Search in the heart: struggle intensifies in Moldova before crucial elections
In Moldova, clouds are gathering over the main opposition force, the Patriotic Bloc. In recent days, more than a hundred searches have been conducted at the activists, and several people have been detained. It is believed that the authorities are preparing to withdraw the association from the race in order to clear the way for the ruling party to win the upcoming parliamentary elections. Izvestia investigated the situation.
What happened
In recent days, more than a hundred searches have been conducted in Moldova by supporters of the "Heart of Moldova" party. This association is headed by Irina Vlakh, a former Bashkan of Gagauzia, and it is part of the largest opposition Patriotic bloc. It is known that during the investigation 17 people were given the status of suspects, five were detained, among them the vice-mayor of Comrat.
Irina Vlah, Chairman of the Republican Party "The Heart of Moldova"
Searches are being conducted in the case of illegal financing and corruption in the elections. On their social media pages, Moldovan security forces published a recording of negotiations between several people, where it is a question of dividing money and paying for campaigning. In addition, footage has been released showing some people with smudged faces passing sealed paper envelopes to each other.
Moldovan police released a video stating that large amounts of money in various currencies, mobile phones, Mir cards from several Russian banks, and even a Tesla car, which they allegedly bought as a result of illegal activities, were seized during the searches. "The suspects transferred money through the application of a Russian bank under sanctions," the video says.
What was the reaction
The press service of the "Heart of Moldova" stated that most of the investigative actions do not concern them. According to the official statement, most of the searches took place at the homes of people who have nothing to do with the party. "Recordings of wiretaps of some individuals have also appeared in the public space. We declare with full responsibility that they have nothing to do with any of our activists," the press release says.
The leader of the association, Irina Vlah, accused the Moldovan authorities of intimidating the opposition. "The government has moved to a new stage in an attempt to silence us. The reason is clearly made up and formal. The real goal is an attempt to discredit us. Despite these trials, we will not give up and will continue to fight the yellow regime," she promised.
The leader of the Patriotic Bloc, former President Igor Dodon, said that terror related to abuses is being carried out against opposition activists. "The yellow government from Chisinau is hysterically afraid of the rise of the Patriotic Bloc and is trying to scare off voters with the help of masked men, sanctions from other countries, provocations from affiliated media, and fabricated cases," he said.
What will happen next
The searches were not the only problem. So, on September 5, Prime Minister Dorin Rechan announced that in the next two days the tax service will block all accounts of Irina Vlah. It is characteristic that the authorities did not need any court decision for this: the sanctions imposed by Canada against the politician at the end of August became the basis. "We will not allow national security to be trampled on and turned into a toy," Rechan explained the decision.
The situation is unfolding against the background of the upcoming parliamentary elections: they will be held in Moldova in three weeks, and the attack on the opposition began after the publication of a recent poll. According to the iData center, the rating of the ruling party is 33%, and the rating of the Patriotic Bloc is 30%. The authors of the study emphasize that the gap has reached minimal values, and in such conditions it is extremely difficult to predict the final result.
At the end of August, journalist and politician Natalia Morari published data from another opinion poll, according to which the Patriotic Bloc already has 33% and the first place, while the ruling PAS party has only 32% and the second position. It is also characteristic that more than half of the respondents are dissatisfied with the standard of living in the republic and believe that the country is moving in the wrong direction. More than a third of the participants reported that they did not believe in the integrity of the upcoming elections.
The main question is what the Moldovan authorities will do next. According to one version, the pressure on the Patriotic Bloc and all its components will remain until the elections: searches will continue, a discrediting campaign in the media, and new arrests may follow. According to rumors, European sanctions may be imposed against Vlah and other politicians.
According to the second version, the Moldovan authorities are ready for the most radical scenario — the removal of the opposition association from the elections. Interestingly, there is no court decision on the case of illegal financing yet, we are talking only about some vague accusations. But in the Moldovan media, such a development is considered quite real.
Lawyer and advocate Alexander Bot explains that the CEC can suspend the Patriotic Bloc without a court order. According to him, the legislation allows the election commission to conduct its own audit or make a decision based on materials from law enforcement agencies. "The CEC has the authority to exclude from the electoral process," he emphasizes.
The Patriotic Bloc itself has not yet commented on such conversations, but they urge supporters to protest on September 29, the day after the elections. According to the leader of the association, Igor Dodon, if it is possible to win, then it will be necessary to defend the result across the street. If the elections are rigged, the results will have to be annulled. It is quite possible, however, that with the current development of events, it will be necessary to protest even earlier than the scheduled date.
What the experts say
Moldovan political analyst Alexander Korinenko emphasizes that searches took place not only in the "Heart of Moldova", but also among the communists, who are also part of the Patriotic Bloc. According to him, the leader of the communist cell of Gagauzia, Anna Bratunova, was among the detainees.
— I believe that so far we are seeing an attempt at intimidation. The authorities want the opponents to moderate their ardor and reduce their activity, so that wavering voters turn away from the opposition. Why does Sandu's team resort to such measures? In four years, these people have not learned to work any other way. When you have a power machine in your hands, it's tempting to use it to solve all the issues.: It's fast and doesn't require much effort," he explains.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, French President Emmanuel Macron, Moldovan President Maia Sandu and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during a meeting at the Presidential Palace in Chisinau.
Natalia Kharitonova, chief researcher at the Russian State University of Economics, Doctor of Political Sciences, says that the Moldovan authorities feel impunity.
— The Sandu team has only one guideline — the opinion and position of the European Union. And in Brussels, they receive full support, not a word of condemnation. Merz, Macron and Donald Tusk visited Chisinau at the end of August, after which the Romanian president visited the republic, and a new EU ambassador was recently appointed in the country. Accordingly, the ruling Moldovan team feels impunity. It will probably be too much to remove the main opponent from the election, but the pressure on the opposition will continue," she assures.
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