2006 Transnistrian independence referendum: Difference between revisions

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	The '''2006 referendum in Transnistria''' took place in ] on ] ]. On that date, Transnistria voted to continue its ] independence and seek closer ties with ].		The '''2006 referendum in Transnistria''' took place in ] on ] ]. On that date, Transnistria voted to continue its ] independence and seek closer ties with ].

⚫	== Political ~~climate~~ ==

	No political party in Transnistria ask for reunification with the ]. Previously, Transnistrian Supreme Court banned political organisations on the ground that they are "against the state", wanting reunification with Moldova. Before the referendum, 4 members of pro-moldovan NGO "Dignitas" from ] were arrested by Transistrian Special Forces, but were released after few days in custody, no charges being made against them <ref></ref>.

	== Official Results ==		== Official Results ==
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	Victor Josu, deputy ] of Russian-language Moldovan newspaper '']'', an accredited observer, described the referendum as a successful ] action (regardless violations and non-recognition) and reported favorably on a comparison between "recognized Chişinau" and "unrecognized Tiraspol" in an article which emphasized the openness, transparency and ] of the referendum process.<ref></ref>		Victor Josu, deputy ] of Russian-language Moldovan newspaper '']'', an accredited observer, described the referendum as a successful ] action (regardless violations and non-recognition) and reported favorably on a comparison between "recognized Chişinau" and "unrecognized Tiraspol" in an article which emphasized the openness, transparency and ] of the referendum process.<ref></ref>

		⚫	== Political background ==
			No political party in Transnistria ask for reunification with the ].

	== See also ==		== See also ==

Revision as of 14:17, 1 October 2006

Politics of Transnistria


Constitution
Executive President Vadim Krasnoselsky Prime Minister Aleksandr Martynov
LegislatureSupreme Council Speaker Alexander Korshunov Political parties
Elections Recent elections Presidential: 2016 2021 Parliamentary: 2015 2020 Referendums
Administrative divisions Five Raions One Municipality
Foreign relations Ministry of Foreign Affairs Minister: Vitaly Ignatyev Human rights in Transnistria Politics of Moldova Transnistria conflict Transnistria War Proposed Russian annexation of Transnistria Passport Visa requirements Visa policy Diplomatic missions of / in Transnistria
Other countries
v t e

The 2006 referendum in Transnistria took place in Transnistria on 17 September 2006. On that date, Transnistria voted to continue its de facto independence and seek closer ties with Russia.

Official Results

Data issued by Transnistrian authorities show of the 555,500 inhabitants, a total of 394,861 were registered to vote, down 5.6% from a year earlier.

The referendum asked voters:

Do you support the course towards the independence of Transnistria and the subsequent free association with the Russian Federation?
Yes: 97.2% - No: 1.9% - Invalid/undecided: 0.9%
Do you consider it possible to renounce Transnistria's independent status and subsequently become part of the Republic of Moldova?
Yes: 3.3% - No: 94.9% - Invalid/undecided: 1.8%

Voter turnout was 78.6%, substantially more than the 50%+1 required by law to validate the referendum. On the day of the referendum, no exit polling was allowed within 25 meters of polling stations, to prevent disruption of voting.

Reactions

International organisations, such as the OSCE, European Union, GUAM, and some other countries (Bulgaria, Norway, Romania, Ukraine, Turkey, Croatia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia, Iceland, Norway) did not recognize the referendum.

According to Russian News Agency RIA Novosti, more than 130 international observers monitored the referendum and reported that "they did not register any procedural violations during the secret balloting", however no international monitoring organizations sent any observers to it.

Deputy from the Russian party "Rodina" Viktor Alksnis stated that referendum in Transnistria was held without any violations of legislation and democratic standards.

In the opinion of the Ukrainian foreign ministry, "the situation in Transnistria fails to meet the conditions of a free will expression by citizens". The media climate in Moldova including Transdnistrian region is restrictive. Authorities of both banks of the Dniester continue efforts to silence their respective opposition.

The OSCE gave its verdict on the referendum in advance of the voting, and decided not to send any observers to monitor it. 130 CIS and observers from Europe and from eleven election monitoring organizations who did attend the referendum had different reactions. The representative of the Congress of Russian Communities from Moldova declared that the referendum was held according to international standards.

In contrast the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Moldova (HCHRM) claims to have observed a series of infringements at the referendum:

Groups of activists going into people’s homes, especially in Tiraspol and Bender districts, asking why they did not come to the referendum, and threatening that after the referendum they will be forced to look for a new home in Romania.
At some voting stations agents dressed in civil or militia uniforms forcing the observers from outside the sections to stay at a distance of 200-250 meters far from these places.
"Cleaning" of the list of voters by excluding some citizens who previously boycotted elections and referendums held in Transnistria.

No evidence has been presented to substantiate any of these accusations in the press-release. No other sources have so far expressed similar accusations or given any indications to believe that the statements of HCHRM are true.

Sergei Bagapsh, president of Abkhazia, has said his republic "supports the aspirations of Transdniestria toward independence and its choice of unification with Russia."

Karel De Gucht (Chairman of the OSCE) expressed an opinion about the "lack of basic requirements for free and fair elections, such as freedom of the media, freedom of assembly and political pluralism, in the region pre-determined the results" and argued that the questions in the referendum are suggestively worded. In a possible manipulation of the public opinion, people are asked to choose between freedom ("free association") and loss of independence ("renounce the Transnistria's independent status"), between reality ("support the course") and possibility ("consider it possible") This formulation could have resulted in a response bias.

Victor Josu, deputy editor-in-chief of Russian-language Moldovan newspaper Moldavskiye Vedomosti, an accredited observer, described the referendum as a successful public relations action (regardless violations and non-recognition) and reported favorably on a comparison between "recognized Chişinau" and "unrecognized Tiraspol" in an article which emphasized the openness, transparency and glasnost of the referendum process.

Political background

No political party in Transnistria ask for reunification with the Republic of Moldova.

References

External links

"International observer: Referendum in Transdnestr conforms to international norms" Regnum News
"Moldova's Trans-Dniester Votes in Referendum on Whether to Pursue Independence" Voice of America News
Transdnestr independence plebiscite RIA Novosti
OSCE reaction
Final monitoring report by international observers

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