On eve of 30th anniversary of Gagauz autonomy, Moldovan president talked to members of Gagauz community about developing, preserving cultural identity

Chisinau, Dec 21 /MOLDPRES/- President Maia Sandu together with Speaker Igor Grosu and Prime Minister Dorin Recean held a discussion with members of the Gagauz community on 20 December. The dialogue, held on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the autonomy, emphasized its essence - a framework created to protect and promote the Gagauz language, culture and traditions - and the need for renewed efforts to ensure that these goals are truly achieved, the presidential press service has reported.

On 23 December 1994, the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova adopted the law on the special legal status of the Gagauz Autonomy, with the main objective of protecting and promoting the cultural, linguistic and traditional identity of the Gagauz community. 

Participants in the discussion underlined the importance of coordinated and joint efforts to ensure that the Gagauz language and culture will be passed on to future generations. Maia Sandu reaffirmed the support of the central authorities for close cooperation with the Gagauz community in order to protect its cultural identity. In the context, the need for effective educational programs, teaching resources and the training of specialized teachers to teach the Gagauz language was discussed.

The dialogue was marked by a call for unity and the idea that Moldova is the common home of all its citizens and that the Romanian language is an essential element for the harmonious integration of the Gagauz Autonomy into the national context, facilitating access to education, jobs and credible sources of information.

A central topic of the discussion was the improvement of communication between Chisinau and the autonomy to support sustainable development, community welfare and better mutual understanding. In this context, participants drew attention to the danger of misinformation, emphasizing the need for the region to be well connected and have access to credible sources of information.

Maia Sandu also emphasized the importance of economic and social development projects in the region. Through the European Village program, 15 projects worth 73 million lei are being implemented, which directly contribute to improving the quality of life of the inhabitants. The European Union investments, amounting to more than 40 million euros in the region, have also brought significant improvement in infrastructure, education and health, directly contributing to the increase of the living standards of the inhabitants of the autonomy.

At the event, the President honored the contributions of personalities from the Gagauz community - people of culture, teachers, doctors, local representatives, journalists and entrepreneurs. Among them are Maria Acbaș, Ludmila Anastassova, Vera Balova, Stepan Bulgar, Piotr Buzadji, Elena Caramit, Constantin Cheles, Ecaterina Cojocar, Tatiana Damașcan, Vitalii Gaidarji, Svetlana Ghenova, Igor Guseinov, Ecaterina Jecova, Gheorghi Kalciu, Gullu Karanfil, Vasili Neicovcen, Svetlana Mironova, Denis Pintea, Polina Pintea, Svetlana Peicova, Petros Albertian, Mihail Sirkeli, Ana Statova and Maria Tanasovici.

The head of state concluded the discussion by reaffirming the commitment of the authorities to work together with the members of the Gagauz community to achieve the fundamental goal of autonomy - the preservation of language, culture and traditions - and to make the region an example of prosperity, good understanding and cooperation for the whole Republic of Moldova. "It is time to do together what has not been achieved in the last 30 years," said Maia Sandu.