Protest against change in electoral system in front of Parliament Building<\/h1><\/div>Mobilized by civil society, several thousand people came together in front of the Parliament Building in Chisinau on June 11 to protest against the change in the electoral system and to seek the withdrawal of the bill on the switchover to the mixed-member electoral system from the Parliament\u2019s agenda. Representatives of the opposition \u2013 Party \u201cPlatform Dignity and Truth\u201d, Party \u201cAction and Solidarity\u201d, Liberal Democratic Party and \u201cOur Party\u201d \u2013 joined in the protest. The participants adopted a resolution on the non-admission of changes to the electoral system of the Republic of Moldova, addressed to the foreign partners, including the Venice Commission, European Commission and European Parliament, IPN reports.<\/p>\n
The protesters chanted: \u201cUnion, Moldovans!\u201d, \u201cUp to victory!\u201d, \u201cWe are the people!\u201d, \u201cDown with Plahotniuc!\u201d, \u201cWe are right!\u201d, \u201cWe do not change the system, we change you!\u201d, \u201cWe resist!\u201d, etc.<\/p>\n
Expert Sergiu Tofilat said the people came to protest because they are not heard in Parliament. \u201cThe ruling thieves, realizing that they do not have chances to enter Parliament after the next elections, want to change the rules of the game. They want to steal our last right \u2013 to have free and democratic elections. Here and now we combine our forces to get rid of this dictatorship. There will be democratic competition from now on. Regardless of our political and cultural options and of the spoken language, we face the same danger and should thus unite to get rid of it,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Igor Botan, executive director of the Association for Participatory Democracy (ADEPT), said the people protest not only because they are lied to, but also because they disagree with the way in which the bills to change the electoral system were introduced in the agenda. The replacement of the electoral system is aimed at distorting the people\u2019s will and the protest and demand to withdraw the bill to change the electoral system are absolutely legitimate.<\/p>\n
Vladislav Gribincea, director of the Legal Resources Center, noted that the people would have protested against the electoral system change anyway, no matter who submitted the proposal. \u201cThe last thing that we still have \u2013 the right to vote \u2013 risks being taken from us by this bill. We cannot accept this. The bill was introduced to distract attention from the theft of the US$ 1 billion,\u201d stated Vladislav Gribincea.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe say \u201cno\u201d to the attempt to further diminish this fragile democracy that has been built during 25 years. They try to change the electoral system in order to hide what has been done during the last few years, including the laundering of money through the banking and legal systems and the attempt to legalize this money. They now try to legalize it by another method and we put up residence,\u201d said Transparency International Moldova director Lilia Carasciuc.<\/p>\n
Deputy chairman of \u201cOur Party\u201c Dumitru Chubashenko said President Igor Dodon and the Democratic leader Vladimir Plahotniuc are together making effort to change the electoral system. \u201cWhen we called on you to vote for Dodon in the runoff elections, this assured us that he would fight the Plahotniuc regime. He lied to us and betrayed us. Today Dodon lies to and betrays the entire population,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Andrei Nastase, chairman of the Party \u201cPlatform Dignity and Truth\u201d, said not new electoral systems, but the problems faced daily by the citizens of Moldova, such as the low salaries, high taxes and high prices, should be the preoccupation of the government. \u201cThis government transformed our country into an enclave of corruption, poverty and humiliation. Instead of talking about decent living conditions, taxes, exaggerated fines, more accessible medical services, they speak about the electoral system. They want our country to become a country of despair. They built state policies based on the people\u2019s despair,\u201d stated Andrei Nastase.<\/p>\n
The protest organizers said they will continue to mount protests if the authorities do not withdraw the bill to change the electoral system from the agenda.<\/p>\n
According to the General Police Inspectorate, the protest in Chisinau was peaceful and involved about 2,000 people. The organizers reported yet higher figures.<\/p>\n
