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The situation in the Security Zone (SZ) poses a permanent threat to fundamental human rights and freedoms. For these reasons, Promo-LEX Association commissioned a study on the impact of Security Zone incidents on human rights over the past 20 years. The study performs a quantitative and qualitative analysis of incidents, determining the trends in their evolution in the SZ, assessing the correlation over time between the developments in the negotiation process and how these trends have led to certain human rights violations. Also, in order to strengthen the prevention and response capacity of the authorities of the Republic of Moldova, the study analyses the incidence over time of planned provocative actions and violations in the SZ.

The Nistru river valley Security Zone, set up following the Moldovan and Russian Agreement of 21 July 1992, is neither demilitarized nor a safe zone for the security and freedom of people from these territories. These are some of the findings of the Study on ‘Incidents in the Security Zone during 2001-2020, from a human rights perspective’, made public today by Promo-LEX Association in a press conference.

Moreover, there is a constant deterioration of the situation: attempts to close the Romanian language teaching schools, seizure of thousands of hectares of agricultural land, kidnapping, unlawful detention at illegal checkpoints, unauthorized shootings or military exercises in the SZ are just some of the serious problems. The situation worsened in 2020, in particular, with the introduction of unjustified measures to limit (practically block) the traffic, which remains the most common violation in the Security Zone, say Promo-LEX experts.

The Joint Control Commission, being the mechanism for ensuring stability in the Security Zone, cannot cope with the challenges due to the flawed principle of decision-making by consensus of the three parties involved – the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation and the Tiraspol administration. In this regard, the author of the Study developed a series of recommendations to the constitutional authorities, but also to other stakeholders involved in the Transnistrian issue resolution:

• Clarify the legal status of the Moldovan-Russian treaty of 21 July 1992;
• Replace the current peacekeeping operation with one with an internationally recognized mandate;
• Reform the mechanisms of the peacekeeping operation, primarily by revising the regulations of the Joint Control Commission and the instructions of military observers;
• Comply with the provisions of the Moldovan-Russian Agreement on Guaranteeing Free Movement of Goods, Services and Commodities in the Security Zone and remove the illegal checkpoints;
• Initiate, by the Government of the Republic of Moldova, consultations with the European Union and Member States on the resumption of nominal sanctions against Tiraspol decision-makers who are responsible for restricting the right to free movement, but also for abusive arrests and detentions, persecution of political opponents and civic activists as well as for other flagrant human rights violations in the region, including in the Security Zone.