METROPOLITAN CHURCH OF BESSARABIA
13
AND OTHERS v. MOLDOVA JUDGMENT
54. On 13 January 1994 S.M. was arrested on his way to church. He was
pinned down by five policemen, then thrown into a police van and taken
first to the town hall, where he was savagely beaten. He was then taken into
police custody at Ocniţa police station, where he was upbraided for showing
favour to the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia. He was not informed of
the reasons for his arrest. He was released after being detained for three
days.
55. Following these incidents T.B. left the parish.
2. Parish of Saint Nicholas, Făleşti
56. In a letter of 20 May 1994 the vice-president of the provincial
council for the province (raion) of Făleşti rebuked G.E., priest of the parish
of Saint Nicholas and a member of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia,
for having celebrated the Easter service on 9 May 1994 in the town
cemetery, that being an act contrary to the Religious Denominations Act
because the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia was illegal. For the same
reason he was forbidden to conduct divine service in future whether inside a
church or in the open air. The vice-chairman of the provincial council
warned G.E. not to implement a plan he had to invite priests from Romania
to attend divine service on 22 May 1994, given that he had not first obtained
official authorisation, as required by section 22 of the Religious
Denominations Act.
57. In November 1994 G.E. was fined 90 lei (MDL) for officiating as a
priest of an unrecognised Church, the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia.
The Court of First Instance upheld the penalty, but reduced the amount of
the fine to MDL 54 on the ground that G.E. did not hold any office within
the Church concerned.
58. On 27 October 1996, before the beginning of divine service in the
parish church, several persons, led by a priest of the Metropolitan Church of
Moldova, violently assaulted G.E., drawing blood, and asked him to join the
Metropolitan Church of Moldova. They also attacked the priest’s wife,
tearing her clothes.
59. G.E. managed to escape into the church, where the service was
taking place, but he was pursued by his assailants, who began to fight with
the congregation. A policeman sent to the scene managed to persuade the
aggressors to leave the church.
60. On 15 November 1996 the parish meeting published a declaration
expressing the parishioners’ indignation about the acts of violence and
intimidation to which members of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia
were subjected, requested the authorities to cease to condone such acts and
demanded official recognition for their Church.
61. On 6 June 1998 the applicant Petru Păduraru, Metropolitan of
Bessarabia, received two anonymous telegrams warning him not to go to
Făleşti. He did not lodge any complaint about this.
14
METROPOLITAN CHURCH OF BESSARABIA
AND OTHERS v. MOLDOVA JUDGMENT
3. Parish of Saint Alexander, Călăraşi
62. On 11 July 1994 the applicant Ioan Eşanu, priest of the parish of
Saint Alexander, was summoned by the president of the Călăraşi provincial
council to a discussion about the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia.
That discussion was also attended by the mayor of Călăraşi, the secretary
of the provincial council and the parish clerk. The president of the
provincial council criticised the applicant for his membership of the
applicant Church, which made him a fellow-traveller of those who
supported union with Romania. He then gave him one week to produce a
certificate attesting to recognition of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia,
failing which he would have to leave the parish.
4. Parish of Cania (Cantemir)
63. In a letter of 24 November 1994 to the Metropolitan of Bessarabia,
V.B., a Romanian national, priest of the parish of Cania, reported that he
was under intense pressure from the authorities of the province of Cantemir,
who had upbraided him for belonging to the applicant Church.
64. On 19 January 1995 V.B. was summoned to the police station in
Cantemir, where he was served with a government decision cancelling his
residence and work permits and ordering him to leave Moldovan territory
within seventy-two hours and to hand over the permits concerned to the
relevant authorities.
5. Incidents in Chişinău
65. On 5 April 1995 Vasile Petrache, priest of the parish of Saint
Nicholas, informed the Metropolitan of Bessarabia that the windows of the
church, which was affiliated to the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia, had
been broken during incidents that had taken place on the nights of 27 to
28 March and 3 to 4 April 1995.
66. A similar attack occurred in the night of 13 to 14 May 1995. Vasile
Petrache lodged a complaint on each occasion, asking the police to
intervene in order to prevent further attacks taking place.
67. In the night of 3 to 4 September 1996 a grenade was thrown by
unknown persons into the house of the Metropolitan of Bessarabia, causing
damage. The applicant lodged a complaint about this at the police station in
Chişinău.
68. In autumn 1999, after the death of Vasile Petrache, the Metropolitan
of Bessarabia appointed the applicant Petru Buburuz as the parish priest of
Saint Nicholas.
Following that appointment the church of Saint Nicholas was occupied
by representatives of the Metropolitan Church of Moldova, who locked it
and prevented the adherents of the applicant Church from entering. They
also took possession of the parish documents and seal.