CHISIANU: Gagauzia’s parliament will gather for an emergency session on August 6 following today's prison sentence handed down to the ...
CHISIANU: Gagauzia’s parliament will gather for an emergency session on August 6 following today's prison sentence handed down to the autonomy’s head Evghenia Gutsul.
"The agenda will focus on the political situation in Gagauzia following the illegal conviction of the autonomy’s head," the parliamentary press service said.
Gutsul stated earlier that the charges levied against her were politically motivated - a way to remove her from power.
Earlier in the day, Gutsul was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of illegal financing of the opposition party Sor. Apart from that, she was banned from being a member of any political party for five years and fined $2.4 million, the amount she allegedly took to finance her campaign. The court also upheld a previous ruling to seize her property.
Meanwhile, Gutsul categorically denies all the charges, slamming the case as a political vendetta against her. According to the Gagauz head, Moldova’s ruling Party of Action and Solidarity, which controls the parliament and government, is behind her trial. Her lawyers have promised to appeal the verdict to a higher court.
Gutsul’s relations with the Moldovan leadership became strained in 2023 after she won elections in the autonomy and proclaimed a course toward closer relations with Russia, criticizing Chisinau’s policy of confrontation with Moscow. Moldovan authorities tried to invalidate the election in Gagauzia, but the Gagauz parliament sided with Gutsul. Apart from that, a series of grass-roots rallies were held in her support. However, Moldovan President Maia Sandu refused to sign a document approving Gutsul as a government member, which is required to be done under the country’s laws.
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