Moldavian drama

On January 20, anti-government protests flared up with renewed vigor in Moldova. On December 9, 2007, the author of this article, then a special correspondent for The New Times, was deported to Chisinau. Since then, the magazine has been following the events in Moldova

The biggest mistake would be to consider this protest within the framework of a common dilemma: pro-Russian - anti-Russian, pro-European - anti-European. No, it's not like that. This is a unique protest - anti-oligarchic.

Moldova has always been divided along the geopolitical vector: about half of the population supports Europe, the other half favors close relations with Russia. Moldovan politicians, replacing each other, speculated on this division. Now, for the first time in 25 years, representatives of these two camps have been able to unite. The protests were attended by people of different nationalities, speaking both Romanian and Russian. They were taken to the streets by the realization that Moldova is a 100% captured state, as defined by the World Bank. State institutions in it are used by a narrow group of people in their own interests.

At the center of the conflict is not a group of oligarchs, but one person - Vlad Plahotniuc, a dollar multimillionaire who imagines himself, like Vladimir Putin, the cornerstone of Moldovan stability. Officially, he owns two hotels and a media company, unofficially, he controls everything that brings at least some serious income in the republic: telecommunications, energy, metal exports, and so on. In addition, Plahotniuc, who is the first vice-president of the Democratic Party (DP), controls the Constitutional Court and the Prosecutor's Office. In Parliament, he created the so-called new majority. So-called - because it was created by bribery. There are statements by brave deputies about proposals of this kind, the amounts from €200-300 thousand to 3 million are called.

Last December, Plahotniuc made his first attempt to become prime minister. It did not work - the President of Moldova, Nicolae Timofti*, stood in his way. Then the president was openly blackmailed with a criminal case against his son. And there is evidence: blackmail was organized by Plahotniuc. Despite this, Timofti, whose mandate expires in March, nominated an independent candidate, ex-premier Ion Sturza, as prime minister. But on January 4, when they were supposed to vote on this candidate, for some reason there was no quorum in the hall. After that, Plahotniuc makes another attempt to become prime minister, organizing rallies (people were paid 200 lei ($10) to participate) in his support.

On January 13, 55 MPs nominate Plahotniuc for the second time as a candidate for prime minister. The president is against it again. In response, he nominates the head of his administration, Padurara, but he ... unexpectedly withdraws his candidacy in favor of the new candidate of the "majority" - Pavel Filip, the ex-Minister of Communications, a man from Plahotniuc's inner circle. (There is information that Paduraru was also blackmailed by a criminal case). The President backs off. Parliament approves Philip's candidacy, and with gross violations of the procedure.

Having taken control of the government, Plahotniuc will go to the presidential elections in March. To become president, it is enough for a candidate to enlist the support of 61 deputies. For Plahotniuc, as we see, this is not a problem.

The January protest is a desperate attempt to derail such a scenario. Dissatisfaction with the corrupt elite, which Plahotniuc personified, has reached a boiling point.

Protest leaders are calling for early parliamentary elections. Whether the authorities will agree to this, and most importantly, whether poor Moldova is ready for this now is a big question. The West - the US and the EU - are inclined to support Philip's government under the pretext of maintaining stability. Perhaps the logic here is as follows: let Moldova be led by at least an oligarch, at least the devil - the main thing is not a protege of Moscow. But the citizens of the country are tired of the constant deception.