Moldova’s stuck in search for unity

Activist credited with the 2009 Twitter revolution among the critics as ex-Soviet state struggles to find a new identity

• Piotr Smolar – Guardian Weekly, Tuesday 3 January 2012

On TV, Natalia Morari wears severe spectacles and her hair pulled back into a bun, as though she were trying to look older. Every weekday, this 27 year-old journalist hosts a 90-minute debate on Publika, the Moldovan private TV channel. And everyone is able to speak out freely, which is quite a feat in Moldova.

In April 2009, Morari was a figurehead in the “Twitter revolution“, a revolt by Moldovan youth in protest against the communist stranglehold on power. The social networks played a decisive role, thanks to Twitter and Odnoklassniki, the Russian equivalent of Facebook.

In their coverage, the world’s media focused on Morari, who had already come to public attention. In December 2007, she had been expelled fromRussia where she had lived for five years, after she wrote about corruption there. “I should send a postcard to the FSB the Russian security services to thank them,” she laughed.

The 2009 protests brought elections and the formation of an Alliance for European Integration, which encompassed several small parties. However, the Alliance, despite having brought about some clear changes, has lost much of its support. “After eight years without any political opposition under the communists, a new elite can’t just