Moldova
Maria Sandu, president of Moldova since December 2020, has stood up against Russia’s interference in her own and other European countries’ politics and elections and strongly condemns Russia’s war on neighboring Ukraine. She has signed a UN resolution denouncing Russia’s military aggression and applied for EU membership for Moldova in solidarity with Ukraine. On 29 October 2025, Sandu spoke at the Paris Peace Forum to urge Europe’s democracies to defend themselves and their way of life. Her speech is excerpted below. See Katia Glod and Maria Branea’s essay on “How Moldova Stands up to Putin” on pp. 105–119.
Before the first missile struck our neighbour Ukraine, the first weapon was the lie.
By the time the tanks crossed the border, the groundwork had been laid: Ukraine’s very right to exist had been mocked, and every effort had been made to blur the line between the aggressor and the victim. Moldova is no stranger to Russia’s information war. But since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the manipulation of truth has reached terrifying new levels. Because Moldova refused to take the side of the aggressor, the Kremlin launched a furious campaign to undermine trust in the Moldovan state—to discredit the leadership, to divide our citizens, and to frighten them with the idea that if Moldova stood with Ukraine and with Europe, it would share Ukraine’s fate. . . .
Russia’s information manipulation goes even further—it seeks to erode public support for Europe’s own security and defence. It aims to convince citizens that investing in protection is provocation, that strength is escalation. While Russia runs a war economy and wages hybrid warfare against many nations, it wants European democracies disarmed—politically, economically, and mentally. At our parliamentary elections last month, Russia used disinformation to undermine trust in free and fair voting and eventually capture power in Moldova.
It is very clear: Russian propaganda is not a collection of random posts or noisy talk-show hosts. It is a strategic operation—an orchestrated campaign by an authoritarian regime to distort democracy abroad, corrode public trust, and manipulate elections in democratic states.
It exploits every difference—language, ethnicity, geography, history—turning diversity into division, neighbours into enemies.
And propaganda doesn’t come alone. It is part of a wider hybrid strategy that goes far beyond disinformation. It is fueled by illegal money and, in Moldova’s case, has even involved priests-turned-influencers spreading Kremlin narratives in churches and on TikTok. Hybrid warfare, which authoritarian regimes use to undermine democracies elsewhere, mixes online manipulation with physical-world actions.
It is not just digital; it operates across politics, religion, and society, creating pressure on institutions and deepening distrust. For us, it became clear that defending sovereignty, our right to choose our future, means defending the integrity of our information space—and those who keep it alive. Before the party I founded came to power, Moldova’s media landscape was suffocating under oligarchic control.
We changed that. We worked to build a media environment where facts matter—where journalists could work without fear, and where citizens could trust the information they receive. Last year, Reporters Without Borders ranked Moldova 31st in the world for press freedom—a leap of more than fifty places since we began this transformation five years ago.
That progress was not only about freedom; it was about strength and our national security. Because when Russian malign influence intensified, our independent media—empowered and resilient—became the first line of defence. In recent elections, investigative journalists uncovered troll farms, exposed crypto-financed disinformation networks, vote buying schemes, and revealed how Russia’s proxies tried to buy influence with dirty money and lies.
Their work helped citizens make informed choices—and helped our democracy withstand one of the most intense hybrid attacks in our history.
But this work came at a cost. Journalists have been harassed online, intimidated with threatening messages and phone calls, and targeted by cyberattacks in attempts to silence them. . . .
That is why we strengthened our legal framework, gave our Broadcasting Council stronger tools to act, and—in some cases—made difficult decisions to suspend channels that spread disinformation or glorified war.
We did this not to silence opinions, but to protect citizens’ right to reliable information. Even so, manipulation persists—through more than three hundred Russian-language TV channels that blend entertainment with propaganda, humour with hate, normalising Russia’s aggression against independent states and undermining trust in democracy. Eventually, the best antidote is regulation combined with resilience—a long term effort helping people see manipulation for what it is.
As we improved the landscape for traditional broadcasting, the battlefield shifted online. Unlike television, the digital space remains largely unregulated. Social-media platforms—once a promise of freedom and transparency—have become vast theatres of manipulation. Authoritarian regimes that suppress free expression at home use these same platforms to undermine democracies abroad. They exploit the openness of our societies to spread manipulation, while denying their own citizens that very freedom.
During our 2025 parliamentary elections, Russian-linked networks used Telegram, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram to flood Moldovan users with fabricated news, deepfakes, and coordinated propaganda. Troll farms operating inside Moldova generated tens of millions of views. The BBC infiltrated one such network of about one hundred fake TikTok accounts. The U.S. Digital Forensic Research Lab later found that these accounts amassed over 55 million views—in a country of just 2.4 million people. One political party, with almost no presence on the ground, was suddenly propelled into Parliament by a campaign that existed almost entirely on TikTok.
This should alarm us all. What happened in Moldova in the last three polls, or in Romania last year, can happen anywhere—in your national elections, or in the next European Parliament vote.
If algorithms reward outrage instead of accuracy, and opacity instead of accountability, then democracies are fighting on a battlefield they do not control—against adversaries who exploit it ruthlessly.
So we must ask ourselves: Are we still promoting freedom of expression—or are we allowing it to be hijacked by those who seek to silence genuine voices? How do we protect liberty while curbing industrial-scale manipulation? Moldova’s experience shows that we must act—together—to restore integrity to the information space.