While a protest against the change in the electoral system was mounted in Chisinau, organized by civil society, local civil society staged demonstrations in support of the mixed-member electoral system in Ialoveni, Cahul and Edinet towns.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mobilized by civil society, several thousand people came together in front of the Parliament Building in Chisinau on June 11 to protest against the change in the electoral system and to seek the withdrawal of the bill on the switchover to the mixed-member electoral system from the Parliament\u2019s agenda. Representatives of the opposition \u2013 Party \u201cPlatform Dignity and Truth\u201d, Party \u201cAction and Solidarity\u201d, Liberal Democratic Party and \u201cOur Party\u201d \u2013 joined in the protest. The participants adopted a resolution on the non-admission of changes to the electoral system of the Republic of Moldova, addressed to the foreign partners, including the Venice Commission, European Commission and European Parliament, IPN reports.<\/p>\n
The protesters chanted: \u201cUnion, Moldovans!\u201d, \u201cUp to victory!\u201d, \u201cWe are the people!\u201d, \u201cDown with Plahotniuc!\u201d, \u201cWe are right!\u201d, \u201cWe do not change the system, we change you!\u201d, \u201cWe resist!\u201d, etc.<\/p>\n
Expert Sergiu Tofilat said the people came to protest because they are not heard in Parliament. \u201cThe ruling thieves, realizing that they do not have chances to enter Parliament after the next elections, want to change the rules of the game. They want to steal our last right \u2013 to have free and democratic elections. Here and now we combine our forces to get rid of this dictatorship. There will be democratic competition from now on. Regardless of our political and cultural options and of the spoken language, we face the same danger and should thus unite to get rid of it,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Igor Botan, executive director of the Association for Participatory Democracy (ADEPT), said the people protest not only because they are lied to, but also because they disagree with the way in which the bills to change the electoral system were introduced in the agenda. The replacement of the electoral system is aimed at distorting the people\u2019s will and the protest and demand to withdraw the bill to change the electoral system are absolutely legitimate.<\/p>\n
Vladislav Gribincea, director of the Legal Resources Center, noted that the people would have protested against the electoral system change anyway, no matter who submitted the proposal. \u201cThe last thing that we still have \u2013 the right to vote \u2013 risks being taken from us by this bill. We cannot accept this. The bill was introduced to distract attention from the theft of the US$ 1 billion,\u201d stated Vladislav Gribincea.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe say \u201cno\u201d to the attempt to further diminish this fragile democracy that has been built during 25 years. They try to change the electoral system in order to hide what has been done during the last few years, including the laundering of money through the banking and legal systems and the attempt to legalize this money. They now try to legalize it by another method and we put up residence,\u201d said Transparency International Moldova director Lilia Carasciuc.<\/p>\n
Deputy chairman of \u201cOur Party\u201c Dumitru Chubashenko said President Igor Dodon and the Democratic leader Vladimir Plahotniuc are together making effort to change the electoral system. \u201cWhen we called on you to vote for Dodon in the runoff elections, this assured us that he would fight the Plahotniuc regime. He lied to us and betrayed us. Today Dodon lies to and betrays the entire population,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Andrei Nastase, chairman of the Party \u201cPlatform Dignity and Truth\u201d, said not new electoral systems, but the problems faced daily by the citizens of Moldova, such as the low salaries, high taxes and high prices, should be the preoccupation of the government. \u201cThis government transformed our country into an enclave of corruption, poverty and humiliation. Instead of talking about decent living conditions, taxes, exaggerated fines, more accessible medical services, they speak about the electoral system. They want our country to become a country of despair. They built state policies based on the people\u2019s despair,\u201d stated Andrei Nastase.<\/p>\n
The protest organizers said they will continue to mount protests if the authorities do not withdraw the bill to change the electoral system from the agenda.<\/p>\n
According to the General Police Inspectorate, the protest in Chisinau was peaceful and involved about 2,000 people. The organizers reported yet higher figures.<\/p>\n
While a protest against the change in the electoral system was mounted in Chisinau, organized by civil society, local civil society staged demonstrations in support of the mixed-member electoral system in Ialoveni, Cahul and Edinet towns.<\/p>\n
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