Transdniester opposition leader holds Internet "democracy townhall"

Yevgeny Shevchuk, leader of the reform-oriented opposition, answers voter questions live over the Internet (photo: Renewal)

TIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - If the hype can be believed, democracy will come closer to the voters on Tuesday afternoon, January 30, at an internet link called http://obnovlenie.info/conference.php
That is the website of Renewal, the largest opposition party in Pridnestrovie (also called Transdniester, or Transnistria unofficially).

On that page, young reform politician Yevgeny Shevchuk launches an interactive "internet townhall" taking questions from voters and other web users. Questions will be live, but users also have the possibility of submitting their questions in advance. Other users can see the questions online and vote for them. According to the website, "On the site of conference it is possible not only to propose new questions, but also to vote for those which are already listed. The more votes a question gets, the higher is the probability that it'll be answered."

" - Our filter is in itself democratic," says the site's webmaster. "There are already more than 100 questions, so we need some way to figure out which ones are most important. We let the users decide, by voting for the ones that they are most interested in."

Over 100 online questions

The teleconference with Yevgeny Shevchuk, opposition leader and Speaker of parliament, starts at 4 p.m. (2 p.m. GMT).

" - By conducting the Internet-conference we want the voters to find out more about Renewal, and it will also help us find out what the citizens of Pridnestrovie think about different questions regarding the domestic and foreign policy of our country," the party press office reported to the Tiraspol branch of the New Region news agency.

Users have already posted over 100 questions, related to cost of living issues, political freedom, human rights and the settlement of the Moldovan problem.

A voter from Rybnitsa, in the north of the unrecognized country, wants to know:
" - For a long time, our republic has sought international recognition. But for more than 15 years, it has kept the [unrecognized] status. Sometimes, it becomes worse, with the economic blockade [initiated by Moldova and Ukraine]. In your opinion, how much longer must be people still suffer from this, and what can be done to obtain international recognition of PMR as quickly as possible?"

Another voter, signing himself as Nikolai, asks:
" - Yevgeny, I read that you are planning to unveil a new proposal for thawing out the frozen conflict with Moldova. In the press, it has been dubbed the 'Shevchuk Plan' - where can I find out more about this plan, and what are the key elements of it?"

From Tiraspol, Internet user Aleksei puts it short and direct:
" - Which solution to the Moldovan issue do you think is the best?"

More than a hundred other questions - some of them tough and critical - await Yevgeny Shevchuk as he logs on and starts getting close to the voters. Shevchuk, 38, is the Speaker of PMR's Parliament and the leaders of Renewal (Obnovleniye), Pridnestrovie's largest opposition party. The party won an unexpected 23 of 43 possible seats in the 11 December 2005 parliamentary elections, putting parliament in control of the opposition for the first time since the 1990 declaration of independence.

Shevchuk was widely seen as the most credible candidate to challenge Igor Smirnov for the presidential seat. But this year, he did not enter the race. Instead, he decided to keep working from parliament, and among his future reform plans, he wants to create the post of prime minister. He has not ruled out a future presidential bid but decided that 2006 was not his year for that.

See also:
» Yevgeny Shevchuk: "We will work for more and more democratization"

On the web:
» http://obnovlenie.info/conference.php