{"id":226278,"date":"2012-04-21T07:57:44","date_gmt":"2012-04-21T07:57:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/new.moldova.org\/2012\/04\/21\/the-unheard-voices-from-transnistria-229907-eng\/"},"modified":"2012-04-21T07:57:44","modified_gmt":"2012-04-21T07:57:44","slug":"the-unheard-voices-from-transnistria-229907-eng","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.moldova.org\/en\/the-unheard-voices-from-transnistria-229907-eng\/","title":{"rendered":"The unheard voices from Transnistria"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

There is daily news written about Transnistria. The public opinion is informed about the level of negotiation over the settlement of the conflict, but the media avoids the most important part of the story: the people’s life in this region and their attitude.<\/p>\n

Being obliged to cross an inner border within their country, many people are tired of useless controls while going at work or crossing the bridge to visit the right bank of Nistru River.<\/p>\n

Maria Mihailov is enrolled at a Romanian college. When she travels back home, in Dubasari city, which is located in Transnistria, the student has to cross the so-called border between Moldova and the separatist region.<\/p>\n

“The bus stops at the checkpoint. The customs officer comes to collect our passports for registration. Those who are not from the left bank of Nistru River have to fill in a special application stating the place they are going to and the length of their stay,” the student said.<\/p>\n

The Moldovans who stay longer than the period stated in the application are fined at their return. They have to respect the deadline exactly.<\/p>\n

Some Moldovan citizens who reside on the separatist ground have applied for the so-called Transnistrian citizenship and have gained a passport which is similar to the one used during the Soviet era. They say that such a passport eases their life in some cases, especially at the checkpoints where the ‘Transnistrian citizens’ are not subject for a rough control. Others just want to benefit from the social security services provided in the region.<\/p>\n

According to Maria, the salaries and the retirement pension is much bigger than in Moldova, while the price on gas and electric power is lower. That’s why some people who live in the neighboring towns of Transnistria apply for ‘citizenship’ to take advantage of their services or even work on the ground of the secessionist region.<\/p>\n

“I do have a Transnistrian citizenship along with Moldovan. I grew up in Transnistria and I definitely feel attached to it and concerned with its issues,” said Pavel Guranda, an inhabitant of Tiraspol, the so-called capital of Transnistria. Tiraspol is being considered the second largest city of Moldova after Chisinau, its capital.<\/p>\n

Three languages are spoken in Transnistria. Russian is the primary language, followed by Ukrainian and Romanian. In Transnistria live an important number of Russian and Ukrainian citizens. Pavel said that it is a constitutional right of any person to request a translation of any official document in one of the three official languages.<\/p>\n

He is giving an example: “From personal experience, during a high school history Olympiad in Tiraspol, a student from a Moldovan school requested the Romanian version of the test and was granted one.”<\/p>\n

The man says that no big differences between the social life in Moldova and Transnistria can be seen.<\/p>\n

“I believe that social issues of Transnistria are the ones familiar to any post-Soviet country. Namely we have a developing system of right protection, where lack of public awareness is one of the most pressing issues. Though prices on food remained pretty constant regardless the global crises. Education is based on the Russian curriculum, though adjusted by the Ministry of Education to the regional historical and cultural background,” explains the young man.<\/p>\n

The inhabitants of the region don’t use the same cell phone and landline providers the Moldovans of the right bank of Nistru River do. If one calls in Transnistria, their connection is being made from Russia. In this regard, a special number has to be dialed.<\/p>\n

Ion Cebotari, 28, is an inhabitant of Bender city, which is also located in Transnistria. He crosses the so-called border a couple of times a week. He finds humiliating the controls within his own country.<\/p>\n

“I always cross through the checkpoint at the entrance in my city, Bender, installed by the separatists. The procedure isn’t that complicated, but our documents are verified. Those who don’t reside in the Transnistrian region have to fill in a special form. If they stay 15 minutes longer, they are fined,” explains the man.<\/p>\n

The people living in the region have different perspectives regarding the situation created. Some want Transnistria to reintegrate with Moldova, some with Russia, while others believe that Transnistria should be an independent state.<\/p>\n

Transnistria is a breakaway region of Moldova which separated after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In the wake of a cease-fire agreement signed at Limanskoe on 7 July 1992 between Russia and the Republic of Moldova, the two parties of the conflict (signed by Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Moldovan President Mircea Snegur), under the mediating authority of the commander of Russia’s 14th Army, Alexandr Lebed, negotiations have been going on between Moldova’s authorities and the self-appointed Tiraspol authorities (that, meantime, became the party of the conflict) in a series of attempts to settle the conflict by reaching an agreement on granting expanded autonomy to the Nistru east-bank districts, as Moldova’s "Transnistrian Self-Administered Territories." The arrangement would provide the region with the right to exert jurisdiction over taxation, police forces, budget decisions, and other issues.The conflict is tried to be settled for over 20 years, but no luck among the “5+2” negotiators has been registered.
\n <\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reading Time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>There is daily news written about Transnistria. The public opinion is informed about the level of negotiation over the settlement of the conflict, but the media avoids the most important part of the story: the people\u2019s life in this region and their attitude.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":226276,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-226278","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-society"],"content_social_share":"Reading Time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

