Lawmakers seek to enshrine victims’ memory in law and punish public denial, sparking debate over free speech and historical accountability.
In Moldova, a group of deputies from the ruling party “Action and Solidarity” (PAS) led by Parliament Speaker Igor Grosu introduced a bill that provides for criminal liability for denying, justifying, challenging, and approving the famine of 1946–1947 and Stalinist deportations. The bill “In memory of the victims of the famine of 1946–1947 and the deportations carried out by the Stalinist regime against Moldova’s residents” was registered on June 26. The authors of the amendments propose officially recognizing the famine of 1946–1947 as a crime against humanity committed by the Soviet totalitarian regime, and also introducing criminal liability for public denial, justification, or downplaying of the scale of this tragedy. The bill provides for imprisonment for such actions from six months to five years.
The essence of the bill and historical memory
According to NewsMaker, the bill provides for official recognition of the famine of 1946–1947 as a crime against humanity and introduces criminal liability for public denial, justification, or downplaying of this tragedy. For such actions, imprisonment of six months to five years is proposed.
In June 2025, Moldova’s president Maia Sandu announced that about 20,000 cases of deported residents of the country had been transferred to the archive.
Starting from July, each family can finally locate and restore the names of those who disappeared in the darkness of dictatorship. Thanks to this handover all the cases of people who suffered political repression under the communist regime are now gathered in one place – the National Archives
– Maia Sandu
In the night from June 12 to 13, 1941, the first Stalinist deportation began in Moldova: the Soviets (representatives of the Soviet regime – editors’ note) shattered destinies, tore families apart, and doomed innocent people to death, Moldova’s leader stressed.
The Soviets (representatives of the Soviet regime – editors’ note) shattered destinies, tore families apart, and doomed innocent people to death
– Moldova’s leader
According to Sandu, those deported lost everything they had built up over many years and ended up in forced labor camps. She stresses the importance of evaluating these events from the perspective of historical memory and legal consequences to enshrine the truth about Soviet repression in law and in the state’s historical narrative.
The initiative to criminalize denial of crimes of the Stalinist regime is seen as a step toward strengthening historical accountability and forging a clearer legal stance on the past. It is expected that Parliament will continue the discussion and the bill’s passage will be the subject of further debate within the relevant committees and parliamentary factions.
On this topic, Moldovan lawmakers seek to make history more visible in the legal arena and strengthen accountability for expressions related to national traumas. Regional experts note that the law’s passage could signal to other countries about accountability for public denial of historically proven crimes. The law, as the authors note, aims to preserve memory and foster a responsible attitude toward the past.