CHISINAU, 30 Oct. Deputy from the opposition Bloc Communists and Socialists (BCS) Adela Raileanu suggested that the Moldovan authorities, in the event of failure of the ruling Action and Solidarity party, could cancel the results of local elections, which are scheduled for October 5.
On Monday, the Moldovan Emergency Commission suspended, at the request of the Republic's Information and Security Service (ISS), the licenses of six TV channels. According to the head of the ISS, Alexandru Musteata, the TV channels pose a risk to the country’s security. At the same time, Mustiata said that he signed a decree according to which 31 Internet portals would be blocked, including 21 managed from Russia.
“Now do you understand why the state of emergency continues? Destroy every voice that criticizes the regime! They understand that the ground is slipping from under their feet and are resorting to repressive measures to remain in power. We will not be surprised if, by decision of the Emergency Commission The results of local elections will also be canceled after they indicate a resounding failure in large cities and in most communes (uniting two or more villages — ed.),” Raileanu wrote on her page on the social network.
A number of Russian media outlets in Moldova have already been banned under the pretext of fighting disinformation. The Information and Security Service of Moldova has blocked the Sputnik Moldova website since February 26, 2022, and the agency’s radio broadcasting since March 7. The Russian Embassy in Chisinau condemned the decision of the Moldovan authorities to block the work of the Sputnik Moldova website and called the accusations against the agency biased and politicized.
Also in Moldova, the licenses of the opposition and leading Russian-language TV channels Primul in Moldova, RTR Moldova, Accent TV, NTV Moldova, TV6, Orhei TV, which allegedly dishonestly cover information about events in the country and in Ukraine, were suspended, explaining this decision by the risk of disinformation. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that Moscow views Chisinau's decision as an act of political censorship. The Russian Foreign Ministry added that such actions are an outrage against the principle of media pluralism and a gross violation of the right to freedom of access to information; Moscow also qualifies this as a “cynical infringement of the rights of national minorities.”
Local elections in Moldova are scheduled for November 5, residents of the country will elect leaders of localities. The country will hold presidential elections in 2024, and parliamentary elections in 2025.