CHISINAU, June 3. /TASS/. Young members of Moldova’s opposition Victory Bloc staged a protest outside the EU office in Chisinau, demanding an end to support for and promotion of LGBT causes in the republic.
According to a TASS correspondent, several dozen young people gathered at the office carrying banners reading "For traditional values" and "Chisinau is not a place to celebrate LGBT." Speakers at the rally urged European officials to respect the will of Moldovan citizens and "not to push for a march of LGBT supporters." The protest remained peaceful, and police did not interfere with the demonstrators' actions.
This May, the Chisinau authorities banned the annual LGBT march in the capital. Following the decision, a rainbow flag was displayed on the EU office building in Chisinau.
Metropolitan Vladimir of Chisinau and All Moldova urged the country’s leadership to prohibit LGBT marches. His appeal was backed by the Party of Socialists, the Party of Communists, the Victory Bloc, and other opposition groups. They accused Moldovan President Maia Sandu and her pro-Western Action and Solidarity Party of waging a campaign against traditional Christian values - which they say are supported by the vast majority of Moldovans - and of aggressively promoting LGBT ideology at the behest of foreign patrons.
Former President and current leader of the Party of Socialists, Igor Dodon, claimed that in recent years the United States has spent millions of dollars to undermine Orthodox faith and destroy traditional family values in Moldova through government-aligned NGOs. Authorities, he said, have supported these efforts by deploying reinforced police units to protect marches attended by members of the ruling party, along with US and EU diplomats and several hundred LGBT supporters. Politicians and clergy who oppose LGBT advocacy among children have faced public harassment and intimidation.