MOSCOW, December 2 (RAPSI, Vladimir Yaduta) – The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled on Tuesday that the rights of two Moldovan nationals were violated when their libel claims against former president of the country Vladimir Voronin had been dismissed.

The Moldovan courts held that then president of the country enjoyed immunity and could not be held liable for opinions which he expressed in public.

Voronin participated in two television programmes on two privately owned channels in November 2004 and March 2007. He was interviewed by journalists on various topics such as the economy, justice, foreign relations and elections. He stated, among other things, that “during the ten years of activity as a Mayor of Chisinau, Mr Urecheanu [Serafim Urechean] did nothing but to create a very powerful mafia-style system of corruption,” according to the ruling. When referring to Vitaly Pavlicenco, who was a member of Parliament by that time, and a number of other people, Voronin stated that all of them “came straight from the KGB”.

Urechean and Pavlicenco brought libel actions against Voronin, seeking a retraction of controversial statements and compensation. Specifically, Pavlicenco claimed 500,000 Moldovan lei (about 26,800 euro) in damages plus legal costs.

Both actions were dismissed, and the claimants turned to the ECHR, alleging that their right of access to a court had been breached.

The ECHR was not persuaded that the applicants had had at their disposal an effective means of responding to the accusations made against them by the head of state. The court held that Moldovan authorities were to pay Pavlicenco 3,600 euros in respect of non-pecuniary damage and about 5,300 euros for costs and expenses.