Hype

The Twitters that shook Moldova

Flower-power revolutions are out, digital ones are in. That seems to be the verdict after last week’s hip Twitter revolution in Moldova, that make Georgia’s Rose Revolution and Kyrgyzstan’s Tulip Revolt seem like anachronistic throwbacks. Energised by twitter posts, rousing sms-es and blog posts, over 15,000 Moldovan youth gathered in the capital, Chisinau’s main square this week to protest last Sunday’s elections. Though peaceful at first, and with no cohernet leaders or organisers, the gathering turned violent, with the President’s office and main Parliament briefly seized and ransacked. It was an impressively high-tech revolt for a backward country that most Europeans have never heard of. The revolutionary students even labelled their mass protest a ‘flash mob’ thus locating it inside the cultural space of today’s digerati. Their digital sophistication was not lost on the world’s media, that triumphantly picked up the story, and made it theirs, by christening it the ‘Twitter’ Revolution.

While it’s great for Moldovan activists to find themselves in the media spotlight, websites mused whether ‘we’ll remember the events not by the color of the flags but by the social-networking technology used.’ Most likely, they’re right. The big winner in this revolution was Twitter, which has a bigger wow! factor than Facebook and the other networking sites out there. Will Molodavan youth manage to overturn the flawed verdict of last Sunday’s elections, and help usher in a more progressive government. That’s less clear in the long term.

Meanwhile, as B-Easts, we’re curious what all the twittering was about so here’s a selection of the  best twitter posts from this year’s freshesh revolution.

raduku: #pman Moldova free media gets through proof of torture practices by moldovan police http://tinyurl.com/c2f7yk (expand)
2 minutes ago from web ·

mssinglemama: @andybame RT #pman Moldavia is divised into multiple groups, it’s about the reign of terror of Voronin and the communists in Moldavia

Chisinua – live feed from Radio Vocea Basarabiei is interrupted. Will restransmit later. Where are all the authroities?

RT@Moscovici: Protestors report police attacks protesters. Severe fights between police and protestors now in Chisinau, Moldova

Basarabean: #pman (12:25, April 8, local time) About 4000 young people are now in the central square of Chisinau, protesting against the fake elections

andybame: #pman JurnalTV: armored vehicles are heading towards Chisinau, prepared for tomorrow-to be used against protesters http://tinyurl.com/ceuuel (expand)

andybame: #pman the releasd journalists are still scared; the commies are torturing, beating people-for some, they will wait to have the wounds healed

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2 Responses to “The Twitters that shook Moldova”

  1. David Levin Says:

    I wish you would include the publishing date and time of your articles. Please?

  2. Alex Says:

    I am surprised.