There is daily news written about Transnistria. The public opinion is informed about the level of negotiation over the settlement of the conflict, but the media avoids the most important part of the story: the people’s life in this region and their attitude.<\/p>\n

Being obliged to cross an inner border within their country, many people are tired of useless controls while going at work or crossing the bridge to visit the right bank of Nistru River.<\/p>\n

Maria Mihailov is enrolled at a Romanian college. When she travels back home, in Dubasari city, which is located in Transnistria, the student has to cross the so-called border between Moldova and the separatist region.<\/p>\n

“The bus stops at the checkpoint. The customs officer comes to collect our passports for registration. Those who are not from the left bank of Nistru River have to fill in a special application stating the place they are going to and the length of their stay,” the student said.<\/p>\n

The Moldovans who stay longer than the period stated in the application are fined at their return. They have to respect the deadline exactly.<\/p>\n

Some Moldovan citizens who reside on the separatist ground have applied for the so-called Transnistrian citizenship and have gained a passport which is similar to the one used during the Soviet era. They say that such a passport eases their life in some cases, especially at the checkpoints where the ‘Transnistrian citizens’ are not subject for a rough control. Others just want to benefit from the social security services provided in the region.<\/p>\n

According to Maria, the salaries and the retirement pension is much bigger than in Moldova, while the price on gas and electric power is lower. That’s why some people who live in the neighboring towns of Transnistria apply for ‘citizenship’ to take advantage of their services or even work on the ground of the secessionist region.<\/p>\n

“I do have a Transnistrian citizenship along with Moldovan. I grew up in Transnistria and I definitely feel attached to it and concerned with its issues,” said Pavel Guranda, an inhabitant of Tiraspol, the so-called capital of Transnistria. Tiraspol is being considered the second largest city of Moldova after Chisinau, its capital.<\/p>\n

Three languages are spoken in Transnistria. Russian is the primary language, followed by Ukrainian and Romanian. In Transnistria live an important number of Russian and Ukrainian citizens. Pavel said that it is a constitutional right of any person to request a translation of any official document in one of the three official languages.<\/p>\n

He is giving an example: “From personal experience, during a high school history Olympiad in Tiraspol, a student from a Moldovan school requested the Romanian version of the test and was granted one.”<\/p>\n

The man says that no big differences between the social life in Moldova and Transnistria can be seen.<\/p>\n

“I believe that social issues of Transnistria are the ones familiar to any post-Soviet country. Namely we have a developing system of right protection, where lack of public awareness is one of the most pressing issues. Though prices on food remained pretty constant regardless the global crises. Education is based on the Russian curriculum, though adjusted by the Ministry of Education to the regional historical and cultural background,” explains the young man.<\/p>\n

The inhabitants of the region don’t use the same cell phone and landline providers the Moldovans of the right bank of Nistru River do. If one calls in Transnistria, their connection is being made from Russia. In this regard, a special number has to be dialed.<\/p>\n

Ion Cebotari, 28, is an inhabitant of Bender city, which is also located in Transnistria. He crosses the so-called border a couple of times a week. He finds humiliating the controls within his own country.<\/p>\n

“I always cross through the checkpoint at the entrance in my city, Bender, installed by the separatists. The procedure isn’t that complicated, but our documents are verified. Those who don’t reside in the Transnistrian region have to fill in a special form. If they stay 15 minutes longer, they are fined,” explains the man.<\/p>\n

The people living in the region have different perspectives regarding the situation created. Some want Transnistria to reintegrate with Moldova, some with Russia, while others believe that Transnistria should be an independent state.<\/p>\n

Transnistria is a breakaway region of Moldova which separated after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In the wake of a cease-fire agreement signed at Limanskoe on 7 July 1992 between Russia and the Republic of Moldova, the two parties of the conflict (signed by Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Moldovan President Mircea Snegur), under the mediating authority of the commander of Russia’s 14th Army, Alexandr Lebed, negotiations have been going on between Moldova’s authorities and the self-appointed Tiraspol authorities (that, meantime, became the party of the conflict) in a series of attempts to settle the conflict by reaching an agreement on granting expanded autonomy to the Nistru east-bank districts, as Moldova’s "Transnistrian Self-Administered Territories." The arrangement would provide the region with the right to exert jurisdiction over taxation, police forces, budget decisions, and other issues.The conflict is tried to be settled for over 20 years, but no luck among the “5+2” negotiators has been registered.
\n <\/p>\n\n

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