Former Moldovan, Romanian lawmaker marks 70th birthday anniversary

Chisinau, 30 July /MOLDPRES/ - The Romanian patriot, Ilie Ilascu, turned 70 years today. Former lawmaker of Moldovan parliament, Romanian senator in two legislative periods, Ilie Ilascu distinguished himself through the support of the cause of the reunification of the Romanian nation from the two banks of Prut and was one of the founders of the National Liberation Movement from Bessarabia. Yet, the fight for his ideal brought Ilascu a death sentence, which turned into a tough political imprisonment in the Tiraspol jail during nine years.       

Ilie Ilascu was born in the Taxobeni village, Falesti district, on 30 July 1952. He graduated from the State Agrarian University, the Economy Faculty. He worked as chief economist at the Dnestr scientific research institute from Tiraspol and Soviet Army officer.  

Ilascu is one of the founders of the National Liberation Movement from Bessarabia (1988-1992), created in the context that, at that time, 35,000 out of those 200,000 residents of Tiraspol belonged to the Romanian (Moldovan) ethnic group – i.e. about 17 per cent, who had no school, no kindergarten in the Romanian language, as subjects were taught in Russian at all 19 education units from Tiraspol.

Ilie Ilascu was head of the People’s Frond from Moldovan, Tiraspol branch, starting from 1989 till 1992, when the branch was liquidated by the Transnistrian breakaway forces.  

In 1992, Ilascu participated in combat actions at Dniester as commander of special troops of Moldova’s National Security Ministry. Ilascu and his special unit fought in the rear and brought serious losses to the 14th Army of Russia and the groups of Cossacks who came to Transnistria to fight against the Moldovans.   

During 2-4 June 1992, Ilie Ilascu, Andrei Ivantoc, Alexandru Lesco, Tudor Petrov-Popa, Peru Godiac and Valeriu Garbuz were arrested at their homes from Tiraspol by persons who wore uniforms of the 14th Army of the former USSR and were charged by the Transnistrian authorities with war crimes and terror actions.    

The trial was considered unfair, as during it, the presumption of innocence was not observed and pre-fabricated evidence was produced to support the charges. Thus, the members of the ‘’Ilascu group’’ were convicted, in fact, for the ‘’offence’’ of having fought for the independence and territorial integrity of their native country – Republic of Moldova – the rightful successor of the Soviet Socialist Republic of Moldova, which became independent state in 1991.