Dnestr School Complains to Strasbourg About Russia, Language Violations

[Harold F. Schiffman]

>>From MOS News,

Dnestr School Complains to Strasbourg About Russia, Language Violations


MosNews.com, partner project of The Moscow News, gazeta.ru 17.08.2004

A school in Moldovas separatist Dnestr region has appealed to the European
Court about rights violations. The students, mostly orphans, are forced to
study Romanian in Cyrillic script.

The school principal and 10 pupils complained to the European Court of
Human Rights in Strasbourg about rights violations relating to their right
to privacy and the right to education, the Interfax news agency reported,
citing a statement from Amnesty International Moldova. The complaint is
directed against Russia, which supports the Russian-speaking Dnestr
region.

Earlier the Strasbourg court had ruled that Russia was responsible for
similar human rights violations in the breakaway territory.

The school says in its appeal that Russia has done nothing to prevent the
violations of its rights.

The school says it is forced to use Cyrillic-based Romanian, which they
say is a grave violation of the rights of the children in the school, most
of whom were orphaned or without parents. Moreover, the appeal says,
Dnestr authorities are forcing a curriculum upon them that does not meet
the standards of pluralism in education.

The school is also forbidden to use textbooks published in Moldova,
Interfax quoted the statement as saying.

Dnestr, dominated by Russian speakers, has no international recognition.
It fought a brief war with mainly Romanian-speaking Moldova in 1992 in the
aftermath of the collapse of Soviet rule. All proposals to solve the
dispute, mainly by forming a federal state, have failed. Russian troops,
which intervened to end the 1992 war, remain in the region despite Moscows
pledge to remove them.

http://www.mosnews.com/news/2004/08/17/dnestr.shtml

See also:

Moldova Slaps Sanctions on Russian-Speaking Dnestr Region
Created: 30.07.2004 14:37 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 16:19 MSK

MosNews

Ex-Soviet Moldova slapped sanctions on its separatist Dnestr region on
Friday but said they would be lifted if the hardline Slavs running the
enclave allowed Romanian-language schools to function, Reuters reported.

Dnestr, dominated by Russian speakers, has no international recognition.
It fought a brief war with mainly Romanian-speaking Moldova in 1992 in the
aftermath of the collapse of Soviet rule. All proposals to solve the
dispute, mainly by forming a federal state, have failed. Russian troops,
which intervened to end the 1992 war, remain despite Moscows pledge to
remove them.

Dnestr authorities this month ordered the closure of six schools unless
they switched from Romanian-language instruction to Cyrillic script - as
was used in Soviet Moldova. Militia evicted orphans from one building and
forced them to spend the night outside.

In response, the Moldovan government ordered all export certificates to be
stopped from Dnestr, a largely industrial region which first broke away
from Moldova in 1990 when it was a Soviet republic. It also barred the use
of rail cars for Dnestr factories.

A statement said restrictions would apply from Aug. 1 until the separatist
Tiraspol regime removes all restrictions on free movement of citizens
through the country and allows all structures of Moldova to function
fully.

But Vasily Sova, Moldovas Minister of Reintegration, was quoted by Reuters
as saying that sanctions will not be enforced if schools are once again
allowed to operate normally.

Romania, whose territory once included most of Moldova, has expressed
increased anxiety.

The irresponsible attitude of the separatist authorities is only a
confirmation of the ill will they have manifested during the whole process
of negotiations of the Trans-Dnestr conflict, said a government statement
issued late on Thursday.