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The risk to challenge a corrupt state system

In 2015, Chisinau, the capital of Moldova, a small former-Soviet country, sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, was ailing

By: EBR - Posted: Monday, June 19, 2017

From left to right: Denis Ulanov - Solicitor, Moldova, Alberto Cirio - MEP, Lega Nord, Marina Tauber - Head of the SOR political party of Moldova, Balan Iulian - Solicitor, Moldova at the European Parliament, Strasbourg, France.
From left to right: Denis Ulanov - Solicitor, Moldova, Alberto Cirio - MEP, Lega Nord, Marina Tauber - Head of the SOR political party of Moldova, Balan Iulian - Solicitor, Moldova at the European Parliament, Strasbourg, France.

Thousands of people went out to the streets to protest demanding to return hundreds of millions of dollars withdrawn from the banking system and to punish the guilty in the "theft of a century".
 
Moldavian businessman Ilan Shor, whom they hastened to bring to the public as the "guilty person", was a perfect match for this role in every way. A young man (almost 30 years old at the moment), rich, who has inherited a colossal business empire by Moldavian standards, having political strivings, the Jewish, which is a reason for suspicion on its own for the public opinion of the predominantly orthodox country. Moreover, at the time of the "theft of a century", Mr. Shor was holding an office of the Chairman of the Executive Board of former state-owned Banca de Economii (BEM), which turned out to be a bankrupt as a result of the questionable transactions. A perfect person for channeling public discontent.
 
However, some questions remained. Was it possible to withdraw hundreds of millions of dollars fro the bank, where the State owned a blocking share holding, without the involvement of the government? Was it possible to perform transactions in vast sums of money in a way that the National Bank, the banking regulator of Moldova, was not aware? As soon as the emotions cooled down, these questions came to the fore.
 
Moreover, Ilan Shor refused to play a role of a "whipping boy" prepared for him. He has voluntarily went to the Anti-Corruption Center giving himself up. His testimony revealed an ugly truth about the all-out corruption, which restrains Moldova in beggary for two and a half decades.
 
In 2013, Ex-Prime Minister Vlad Filat, being at the peak of his career, forced Mr. Shor to buy the state-owned bank, Banca de Economii. For those countries, similar to Moldova, where any large business has to keep corruption relations with the government, this situation is not unique. Having come to the bank, private investors discovered that it is nearly a bankrupt. Over a period of more than 20 years, hundreds of millions of dollars have been withdrawn from the bank under the pretext of the loans. The loans have not been secured by pledges and have never been repaid. Time passed by, political regimes changed, but the schemes of pumping money from the state-owned bank worked as Swiss watch. They were scarcely covered by the smokescreen of unfair reporting, disregarded by the government holding a controlling stake and the National Bank. A great many "loitered" around shadow state-owned Banca de Economii.
 
However, by 2013, the ugly truth about BEM could not be concealed: it has turned out to be within an inch of the license revocation. After a spate of scandals, the government decided to transfer the controlling stake in Banca de Economii to the private investors. Having "forgotten" to inform them about the real situation at the bank. As it was announced, the government did not intend to save it. The plans of Prime Minister Filat, as it has been proved today, were to withdraw the remaining funds from ВЕМ and to drive it to bankruptcy, having concealed the traces of decades-long theft. All liability was planned to be "pinned" on the representative of private investors charged with the bank's "rescue". That is – on Ilan Shor.
 
It happened so. The firms affiliated with Mr. Filat and his criminal associate, scandalous raider Vyacheslav Platon, took up loans from BEM in the amount of USD 250 million, and Ilan Shor was placed under house arrest.
 
However, the plea bargain made by the deceived businessman hindered those plans from fulfilling. Filat and Platon found themselves in the cell. Mr. Shor became the mayor of the city of Orhei and the leader of a political party, quickly gaining popularity.
 
However, it has soon been discovered that in such country as Moldova it was not secure to uncover corruption at the highest levels of power. In June 2016, Mr. Shor was arrested, and then he was moved under house arrest. On June 22, it will be a year since he was deprived of the ability to personally manage the town, where he was elected as a mayor, and his political project. Attorneys of Mr. Shor, who have visited Strasbourg on invitation of the Members of the European Parliament, state that a disproportionately severe pre-trial restriction is imposed on their client. Mr. Shor cooperates with the investigation, he discloses witnesses from whom the law enforcement and judicial authorities may obtain information about the "banking case". A plea bargain he made with the investigation, under Moldavian laws, releases him from criminal liability. More correctly – must release. But, apparently, not in this case. The topic of "banking scandal" is too politically charged in Moldova; the unmasking made by Mr. Shor turned out to be overly high-profile.
 
In her discussions with the Members of European Parliament, Vice President of Sor Party Marina Tauber emphasized that this case was politically motivated. "New policy that we pursue, as well as growing popularity of our leader, triggers pressure by the old Moldavial elite," - Ms. Tauber stated at the concluding press conference in Strasbourg. Ms. Tauber and the team of attorneys of Ilan Shor confessed that they do not rely on the Moldavian justice and hope only for the support from European structures.
 
Judging by the statements made by the Members of European Parliament after their meeting with the Moldavian delegation, such support was gained. Member of European Parliament Lorenzo Fontana, Member of the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, included into political group "Northern League". MEP Elizabeth Gardini, holding an office of Vice Chairman of the largest in the European Parliament political group of the European People's Party. MEP Alberto Cirio, Members of the  EU-Moldova Parliamentary Association Committee, French Member of European Parliament Jean-Luc Schaffhauser stated that they intend to get so called "Shor case" under their control. It will become one of the items on the agenda of relations between Chisinau and Brussels, which has lots of issues enough already.
 
Is it enough for the fair judgment to be made with respect to the witness thanks to whom the outrageous corruption in the Moldavian government has been revealed? Judging from how the Moldavian justice behaves today, even control by the Members of European Parliament guarantees nothing.
 
On June 22, the term when Mr. Shor either shall be sentenced or released expires. The court intends to sit every day. The number of defence witnesses was reduced from twenty people to six. They plan to hear them within a few days, while the witnesses for the prosecution were heard during eight months! It appears that the totalitarian spectacle in Moldova continues.
 
Members of European Parliament prepare an invitation for Mr. Shor to visit Brussels or Strasbourg. But will a young Moldavian politician, who took the risk of challenging the corrupt state system of his own country, be able to avail himself of it?

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