Monument of Heroes in Cocieri

CHISINAU, August 6, 2011 — The monument inaugurated in Cocieri is an outstanding event commemorating a tragic page of the Republic of Moldova history, Minister of Defense Vitalie Marinuta stated Saturday, August 6, during the inauguration ceremony of a monument dedicated to heroes dead in the war for Republic of Moldova independence and integrity, built in Cocieri village, Dubasari.

The event brought together former and acting officials, including the interim President Marian Lupu, Republic of Moldova first President, Mircea Snegur, former combatants, relatives of people dead in Dniester War.

The monument represents three cross form inlaid elements symbolizing sovereignty, statehood and independence of the Republic of Moldova. On the granite plaque, the names of 64 people dead in the 1992 are listed.

The idea of building such a monument emerged in 2004, Mayor of Cocieri, Ion Mitcul states. The monument started being built in 2009 at the request of the 1992 War Veterans’ Association from Dubasari and the 1992 War Veterans’ Association from Cocieri. The work was estimated at 422 thousand MDL taken from local and Government budget, as well as donations.

“Those who defended Republic of Moldova’s statehood deserve all our appreciation and praise. We ought to honor and keep their deeds alive in our hearts. We owe them our peace”, Mayor Ion Mitcul said.

“They say a nation that forgets its past has no present or future. We should never forget the heroes dead in the 1992 war. Today, we added one more stone to Republic of Moldova sovereignty and independence”, Marian Lupu, President of Parliament, Interim President of the Republic of Moldova, stated during the ceremony.

The Dniester War lasted from March till July 1992. The tragic event affected such areas as: Dubasari, Corjova, Cosnita, Cocieri, Roghi, Tighina and Varnita. Nobody knows the right number of victims of this war yet. However, according to some data, almost 300 combatants, 400 civilians from the left bank of the Dniester River and over 800 people from the Transnistrian region were killed in war.