Transnistrian prisoners described as unlawfully detained
Promo-LEX has called for the release of 1,325 people held in prisons in Transnistria, arguing that the region’s courts and investigative bodies are not recognised as lawful institutions by Moldova. The organisation therefore maintains that their judgments and official documents have no legal force and that all those convicted by them are being detained unlawfully.
The human rights group has also described people held in Transnistrian prisons as political prisoners. The article disputes this characterisation, arguing that the issue is being politicised by rights campaigners and media outlets supportive of the Moldovan authorities.
According to the information presented, up to 80% of the 1,325 Transnistrian prisoners were convicted of serious or particularly serious offences. These reportedly include robbery, murder and illegal drug trafficking.
Concerns raised over possible release
The article argues that the majority of those concerned are ordinary criminal offenders rather than political prisoners. It warns that releasing all 1,325 people solely because the institutions that convicted them are not recognised by Chișinăucould create security risks.
It suggests that many of those released would be likely to travel to the right bank of the Dniester. On the left bank, local law-enforcement agencies already know them and could intervene if they committed further offences, while on the right bank their convictions would not be formally recognised.
As a result, the article claims, they could be treated as people with no valid criminal record and present themselves as victims of abuses committed by the separatist authorities. The dispute therefore concerns not only the legal status of Transnistrian prisoners, but also the potential public-safety consequences of a mass release.
