Moldovan Demonstrators Start 11th Day Of Protests Outside Government Building In Chisinau

Supporters and representatives of Moldova's euro-skeptic party Sor began the 11th day of indefinite protest against the authorities on Wednesday, a Sputnik correspondent reported

CHISINAU (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 28th September, 2022) Supporters and representatives of Moldova's euro-skeptic party Sor began the 11th day of indefinite protest against the authorities on Wednesday, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

Demonstrators say they are outraged by the unprecedented increase in prices for gas, other energy resources and food, as well as high inflation and decline in living standards. The protesters accuse the authorities of failing to cope with the crisis amid a record inflation over the past 20 years, which in mid-summer amounted to 33.5% year-on-year. Sor supporters set up a tent camp last week, which they called the Town of Changes. Over 120 tents have been set up in the center of Chisinau near the parliament and presidential administration buildings.

The demonstrators are holding a peaceful rally outside the government building, demanding the resignation of the Moldovan leadership and the holding of snap parliamentary and presidential elections. The action is titled "Pizza for (Moldovan Prime Minister Natalia) Gavrilita: good times without gas, firewood and coal.

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"We are here to see the prime minister that ignores the protesters. Last Sunday, Gavrilita and lawmaker Radu Marian watched the demonstrators from the window of a pizzeria, but they never bothered to reach out to people. Shame! So we brought them a slice of pizza," one of the rally organizers said while addressing the crowd from a makeshift stage, the Sputnik correspondent reported.

One of the leaders of the protest movement, Radu Busila said the new gas prices will be unbearable for the majority of the residents and there would be difficulties in providing firewood and alternative energy resources.

"Heating one simple apartment will cost 10,000 Moldovan lei ($513). The villages lack firewood and as for the fuel oil, the authorities have yet to purchase the required amount," Busila said.

Police are controlling the situation inside and along the perimeter of the Town of Changes.