Manipulation: Lavrov asks Chisinau authorities not to discriminate against russian-language media

The resumption of official visits and meetings of the ministers of Chisinau and Moscow Governments are treated differently by the media and by politicians. The recent visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Nicu Popescu, to Moscow was a new reason for the pro-Kremlin media to remind that “Moldova and Russia have restored partnership relations” (quoted Russia Today) and to restore the subject of “discrimination” in the russian-language media in Moldova.

Russia Today (RT) continues to develop the topic of “restoring” moldovan-russian relations. On the web page of the television, in the section “Former USSR”,to this theme is given special attention. Between July and September RT published, on average, two news articles per month about the  “normalization of relations between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Moldova”. Since the creation of the governing coalition in Chisinau, made up of pro-Russian socialists and the pro-European bloc ACUM, “russian colleagues” come to Chisinau more often and have even remembered about their Friendship and Collaboration Agreement signed in 2001.

“Discrimination of the Russian language press”

The head of the moldovan diplomacy, Nicu Popescu, made an official visit to Moscow on September 11, where he met with russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and here the series of positive materials on this subject was exhausted, usually manipulative reports. During the discussion, Lavrov draws particular attention to the discrimination of the russian-language press in Moldova. He called on the authorities to “give more attention to the need to ensure the right of journalists and not admit discriminatory policy in relation to the media”. However, Lavrov did not specify how this discrimination manifests itself. Nicu Popescu did not respond promptly to Lavrov’s statements. Most likely, he would not have even commented on the statements if he had not been asked by journalists during the press conference held in Chisinau.

Please ask Mr. Lavrov. In Moldova there are no problems with the functioning of the Russian language or with the functioning of the media in Russian. I do not think that the Russian language has difficulties in the territory of the Republic of Moldova,

replied Nicu Popescu

Moldova has the right to establish cooperation with Russia and beyond. Such cooperation is needed especially in some areas related to exports (in 2018, the share of the Russian Federation in the total volume of Moldovan exports was 8%, and the EU – 63%, the NBS data), the reuse of ammunition stored in the Transnistrian region, not to violate the visa-free regime and to ensure Moldova’s energy security, which is largely dependent on the russian-ukrainian dialogue. Solving the problem of “discrimination” of russian-language media in Moldova, which Lavrov spoke about, is particularly important for Russia. From the Kremlin’s point of view, the problem is in Moldova, but in Moldova the situation of the russian-language press is quite different. Can we consider that Russia’s actions in this direction are more regulatory or that means “resuming dialogue”?

says Dumitru Țîra, media expert, IPAH director

Lavrov cannot be misinformed that about 70% of Chisinau’s media is made up of russian media. In this context, over 950 newspapers and magazines from 1128 are in russian, the broadcasts from Russia accumulate 65-70% of the money in the advertising market at a share of almost 70% of audiences, many radios, online platforms, Sputnik, Komsomoliskaia Pravda, which has a bigger print than all the other newspapers taken together and many more. I do not quite understand about what kind of discrimination Mr Lavrov is talking. Such a situation does not even exist in Kazakhstan or Belarus, “friendlier” states with Russia. Mr. Lavrov’s statement is a new attack on the sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova. I think that Mr. Lavrov refers to the Code of Audiovisual Media Services, which provides for the prohibition of news bulletins and political or military broadcasts, etc. from states that have not ratified the European Convention on television. border. (editorial note: Russia has not ratified the Convention),

says Dumitru Țîra, media expert, IPAH director

“Mr. Lavrov, we have a problem”

According to AGB Nielsen Media Research data, the main actors on the television market after audiences are: Prime, RTR Moldova, NTV Moldova, Canal 2 (among the leaders is public television Moldova 1). In the grid of the four televisions in the top, the russian language programs prevail, which in the documents of the Audiovisual Council appear as retransmissions. Most of the TV stations in Moldova and the four listed also, are actually fully or partially relayed the content of the russian channels, and some of them are politically affiliated with the pro-Russian parties.

What is better: to reflect the problem or the way to solve it?

The problem with the “discrimination” of the Russian press in Moldova is an artificial one, created by voices pursuing interests other than those of the information sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova and by the lack of adequate reaction of the authorities. The reaction should not be expected either, since the authorities do not have official data referring to the real situation of the media in the country. If we put the statistical data on the wallpaper, the problem would “evaporate” by itself. After all, the problem is similar to that of two state languages ​​and is a good opportunity, for the first time, for political PR in elections,

says independent media expert, Ion Bunduchi

Bunduchi argues that all statistical data from civil society research (if the state is lacking in such an exercise), clearly demonstrates that the romanian-language native media is discriminated (as a number, as an audience / circulation / accession, etc.).

On the other hand, what criteria exist to determine the discrimination of the media? If we have 27 republican periodicals in romanian and 20 in russian – can we discriminate? And then, if we still have several hundred thousand citizens in the Russian Federation, how many radio / tv stations, how many newspapers / magazines, how many websites or cable TV channels do we have, as a country that “discriminates against the russian press”, in The Russian Federation?! Perhaps such questions / issues should be on the agenda of official meetings between the two parties, no matter where they take place,

Says Bunduchi