. The Russians are driving Voronin back into their waiting arms. Any appearance that the Moldovan population desires unification with Romania (as a few protestors have chanted) could help put the brakes on the 5-plus-2 process. As Russia plays on the perception that Moldova wants reunification, the Transnistrians will have a greater excuse for refusing to come to the table. CHAUDHRY