Maia Sandu delivered a message marking 17 years since the April 7, 2009 protests in Moldova, which she described as “a shameful moment” in the history of the Republic of Moldova.
The head of state emphasized that the events involved violence and abuses, and their consequences still affect society today.
“It was a confrontation between the solidarity and courage of tens of thousands of people who peacefully took to the streets and the abuses that claimed victims, left hundreds of young people humiliated, and caused wounds that still hurt. This trauma will not heal as long as justice still owes the truth and fairness that those who dared, 17 years ago, to hope for a better future continue to await.
April 7 remains a lesson about how easily authorities can violate fundamental rights—and about the importance of defending freedom. Through the steps we have begun in recent years toward the European Union, we are now building the democracy that the protesters demanded back then. In this way, we honor the determination and sacrifice of those who stood up and suffered, keeping their memory and ideals alive,” the president stated.
On April 7, 2009, tens of thousands of young people gathered in Great National Assembly Square to protest for freedom, democracy, and a European future, following the victory of the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova in the parliamentary elections.
Authorities violently suppressed the protests. They mistreated hundreds of people in police stations and tried them in expedited proceedings, while a young man, Valeriu Boboc, died from the beatings he suffered on the night of April 7–8.
During those events, protesters vandalized the buildings of the Parliament and the Presidency, and part of the Parliament’s archive, including historical documents, was destroyed.
In 2012, Parliament declared Freedom Day in memory of the young people who peacefully protested for democracy.