Photo: BGNES (via Sofia News Agency)
The Communist Party won last Sunday’s election in Moldova, giving it the authority to change the country’s constitution and hand-pick the next president.
The news wasn’t well-received by opponents, however. Protesters–especially young people– began organizing demonstrations and takeovers of government offices by harnessing the power of social media, particularly Twitter and Facebook.
Within hours of establishing the hashtag #pman (Piata Marii Adunari Nationale, a public square in Moldova’s capital) to track posts on Twitter, at least 10,000 protesters gathered to express their dissatisfaction with the election’s outcome.
By Tuesday, a critical mass of protesters converged on the presidential office and the Moldovan parliament, seizing both temporarily in what the New York Times described as a “spontaneous riot.”
A comprehensive time line of events and helpful contextual information can be found in this article.
Julie Schwietert
Julie Schwietert Collazo is a writer, editor, researcher, and translator currently in New York, formerly of Mexico City and San Juan. She is Matador's managing editor and is the lead faculty member of MatadorU's travel writing program.
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