What is illegal offline must also be illegal online. Platforms must follow their own rules—and the law. They should provide real access to data, disclose who pays for amplification, and submit to independent audits of moderation and political advertising. We must follow the money. No platform should accept political or advertising payments from sanctioned individuals or entities. If the money is dirty it cannot be treated as business as usual. Free speech is for real people—not for armies of bots. Democracies must explicitly exclude fake or non-human entities from free-speech protections, especially during elections. And because hybrid threats do not stop at the Schengen line, Europe must also grow—enlargement is not charity, it is security.
By integrating the democracies that stand on the frontline, Europe becomes larger, stronger, and more resilient—able to defend its democracies, its citizens, and its way of life.
Turkey
On 17 October 2025, the Party of European Socialists (PES) Congress nominated Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu for the 2025 Mayor Paweł Adamowicz Award for courage and excellence in the promotion of freedom, solidarity, and equality. The prize honors the mayor of Gdañsk, Poland, who was murdered on stage in an act of political violence during a charity event in 2019, and is awarded by the City of Gdañsk, the European Committee of the Regions, and the International Cities of Refuge Network. Mayor İmamoğlu has been wrongfully imprisoned since 23 March 2025 on politically motivated charges of corruption. His wife Dilek İmamoğlu delivered his remarks on his behalf, translated below.
I cannot be in person today, as the elected mayor of Istanbul, I send my warmest greetings to you all, the progressive mayors of European cities gathered in Amsterdam.
Our cities in Europe, like Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Istanbul and others, are bound together by a shared commitment to democracy as demonstrated by your visits to us in Istanbul in support of our fight for democracy. I sincerely thank you all for your solidarity. Your visits show our people that we are not alone in our fight for justice and democracy.
Attacks on democracy in Turkey entered a most perilous phase. Courts are no longer functioning as instruments of justice, but are being used as a political weapon to crush democratic opposition. Democratically elected opposition mayors like me are removed from their posts and put into prison on fabricated corruption charges. Seventeen elected mayors are currently behind bars, and more than a quarter of Istanbul’s districts have had their elected leaders removed and replaced with trustees. Millions of voters are being silenced through what can be called “judicial coups.”
Our party, the CHP under the leadership of Özgür Özel, continues to resist these unlawful attacks on democracy and the rule of law by mobilizing the forces of democracy in the country. We are relentlessly holding mass rallies in all cities, small and large, including Istanbul, where a rally is held every week with the participation of hundreds of thousands of people. This shows Turkish people’s desire for change.
Today, 70 percent of the population of Turkey lives in municipalities governed by opposition mayors who worked day and night to turn them into model cities despite all obstacles piled in front of them by the central government to hinder their success. Istanbul, with its 16 million population, is one such city where we have managed to build what I call the “Istanbul model,” a model based on transparent governance, green and social investments, and a city administration representing not a privileged few but all its citizens.
This was the reason why I was re-elected as mayor of Istanbul for a second term against all attacks and manipulations. This, as well as having been selected as the presidential candidate by my party for the next elections, is the reason why I was put into prison.
Today, I speak to you from detention, but I speak with hope, not with despair. Manipulated court decisions and violations of the laws cannot annul the will of the people. As progressive mayors of European cities, we must show that cities are fortresses of democracy, and that fortress will hold.
Tanzania
Opposition leader Tundu Lissu, chairman of the opposition political party Chadema, was charged with treason and arrested on 9 April 2025 for publicly advocating for electoral reforms. Both Lissu and Chadema were barred from participating in Tanzania’s general elections. On 26 October, the following statement was posted on behalf of Lissu to his X account.
My brothers and sisters,
For several weeks now, I have been placed under total isolation—a state of forced loneliness. The fellow inmates who once shared my cell, all of whom had been sentenced to death, have been removed; I have been left completely alone.
My cell is now fitted with surveillance cameras (CCTV) that record everything I do—even when I relieve myself or change clothes. I no longer have any privacy whatsoever. This is not a matter of security; it is a deliberate act meant to humiliate my human dignity.
I appeal for this matter to be raised loudly and forcefully, because it is a blatant violation of human rights and an offense under the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Mandela Rules), which clearly state that:
- The inherent dignity of every human being must be respected, even when imprisoned (Rule 1);
- Prolonged or indefinite solitary confinement that denies a prisoner communication with others amounts to cruelty and torture (Rules 43 and 44).
It is also a violation of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, Articles 12 and 13, which guarantee the dignity of every person and prohibit torture or degrading treatment.
I am prepared to endure any hardship for the sake of my belief in justice and the freedom of our people. But the humiliation of human dignity can never be acceptable — not for me, nor for anyone who bears the name of a human being.
Madagascar
Frustrated with frequent water and power outages, Malagasy students used social media to form the protest movement Gen Z Madagascar in September 2025. Demonstrations began in the capital city of Antananarivo on September 25, and in the following days gendarmes would kill at least 22 protesters and injure hundreds more while trying to quell the protests. When security forces violently halted a peaceful student demonstration on September 27, a student named Mikolo stood up to officers to voice the students’ grievances. The confrontation was recorded by fellow protesters and is excerpted below.
Even the public health is struggling. Where can you find that? The power in the military hospital is out. You can only find that in Madagascar. Do you, the gendarmes, the military, and the police, put up with that? Besides that when it comes to health, take a look! How many people have died in hospitals? How many people aren’t getting the care they need? Isn’t there any life insurance?
Please, look at the poverty of the Malagasy people. We are suffering, we are suffering! We beg. We’re always pleading with our Father, Save us, my God! Banish the bad people from this country, