Moldova’s Red Bloc leader: Plahotniuc’s dictatorship will fall

Ex-deputy: Dictatorship of Plahotniuc will fall! Signals from the West are very encouraging

August 3: This was stated by former parliamentary deputy and leader of the opposition party “Our Home is Moldova” (Red Bloc) Grigory Petrenko, on Wednesday, August 3, after the court ruled in favor of prosecutors’ request for an extension of judicial review of the “Petrenko Group” for 30 days, which implies a prohibition on leaving the country and taking part in protests.

Red Bloc leader Grigory Petrenko

“Today’s meeting was a formality for the judges and prosecutors. The sole purpose of the hearing was to extend the preventive measure of ‘judicial control’ for the coming weeks. In the past month there have been no court hearings for consideration of the merits of the case, and next month there won’t be either. Instead, we spend time considering extensions of preventive measures.

“I had no illusions about these judges, they are no different from the previous ones. And on September 1, when the next meeting is held, the prosecutor will present the same request — to extend the preventive measures of ‘judicial control,’” said Grigory Petrenko after the hearing, noting that “they do not want to consider the case on its merits, they delay, knowing that this case has no prospects.”

The politician believes that “despite attempts to intimidate the opposition, we must continue our struggle against the oligarchic regime, the criminal regime of [Vlad] Plahotniuc.”

“We urge all citizens not to fear intimidation, not to fear the current government. This regime will fall. It can fall at any time, and it has nothing to do with either presidential or parliamentary elections. Such criminal and dictatorial governments as the Plahotniuc regime collapse in other ways, and those who know history, including the history of Plahotniuc’s colleagues – small-time regional dictators — I think they know that these dictators end very badly,” Petrenko said.

Ana Ursachi, attorney for the Petrenko Group political prisoners

According to the former deputy, “signals that the Republic of Moldova receives these days from its Western partners and from across the ocean, indicating that a number of U.S. agencies are investigating the theft of a billion [from the country’s banking system], is a good sign for our society, and hopefully in the end all the criminals who seized the Republic of Moldova and state agencies will be held accountable, if not here in Moldova, then in the partner countries.”

Recall that the former deputy and leader of the opposition party “Our Home is Moldova” (Red Bloc) Grigory Petrenko and his comrades, who were arrested after taking part in an anti-oligarchy protest in September 2015, were held under arrest for more than seven months, then transferred to judicial control with a prohibition against leaving the locality (later the country) and participating in protests.

Grigory Petrenko and his comrades were recognized as political prisoners in a U.S. State Department report on human rights, by representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, and the federal government of Germany.

A month ago, after the court prevented honorary PACE member Grigory Petrenko from participating in the summer session of the European Forum at the official invitation of European deputies, PACE legislators registered a new written declaration, which demands “an immediate end to the continuing political repression in Moldova.” MEPs demanded that the Moldovan authorities “immediately cease political repression” and “harassment” of activists and politicians.