SOME 10,000 GATHER FOR PEACEFUL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 CHISINAU 000301 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/UMB E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM MD SUBJECT: SOME 10,000 GATHER FOR PEACEFUL OPPOSITION PROTEST Q Weekend April 11-12 Sitrep Sensitive but Unclassified. Please Protect Accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) Summary: On Sunday April 12 an estimated 7-10,000 people gathered for a peaceful demonstration in support of the opposition. The demands have largely shifted from the initial elections-related demands to concerns for the well-being of those arrested in connection with the violent April 7 demonstrations that damaged the Parliament and Presidency buildings. One 23- year old was reported to have died in police custody from beatings, and there are numerous reports of police brutality. The Ambassador signed a statement along with EU Ambassadors expressing concern about reports of ill treatment of detainees. The Constitutional Court ruled on April 12 that the Central Election Commission (CEC) has nine days (including Sunday) to carry out a recount. This recount also includes an examination of voter lists as demanded by the opposition. End Summary. Peaceful Sunday Demonstration Draws Thousands -------------- ¶2. (SBU) An estimated 7-10,000 people gathered Sunday April 12 for a demonstration organized by the three main opposition parties. Many of the people (about one-sixth of the crowd) were carrying flowers or branches, which was partially related to the fact that Sunday was Orthodox Palm Sunday and also because the organizers urged participants to bring flowers as a sign of their peaceful intentions. People with white scarves around their necks were scattered through the group, to help, to answer questions and to ensure that the event stayed peaceful. As compared with April 7's demonstration, which was predominantly youth, Sunday's group was predominantly adults and a scattering of young families with children. They assembled peacefully, listened peacefully to the speeches, and disbursed in a rapid and orderly fashion when the event was declared to have finished. ¶3. (SBU) The demonstration speeches concluded after three hours with the adoption of a joint declaration. This official joint declaration, which had been adopted by the three main opposition leaders Chirtoaca, Filat and Urechean, was then adopted unanimously by the crowd by raising hands. The declaration blamed President Voronin, Speaker Lupu and Prime Minsiter Greceanii �A;for having installed a criminal regime and called upon them to stop arresting and torturing citizens. The declaration called upon them to release the "children" arrested, and provide information about those who had disappeared whose names were not on the lists. The declaration called upon the U.S. and the EU to come to their assistance and support stopping the arrests and torture. With the adoption of this declaration the demonstration was declared to have ended. ¶4. (U) During the demonstration, the main opposition leaders all spoke. Liberal Democrat (PLDM) leader Vlad Filat accused President Voronin of trying to drive a wedge between Moldova and Europe. He spoke at length about the arrests and beatings of "children" in custody, accusing the government of beating these "children" to death. A reporter from Jurnal de Chisinau addressed the crowd saying that journalists are in fear, as newspaper people have been arrested, and he announced that they have requested the U.S. Embassy to grant asylum. Liberal Party (PL) leader Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca's speech said that this was the first demonstration organized by opposition political parties, thus making clear the difference between Sunday's events and April ¶7. He also stated that one 23-year old died as a result of police beatings. Opposition Leaders Discuss Arrests with Ambassador -------------- -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Opposition leaders Chirtoaca, Filat and Urechean requested an urgent meeting with the CHISINAU 00000301 002 OF 003 Ambassador on Saturday April 11. They reported that some 200 youth were now under arrest and being held under terrible conditions. They were concerned that many of the youth had been beaten or tortured, and asked the Ambassador to try to intervene. Earlier in the day they had met with the EU Ambassadors to make the same request. They also held a press conference in which they said that the arrested youth were "being forced to testify that politicians paid them money in order to participate in rallies". Filat said that many of the relatives of those arrested do not know where they are, are not allowed to speak to lawyers, while judges come to police commissariats to issue arrest warrants." The leader of the Moldova Noastra Alliance, Serafim Urechean, called those arrested "political prisoners of the Communist dictatorship." One Arrested Participant Reported Dead from Beatings -------------- -------------- -- ¶5. (U) Infotag and other media report that a 23- year-old youth, Valeriu Boboc, who took part in the mass protest rallies in the centre of Chisinau on April 7-8, died. The parents