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38 I Southeast Europe bne August 2020
Moldova’s ruling Socialists accused of “abducting” MP after he defected to Pro Moldova
Iulian Ernst in Bucharest
Ex-MP Stefan Gatcan, who resigned from the ruling Socialist Party (PSRM) to join the opposition Pro Moldova on June 30, has filed a complaint to the Prosecutors’ Office claiming he was physically forced to sign his resignation as an MP by his former colleagues from the PSRM. He later disappeared, and the opposition claims he was forced to leave the country.
The Socialists are bleeding MPs, who are moving to Pro Moldova, the political vehicle reportedly controlled by the fugitive former Democratic Party leader Vlad Plahotniuc, and the ruling coalition the Socialists formed with the Democratic Party has already lost its majority in parliament.
President Igor Dodon has accused the Democrats of literally buying MPs “piece by piece”, and said Gatcan’s price, for instance, was $1.2mn.
Pro Moldova deputies gathered at the building of the presidential administration on July 1, claiming that Gatcan had been detained by force within the building.
According to the leader of Pro Moldova Andrian Candu, Gatcan was “held” in the building of the presidential administration and forced to resign from parliament under pressure and threats.
Border guards said Gatcan and his family left Moldova at 17:30 the same day, heading to Romania.
The MP later appeared in a video, shot in an unidentified vineyard, after media reported he was abducted and taken out of the country.
“I will have no communication with friends or mass media since I need rehabilitation,” he said.
“Dear friends, I am well, healthy and not being seized by anyone. I need some peace,” he added in a caption on his Facebook page.
Pro Moldova MP Vladimir Chebotari said on TV8 that Gatcan was forcibly taken out of the country. Opposition politician Renato Usatii made a similar claim, saying Dodon deliberately took Gatcan out of the country so that neither law enforcement officers nor journalists could contact him.
In response to this, Socialist MP Corneliu Furculita — who was reported stopping Gatcan’s car and arguing with him publicly on the day he disappeared — said that the Socialists had nothing to do with Gatcan’s disappearance.
On July 1, the day after Gatcan moved from the Socialists to Pro Moldova, Furculita announced on his Facebook page that Gatcan had resigned from parliament.
Furculita noted that Gatcan wants to "devote himself to medicine, but remains part of the PSRM.” Gatcan owns a medical clinic in Chisinau.
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elections either, they can’t be put in any governmental position, oh... I’m very scared and worried! The EU boosts our economy not Russia or China! Their loans cost us too much and not only
in money,” Boris Nikolic, 38, told bne IntelliNews.
People interviewed by bne IntelliNews
on the streets of Belgrade were obviously concerned and very divided about their reasons for worrying.
A bne IntelliNews reporter met A. Djordjevic, a high school teacher, carrying a copy of daily Kurir on the street in downtown Belgrade. He showed the reporter an article about Russian interference and yelled that he is tired
of Russian pressure and their attempts t o “make Serbia bleed”.
“Until when we will have to deal with this? It is clear who is behind this! Russian student at the protests? Really? How it was not a Danish student? Or Polish? Or German? Look at this [he showed a picture from the paper of the torn up streets after the protest]. These are our streets! No one deserves this! This has nothing to do with the regime and whether it is good or bad... I hope people will cool their heads and stay
at home. People are dying in hospitals while some insane brains are destroying streets! That won’t make Vucic leave. It’s pointless as they have no one legitimate and legally elected to put into Vucic’s position! This hurts!” he said.
Mihajlo Z., a young doctor from Belgrade, told bne IntelliNews that
even though many citizens of Serbia
still remember the brutality of the late dictator Slobodan Milosevic’s police, this is completely different situation.
“People are ‘a priori’ against Vucic because he was part of that machinery in the 90s and connect him with violence against protesters on the streets conducted by Milosevic’s police. That’s not the truth and not fair. We need to
be fair and admit that he didn’t have anything to do with that, nor was he was beating anyone. What we are seeing on our streets the last two days is insane. People are violent to the police, out