TURNING OFF THE STOPCOCK

A referendum held in Gagauzia at the beginning of February showed that by no means all the people in the country support the Moldovan leadership's decision to draw closer to the European Union as part of the association agreement. The vast majority of the Gagauz people expressed their disagreement with this foreign political course and the statement by the leaders of neighbouring Romania on the desirability of a merger with Moldova was generally regarded as an encroachment on the sovereignty of the Moldovan state. We decided to find out at first hand about the results of this referendum and the situation in Gagauzia. The governor (Bashkan) of Gagauzia, Chairman of the Moldovan Party of Regions, Mihail Formuzal, answers questions from R+.

- Mr Formuzal, first of all we'd like you to comment briefly on the results of the referendum held in Gagauzia on 2 February.

- First I must say that the actual idea of a referendum was a response to certain alarming trends which have been affecting the interests of Gagauzia and Moldova. These are the ill-considered foreign policy of the Moldovan state and the regular erosion of the powers of Gagauzia's autonomy. Romania's increasing moves against the independence of the Republic of Moldova were the last straw. With this in mind, seeing the lack of action by the central authorities and their reluctance to respond to our demands, we decided that a means of popular expression of will such as a referendum could have an impact on the situation and draw attention to our interests.  

Voting on two questions took place in Gagauzia on 2 February. The first was to ascertain the views of the people about Moldova's foreign political development and this was of a consultative nature. In other words, the results obtained would have no juridical force for the authorities, although I am confident that it would be sobering for Chisinau to hear the opinions of the people of a whole region.

The second question was of a legal nature and its aim was to get the approval of the people in the autonomy about a draft bill which stipulates that in the event of Moldova losing its sovereignty Gagauzia would implement its right to self-determination. Over 98 per cent of the electorate, with an unprecedented turnout of 70 per cent, voted in favour of this right. This vote was a warning to the Moldovan leadership and to Romania, as well as the whole of the European Union, that they should take Moldova's sovereignty seriously.

- Do the results of the referendum mean that the vast majority of the Gagauz are opposed to Moldova drawing closer to the EU as such or is it a matter of the conditions and the format of these relations?

- You know, the Gagauz are a very pragmatic and rationally thinking people. You don't come across many people who believe all the imposed stereotypes or horror stories, whether they are about Europe, Russia or whatever. We see everything through the prism of the interests of our people and the Republic of Moldova. So, when we assess the policy of a rapprochement with the European Union we see that our country's national interests are suffering because of this.  By all accounts, everything is fine as regards the interests of the ruling elite. But damage is being caused to the interests of the people, society and the whole state. The main results of European integration are that European manufacturers are establishing a dominance in the Moldovan market and hundreds of thousands of our citizens will become cheap manpower in the countries of western Europe. Of course, such a scenario is of advantage to the EU, but for Moldova this would be a crushing blow to the industrial sector and would mean catastrophic depopulation.

But this perspective of the situation in no way means that the Gagauz are against Europe. Many of our people often visit Europe and can see the positive things, some of which could be introduced into our country, such as the work of the legal system, respect for the interests of ethnic minorities and the developed traditions of local autonomies. These and many other things about Europe are a reference point for us. But, I repeat, everything must be in our own national interests.

- Is there any possibility of a review of official Chisinau's decision about Moldova's signing up to the agreement on association with the EU, bearing in mind the opinion of the Gagauz people?

- Theoretically, there is such a possibility. If the Moldovan leadership says it is pro-European then it must mean that European principles - in particular the principle of democratism in adopting strategic decisions - are not so alien to them. In other words, in theory, before signing an association agreement with the EU, the country's leaders should take heed of public opinion on this question. As the referendum in Gagauzia showed, the population has serious doubts about the expediency of this agreement for Moldova. At the same time, it is not just a question of the people of Gagauzia - people in dozens of towns and districts in Moldova have also supported our referendum.

However, bearing in mind the secrecy in which the initialling of the agreement was prepared, I have doubts that Chisinau intends to sign this document against the opinion of the people of Gagauzia and even the whole of Moldova.

- What do you think will happen next? I mean, what will Gagauzia do if the Moldovan authorities continue to move towards rapprochement with the EU?

- Gagauzia will continue to defend its interests within the bounds stipulated by the law. We realize that because we comprise only four per cent of the country's population we cannot impose on the majority our perception of Moldova's development. But at the same time we shall firmly demand that official state policy is carried out with the interests of the Gagauz people in mind.

I am also convinced that the interests of the Gagauz people generally coincide with the interests of the rest of the country's citizens. We all want highly-paid jobs, social security, comfortable living conditions and good relations with our neighbouring states - everything which comes with confidence in the future. I believe that in the next parliamentary elections the Gagauz people, together with the majority of Moldova's citizens, will be able to point the country in the right direction.

- The Romanian president has again said that Moldova's path to the EU is through the republic's merging with Romania. What do you think of this opinion?

- This is a clear attack on the sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova, for which the Romanian president should be declared persona non grata. The way the Moldovan leaders silently take all this in is also annoying - and Besescu has been indulging in such remarks regularly for some time, instead of demonstrating the proper toughness and lack of compromise in upholding his country's independence.

It is indicative that it has been Gagauzia which has always reacted the sharpest to Romania's claims. I have said more than once that it is the Gagauz who have been the most consistent champions of Moldova's integrity and independence. The more actively Romania conducts a policy of absorbing Moldova, the greater the role Gagauzia acquires as an anchor of Moldova's statehood. Don't forget, after the Gagauz people had its say on 2 February the Brussels' leaders put pressure on the Romanian leader to dampen down his unionistic ardour. In the end Bucharest announced it was to suspend granting Romanian citizenship to citizens of Moldova. As some of the media put it, "Gagauzia has turned off the 'stopcock' of a merger with Romania".

- The people of Azerbaijan and Gagauzia have much in common, although they are not direct neighbours. How does Azerbaijan seem to Gagauzia and how do you see future relations between them?

- We are brothers in one great Turkic family. This is because of our warm attitude to Azerbaijan and to Azerbaijanis. Common roots, closeness of language and many other factors create the preconditions for our close cooperation. Azerbaijan means many things to us: it is a long-term economic partner and an example of the successful modernization of a country and, not least, it is a friend who in the difficult years of the 1990s helped scores of Gagauz students get a first-class education in Baku. Today Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, continuing the good work of his father, is constantly supporting the numerically small Gagauz people.

I would like the future development of our relations to be determined by this positive experience of past relations. Today we are working closely with the Azerbaijani diaspora and with the Azerbaijani embassy in Chisinau. One could cite many examples of projects that have been successfully carried out. One of the most significant was the decision to build a sports complex in the town of Chadyr-Lunga.

Nor should one lose sight of those opportunities offered by cooperation within the framework of the Turkic world. By taking part in various forums in Baku, Ankara and Ashgabat, and meeting the leaders of the main Turkish states, I can say that we, in particular the leaders of Gagauzia and Azerbaijan, have a similar perspective on many international problems which affect the interests of our peoples. I believe that this factor could become an additional argument and a boost for close cooperation.