Valeriu Boboc
| Valeriu Boboc | |
|---|---|
| Born |
May 5, 1985 Bubuieci |
| Died |
April 7, 2009 (aged 23) Chişinău |
| Cause of death | The post-election riots |
| Resting place |
Bubuieci 46°59′N 28°57′E / 46.983°N 28.950°E |
| Nationality | Moldovan |
| Alma mater | "Miguel de Cervantes" High School Chişinău |
| Known for | The order of the Republic of Moldova |
| Spouse(s) | Natalia Boboc |
| Children | Dragoş (born 2008) |
| Parent(s) | Ala and Victor Boboc |
| Awards | Moldova's Order of the Republic |
Valeriu Victor Boboc (May 5, 1985 - April 7, 2009) was a protester who died during the post-election riots in Chişinău, Moldova. He was posthumously decorated, by a presidential decree, with Moldova's highest state decoration – the Order of the Republic.[1]
Biography
He was born on May 5, 1985, in Bubuieci (a Chişinău suburban community), in a family of intellectuals. His father Victor Boboc was a history teacher and his mother a Romanian language teacher. But the poverty has radically changed the situation in his family, his father working as taxi driver and his mother, Ala Boboc, became unemployed.
Valeriu Boboc graduated from "Miguel de Cervantes" High School Chişinău and attended International Relations Institute of Moldova for one year. He left university because he didn't have three thousand lei to pay the study contract. Looking to find a better paid work, he tried to leave for Russia, but failed. He worked at a car wash, a car service and then sold belts at market. While selling clothes he met Natalia, whom he married in 2007. Valeriu Boboc lived in an apartment in Bubuieci, with his wife, his child Dragoş, his brother Marcel and parents.[2]
Death
Valeriu Boboc died in the night of 7/8 April 2009, amid the post-electoral protests. The police declared he died of smoke inhalation from the riot, but his family claims that he was beaten to death by the police, his body being full of contusions.[3][4]
After the results of the April 2009 Moldovan parliamentary election were announced, he was a peaceful participant at the protest. Boboc arrived in the Square after 5.00 p.m., when the presidential and parliament buildings were being ravaged.
The body of Valeriu Boboc was handed to the relatives by the police on April 12 and was buried on the same day. The police declared he was found dead in the Great National Assembly Square. According to the official investigation, he died of inhaling a toxic gas, his death certificate stating as cause "poisoning with an unknown substance". The Boboc family and the lawyers disputed this, claiming instead that the young man was beaten to death while in custody. Moldova's Attorney General however noted that the bruises and bleeding traces on Boboc's body were not a cause of his death. The body of Valeriu Boboc was exhumed at the cemetery of Bubuieci on June 15, 2009 for further investigations.[5]
Legacy
Dorin Chirtoacă, the mayor of Chişinău and vice-president of the Liberal Party, attended Boboc's funerals. The opposition parties subsequently used his death as an important subject during the July 2009 electoral campaign.
On October 8, 2009 hundreds of people came to the Stephen the Great Monument in Chişinău to mark 6 months from the bloody events. While was attending the ceremony, the prime minister Vlad Filat, expressed condolences to Victor Boboc, the father of Valeriu Boboc. Filat also said that the Ministry of the Interior has already started a domestic investigation into the police’s actions on April 7, 2009 and especially during subsequent days and weeks.[6]
After December 2009, Dragoş Boboc, Valeriu Boboc's son, will monthly receive 1000 lei from Mihai Ghimpu's salary. This action will continue as long as his interim mandate of acting President of Moldova is valid.[7]
A year after Boboc’s death, General prosecution announced on April 6, 2010 that they had arrested the supposed murderer, a collaborator of the General Police Commissariat.
Awards
On April 7, 2010, Valeriu Boboc was posthumouslty decorated, by a presidential decree, with the highest state distinction: The Order of the Republic.
External links
- Valeriu Boboc, decorated post-mortem with The Republic’s Order
- A fost identificat ucigasul lui Valeriu Boboc
- Valeriu Boboc eroul ucis de politie Proteste Chisinau Romanian Television
- Silent protest in memory of Valeriu Boboc 13-04-09
See too
References
- ↑ Valeriu Boboc, decorated post-mortem with The Republic’s Order
- ↑ The addict and the marauder has deserved the higher award of Moldova?
- ↑ (Romanian) "Familia unui tânăr moldovean susţine că acesta a murit după ce a fost bătut de poliţie", Mediafax, April 12, 2009
- ↑ (Romanian) "Dovada crimelor miliţiei lui Voronin", EVZ.ro, 13 April 2009. Accessed 2009-07-22. Archived 2009-07-31.
- ↑ Valeriu Boboc`s body to be examined by experts
- ↑ MEMORY OF APRIL EVENT VICTIMS VENERATED IN MOLDOVA AND ROMANIA
- ↑ Dragoş Boboc receiving 1000 lei from president's salary