Just before Easter, as European diplomats were packing for the holidays, a crisis erupted in the forgotten and usually quiet Moldova that will require their intervention to sort out. Without a quick political solution, the European Union could face a new consolidated autocracy like Belarus on its border. Relations with Russia would deteriorate further and the launch of the eastern partnership initiative, under which the bloc aims to strengthen ties with six ex-Soviet states, would be undermined.
The trouble started two days after elections on April 5, which delivered a third straight victory to the Communist party. A minority of violent protesters broke into the parliament and the presidential palace, prompting the government to accuse Romania, an EU member state, of plotting a coup d’état in Moldova. More importantly, it also launched an indiscriminate crackdown on opposition parties, peaceful protesters and independent journalists.
The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe gave the elections a largely clean bill of health. Yet while the counting of votes was probably fair, the results were distorted before polling day. During the campaign there was extensive police harassment of the opposition and huge media bias. Opposition parties also point to potential fraud in the electoral lists, which included over 300,000 more people than in 2005 even though Moldova’s population is shrinking. They also claim that some Communist party supporters voted more than once. The way to check these allegations is not to recount the ballots mechanically, as the government suggests, but to check the electoral lists. This is possible but takes more time.
Russia quickly reacted to the crisis with political and practical support for the government’s crackdown. President Dmitry Medvedev and the Russian foreign ministry have made numerous statements offering their backing to Vladimir Voronin, Moldova’s president. For Russia, a more isolated Moldova is a more likely political ally.
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