said they took Valeriu's body, full of bruises, from the morgue on Sunday April 12. Valeriu was married and has a one-and-a-half year old baby. The news reports quote the young man's parents saying that "after the protest rallies, Valeriu Boboc was arrested, severely beaten by police, and as a result he died." The authorities are claiming that he died of smoke inhalation while inside the burning parliament building. Ambassador's Comments in the Press -------------- ¶6. (SBU) President Voronin's press service released a statement about the president's meeting with Ambassador Chaudhry on Friday April 10. The official report was very appreciative of the American Ambassador's understanding of the realities in Moldova. However, the president's statement failed to mention that a significant portion of the meeting was devoted to the Ambassador's concerns about the arrests of youth and journalists and the use of violence against them. ¶7. (SBU) In an April 11 interview with Infotag, the Ambassador made USG concerns clear to the Moldovan public, saying that: "We are concerned about the measures taken after the protests returned to a peaceful mode and I expressed this concern directly to President Voronin. We are concerned particularly about detention of journalists and students without apparent basis, and about pressures on teachers to prevent their students from participation in demonstrations. We received direct complaints from journalists who told us about intimidation. We saw credible TV reports about cases when journalists and students had been detained and beaten. Such cases, including mistreatment and intimidation of journalists or any other citizen, should not take place in a democracy." Ambassador Signs Joint Statement with EU Ambassadors -------------- -------------- -- ¶8. (SBU) On April 12 Ambassador Chaudhry signed a joint statement together with the Czech Ambassador Petr Kypr Czech Presidency on behalf of all EU Ambassadors accredited in Moldova and the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe to Moldova Kalman Miszei. The Joint Statement was addressed to President Voronin with copies to Prime Minister Greceanii and Foreign Minister Andrei Stratan. The statement expressed concerns about the alleged ill treatment of detainees: BEGIN TEXT: We wish to refer to the violent events which took place in Chisinau in the week beginning 6 April 2009. In this context, we would like to reiterate once again our deepest CHISINAU 00000301 003 OF 003 condemnation of a any act of violence, as well as the importance of the inalienable right of assembly of peaceful demonstrators. In the last few days, our embassies have received worrying reports of alleged ill treatment of detainees, lack of access to legal support and other serious violations of human rights. We are in particular concerned by the possibility that some minors may also have been the victims of such repressive measures, as well as of lack of adequate information for their families. We kindly request that you issue necessary instructions to investigate these allegations and make sure that the activities of the police and security forces are carried out in strict compliance with the principles of rule of law and with the international commitments subscribed to by the Republic of Moldova. END TEXT. The Constitutional Court Approves Recount -------------- ¶9. (SBU) The Constitutional Court ruled on Sunday April 12 that the Central Election Commission (CEC) has 9 days, starting Sunday, to recount the votes. The Court's decision cannot be appealed. According to Constitutional Court Chairman Dumitru Pulbere, the recount also includes an examination of voter lists as demanded by the opposition. In a note to the Constitutional Court which is responsible for the recount, three members of the CEC outlined violations to electoral legislation. They said that the voter lists supplied to the CEC by the Ministry of Information Technologies were outdated and included people who died 20 years ago. Furthermore, this note said that the addresses of voters on the lists were incorrect, which allowed for multiple voting. Comment -------------- ¶10. (SBU) The focus of opposition discourse has now largely shifted from its allegations of electoral fraud to complaints about "rule of terror" and mistreatment of those arrested for the violence on April 7. The demonstration on April 12 proved that the opposition was capable of mobilizing a huge crowd while maintaining discipline and dispersing peacefully. Voronin made an important concession to the opposition in allowing for recount and review of voter lists. If such checks were carried out scrupulously they could help Moldova to find a way out of the current political deadlock. A comprehensive review would either uncover fraud or would assist in creating an atmosphere of greater trust in the results of the elections. However we do not yet have indications that the opposition can even perform a complete and systematic review of voter lists in the limited time allowed (four days) to resolve such complaints. Moldova will remain in an atmosphere of political instability and doubt until the new parliament can meet and successfully elect the new president. CHAUDHRY