Commentary by Moldova's Reintegration Policies Bureau

On the pronunciation of the ruling by the European Court of Human Rights in a cause Sandu and others versus Moldova and Russia

Chisinau, 24 July /MOLDPRES/ - As a result of the pronunciation, on 17 July 20918, by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on the cause Sandu and others versus Moldova and Russia, we reiterate that, thanks to the measures of permanent support provided and multidimensional assistance offered to the claimants concerned (1,646 private persons and three commercial companies), the high court objectively and fairly confirmed the fact that Moldova’s authorities fulfilled their positive obligations through undertaking proper and sufficient measures able to ensure the rights of the claimants to an effective remedy and protection of property.    

We remind that the issue of farmlands from the Dubasari district, placed beyond the Rabnita-Tiraspol highway (since its appearance till present) has been constantly on the agenda of all dialog platforms for the Transnistrian settlement (5+2 format, political representatives, sectoral working groups) and during negotiations, Chisinau’s representatives were continuously insisting on the unconditional de-blocking of the access to the concerned plots of land, re-establishment of the right to property harmed, removing the obstacles artificially set to the freedom of movement, free tilling of lands and carriage, without any obstacles, of the seeding material and harvest through the so-called points on the administrative line.  

Due to the commitments agreed upon through the protocol decision On measures of settlement of problems dealing with the carrying out of the Mechanism from 2006 Year on the use of farmlands placed in the Dubasari district, beyond the Tiraspol-Camenca highway, signed on 25 November 2017 by the political representatives, as well as due to the agreement on giving, beginning with 1 August 2018, unconditional access to the lands to all owners and farmers, who have properly inquired, the process of recovery of  farmlands and the one of reinstatement have been practically boosted. Or, the concerned results represent also a mirroring of the frequent visits paid to areas by representatives of the Reintegration Policies Bureau (over 20 ones in the first half of 2018), permanent assisting of local representatives in the process of submitting the set of needed documents, as well as of the intense approaching of the file on farmlands in the dialogue between Chisinau and Tiraspol, by focusing on actions towards the sustainable and viable settlement of the problem.   

The government’s support measures regarded also the material and financial component, given that, during 2014-2018, about 45 million lei was earmarked from the reserve fund to partially compensate some losses borne by the owners of farmlands placed in the Dubasari district and under the provisions of the Law No 39-XVI from 2 March 2006 on the setting of additional measures of backing the entrepreneurial activity, carried out in settlements from the left bank of Dniester and Dubasari district, diverse facilities were created and maintained for the owners of farmlands placed beyond the Rabnita-Tiraspol highway in the social protection sector (unemployment benefits, allocations for professional integration/reintegration, exemptions from the payment of the health insurance premiums and from the payment of the land tax).

The problems faced by the owners of farmlands from the Dubasari district remain in the permanent focus of the Reintegration Policies Bureau, which will further maintain a pro-active position, in order to give final touches to the process of re-establishing access to the aforementioned lands, ensure the re-establishment and protection of the right to property of the farmers to whom justice was done and monitor the full carrying out of the commitments agreed upon on the concerned file within the talks on the Transnistrian settlement.