Newsroom
Transdniestrian authorities bar OSCE Mission staff from entering region, turn back food for orphans
CHISINAU 18 August 2004
CHISINAU, 18 August 2004 - Authorities in Moldova's Transdniestria region have banned staff of the OSCE Mission in Moldova from entering the region and turned away a delivery of food for orphans attending one of the schools which is at the centre of a crisis over use of the Latin script.
The Mission was informed that no OSCE staff will be permitted to enter the region pending an investigation of an alleged incident on Tuesday in which the Transdniestrian authorities claim a militiaman was injured by an OSCE vehicle.
"The denial of access to the region stands in clear contravention of the agreement signed by the Transdniestrian leadership in 1993 which ensures the Mission uninhibited access. This is a unilateral revocation of that agreement," said Acting Head of Mission, Neil Brennan.
"The OSCE Mission was the last resort for providing food and water to the orphans in the Benderi school and was the only means for informing the outside world of the tense situation inside the region."
"The incident at the Internat orphanage was the result of an uncooperative attitude of the Transdniestrian militia who refused to honour agreements in place. This meant the children at the orphanage were put at risk of injury."
"Any claim of injury by a Transdniestrian militia member is a pure fabrication," said Brennan. "The Mission was helping to ensure humanitarian assistance to the orphans, as it has done so regularly with no problems for the last few weeks."
In the past weeks authorities in the region have taken measures to forcibly close schools which teach in the Latin script. Authorities seized two schools, in one case by using chainsaws to cut down doors inside the building to remove parents and teachers locked inside. Seven parents were arrested and sentenced to short prison terms. Other threats of the use of force have been made against schoolchildren, parents and school staff.
Local militia in Benderi seized the orphanage on July 26 but the children forced their way back in and have since maintained a vigil in the building, during which food and water supplies have been delivered by the OSCE Mission.
On 17 August at approximately 18:00, two OSCE Mission Members in a Mission vehicle were denied entry to the Transdniestrian region at the main Benderi road checkpoint. The evening meal which they were ferrying to the school was transferred to a vehicle of Moldovan peacekeepers. This too was initially refused admission but it later managed to deliver the food to within several hundred metres of the school.
"This is inhuman," Brennan said. "Children should never be exposed to something like this and should certainly never have to argue with militia to be given access to food and water. This could all be ended very easily and quickly if the militia and police were to withdraw and the most basic human rights principles were followed."
The Mission was informed that no OSCE staff will be permitted to enter the region pending an investigation of an alleged incident on Tuesday in which the Transdniestrian authorities claim a militiaman was injured by an OSCE vehicle.
"The denial of access to the region stands in clear contravention of the agreement signed by the Transdniestrian leadership in 1993 which ensures the Mission uninhibited access. This is a unilateral revocation of that agreement," said Acting Head of Mission, Neil Brennan.
"The OSCE Mission was the last resort for providing food and water to the orphans in the Benderi school and was the only means for informing the outside world of the tense situation inside the region."
"The incident at the Internat orphanage was the result of an uncooperative attitude of the Transdniestrian militia who refused to honour agreements in place. This meant the children at the orphanage were put at risk of injury."
"Any claim of injury by a Transdniestrian militia member is a pure fabrication," said Brennan. "The Mission was helping to ensure humanitarian assistance to the orphans, as it has done so regularly with no problems for the last few weeks."
In the past weeks authorities in the region have taken measures to forcibly close schools which teach in the Latin script. Authorities seized two schools, in one case by using chainsaws to cut down doors inside the building to remove parents and teachers locked inside. Seven parents were arrested and sentenced to short prison terms. Other threats of the use of force have been made against schoolchildren, parents and school staff.
Local militia in Benderi seized the orphanage on July 26 but the children forced their way back in and have since maintained a vigil in the building, during which food and water supplies have been delivered by the OSCE Mission.
On 17 August at approximately 18:00, two OSCE Mission Members in a Mission vehicle were denied entry to the Transdniestrian region at the main Benderi road checkpoint. The evening meal which they were ferrying to the school was transferred to a vehicle of Moldovan peacekeepers. This too was initially refused admission but it later managed to deliver the food to within several hundred metres of the school.
"This is inhuman," Brennan said. "Children should never be exposed to something like this and should certainly never have to argue with militia to be given access to food and water. This could all be ended very easily and quickly if the militia and police were to withdraw and the most basic human rights principles were followed."