Several websites and social media channels have distorted the content of a report by the Council of Europe (CE) on local autonomy in R. Moldova, turning a balanced document into a false message of harsh criticism against the Moldovan authorities.
This is about the report on the monitoring of the implementation of the European Charter of Local Autonomy by R. Moldova, presented in Strasbourg on Thursday, October 30, by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.
On the same day, the website telegraph.md published a news story titled “The Council of Europe has criticized the Republic of Moldova for weak local autonomy and excessive bureaucracy”, highlighting the negative aspects of the report.
The news, meanwhile deleted from telegraph.md, was picked up by websites like alerta.md and vesti24.md, which distributed the information also on networks of socialization.
Exclusively negative information from the news was taken over by some Telegram channels (“First in Moldova” News, WTF Moldova?!, Molva and Gagauznews) targeted in several articles by Stopfals.md. All these sources completely omitted the positive aspects mentioned in the report. “Will those from PAS, who want to take control over the country, including depriving Gagauzia of autonomy, listen? The question is rhetorical” (in the original: “But will the PAS listen, who so actively want to take control of the whole country, including depriving Gagauzia of autonomy? The question is rhetorical”), commented the channel WTF Moldova?!, and Gagauznews wrote that the CE “blamed the Moldovan government” (in the original: “blamed the authorities of Moldova”).
Unlike these sources, media sources that reflected the subject in a balanced way (including agora.md and moldova1.md) referred to both the negative aspects and the positive ones, but also to the recommendations made to the authorities in Chisinau.
What does the Council of Europe report actually contain
The official statement of the European institution, entitled “The Council of Europe Congress calls for the continuation of the reform agenda to strengthen local democracy in the Republic of Moldova” (in the original: “Council of Europe Congress calls on the Republic of Moldova to pursue its reform agenda to strengthen local democracy”), begins with encouraging the Moldovan authorities to continue implementing reforms in the field. The text continues with expressing satisfaction by the rapporteurs regarding “the progress made in implementing the previous Congress recommendation” (in the original: “noted with satisfaction the progress made in implementing the previous Congress recommendation”). After listing a few positive aspects, the statement of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the CE contains “several reasons for concern about the structural and functional deficiencies of local autonomy” (in the original: “several matters of concern regarding the structural and functional weaknesses of local self-government”). The last part of the statement is dedicated to recommendations for the authorities.
Screen capture, the official statement on the CE website
How propagandists manipulated public opinion
The CE statement does not criticize or accuse the Republic of Moldova or the current government, but has a neutral tone. The rapporteurs acknowledge the progress, list the deficiencies, and offer recommendations for improving local autonomy.
The news published by telegraph.md, alerta.md, and vesti24.md, although they referred to some positive aspects of the report, focused on the negative aspects. However, the Telegram channels went even further, manipulating that the CE “blamed the government” or adding non-existent subjects, such as “canceling Gagauz autonomy” by the authorities of R. Moldova, even though the latter did not express this intention either declaratively or legislatively.
Among the manipulation techniques used are changing the tone of the document (the report was presented as criticism or even condemnation), omission of important information (references to the progress recognized by the CE were eliminated) or exaggeration of criticism (through formulations like “The Council of Europe blamed the government”).
Stopfals.md has repeatedly warned about the disinformation promoted by the Telegram channels “First in Moldova” News, WTF Moldova?!, Molva and Gagauznews, but also by the website telegraph.md. Details HERE.