Politics

09 October, 2026 / 05:39

/ 19 April, 2025

Moldovan head of state delivers message on Famine of 1946 – 1947

President Maia Sandu has conveyed a message in the context of commemorating the victims of the famine caused by the Soviet regime in 1946 – 1947.

"Our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents had even their last grain of wheat taken from their attics, leaving them to die of hunger. This was a deliberate gesture, a barbaric way of subjugating the population," the head of state said.

The Moldovan president noted that, for decades, this tragedy had been passed over in silence. But collective memory cannot be erased and the truth must be told, Maia Sandu stressed.

"We cannot build a just future without acknowledging the injustices of the past and without keeping alive the memory of the hundreds of thousands of people killed by this crime. Hunger did not ask what language its victims spoke or what blood they carried," said the head of state.

The president emphasized that the country’s duty, as a united society, was to defend the truth, stand on the side of good and build the future with dignity, in peace, in a Moldova where such horrors will never again be possible.

According to the National Archives Agency, the famine of 1946-1947 was one of the greatest humanitarian catastrophes which hit the current territory of the Republic of Moldova in the 20th century. It was not an unavoidable natural disaster, but a tragedy exacerbated by the authoritarian and repressive policies of the Soviet regime. According to data provided by the National Archives Agency, in just a few months, more than123,000 people died of hunger, accounting for about 5 per cent of the population of the Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic. Proportionally, Soviet Moldova was the worst hit region in the entire Soviet Union, with a death rate ten times higher than in Russia and five times higher than in Ukraine.

Comment

Latest News

Moldova to have new ambassadors to Greece, Lithuania, Belgium, State of Qatar

PHOTO // Foreign Ministers of Moldova and Estonia launched IMPACT North project in Bălți

PHOTO // Moldova, United Arab Emirates sign Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between diplomatic institutes

PM: Increasingly frequent drone incidents show that Moldova’s security no longer abstract issue

DOC // Mihaela Fedoseev appointed Head of Office of President of the Republic of Moldova

Embassy of Estonia officially opens in Chisinau

Estonia strengthens diplomatic presence in Moldova; Embassy in Chisinau to be inaugurated by foreign affairs ministers

Moldovan government's secretary-general, after Association Council meeting: “The reforms we are completing are turning into opportunities for the country’s development”

European Union's foreign policy chief: “The EU and Moldova are stronger when they work together”

VIDEO // Moldovan PM: “Our goal is to complete technical work required to conclude the negotiations by early 2028 and prepare Moldova for membership by 2030”

Moldova advances toward EU at an “impressive” pace; European Commissioner for Enlargement: “We expect to open all negotiating clusters by the end of this year”

Estonian foreign affairs minister to visit Moldova: inauguration of Estonia’s Embassy in Chisinau, public lecture in Balti on agenda

Moldovan Foreign Affairs Ministry again summons Russian Ambassador over violation of Moldova's airspace

Parliament speaker denounces violation of Moldova’s airspace

ARMENPRESS: Armenia sets up task force over possible plague risk from Russia

Moldovan parliament tightens sanctions against poaching

Moldovan parliament approves draft in second reading: public institutions to be able to initiate establishment of industrial park

State enterprise, Railway of Moldova, to be reorganized by end of 2026; parliament adopts draft

Moldova's legislation on activities of central securities depositories harmonized with EU rules

Moldovan parliament amends rules on placement of warnings on tobacco products' packaging

Moldovan parliament votes on new structure, personnel strength of National Army

Mechanism of cooperation with EU member states for recovery of claims to be streamlined in Moldova

Share of Romanian-language TV programmes, domestic content in audiovisual space to increase in Moldova

Moldovan Foreign Affairs Ministry rejects claims made by Russia’s representative to OSCE on alleged “militarization” of Moldova: “They are false and unfounded”

Moldovan parliament approves legislative measures to ensure autonomy of specialized prosecutors in first reading

Moldovan PM discusses Moldova’s European path, economic development with international delegation of experts

Voted in first reading: people with disabilities since childhood to be able to combine disability and survivor’s pensions in Moldova

Moldova Security Forum 2026 // U.S. Ambassador to Chisinau says decisions taken today to define decades to come

Moldovan PM has meeting with Ambassador of Turkey

President at Moldova Security Forum: Moldova to be better protected against Russian threats in European Union

See more