01:48Supporters and representatives of the opposition Shor and Revival parties rallied outside the Parliament in Chisinau on Thursday, following a government plan to rebrand Victory Day and move it from the traditional May 9 to May 8.
Footage shows protesters holding flags and chanting 'Shame', 'Victory' and 'Thanks to grandpa for the victory'.
One of the demonstrators claimed that May 9 was a sacred holiday that the authorities were forgetting their own history.
"We have come here today because we do not forget the exploits of our grandfathers. We want May 9 to remain our holiday, a sacred one. We are not interested in any other dates because we have learned the right history, not rewritten by our present authorities," he said.
According to the local media, the rally was peaceful, the police did not intervene, and no detentions were reported.
In May, Moldova's governing Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) proposed renaming Victory Day as the 'Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation for those who lost their lives in World War II' and moving it a day earlier; the same day the Western allies mark 'Victory in Europe Day'.
The Russian Embassy in Moldova condemned the initiative, stating on its Telegram channel that 'the memory of the Great Victory will always unite the peoples of Russia and Moldova.
Moldova: 'We have learned the right history' - Chisinau residents protesting against V-Day cancellation initiative
Supporters and representatives of the opposition Shor and Revival parties rallied outside the Parliament in Chisinau on Thursday, following a government plan to rebrand Victory Day and move it from the traditional May 9 to May 8.
Footage shows protesters holding flags and chanting 'Shame', 'Victory' and 'Thanks to grandpa for the victory'.
One of the demonstrators claimed that May 9 was a sacred holiday that the authorities were forgetting their own history.
"We have come here today because we do not forget the exploits of our grandfathers. We want May 9 to remain our holiday, a sacred one. We are not interested in any other dates because we have learned the right history, not rewritten by our present authorities," he said.
According to the local media, the rally was peaceful, the police did not intervene, and no detentions were reported.
In May, Moldova's governing Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) proposed renaming Victory Day as the 'Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation for those who lost their lives in World War II' and moving it a day earlier; the same day the Western allies mark 'Victory in Europe Day'.
The Russian Embassy in Moldova condemned the initiative, stating on its Telegram channel that 'the memory of the Great Victory will always unite the peoples of Russia and Moldova.
Supporters and representatives of the opposition Shor and Revival parties rallied outside the Parliament in Chisinau on Thursday, following a government plan to rebrand Victory Day and move it from the traditional May 9 to May 8.
Footage shows protesters holding flags and chanting 'Shame', 'Victory' and 'Thanks to grandpa for the victory'.
One of the demonstrators claimed that May 9 was a sacred holiday that the authorities were forgetting their own history.
"We have come here today because we do not forget the exploits of our grandfathers. We want May 9 to remain our holiday, a sacred one. We are not interested in any other dates because we have learned the right history, not rewritten by our present authorities," he said.
According to the local media, the rally was peaceful, the police did not intervene, and no detentions were reported.
In May, Moldova's governing Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) proposed renaming Victory Day as the 'Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation for those who lost their lives in World War II' and moving it a day earlier; the same day the Western allies mark 'Victory in Europe Day'.
The Russian Embassy in Moldova condemned the initiative, stating on its Telegram channel that 'the memory of the Great Victory will always unite the peoples of Russia and Moldova.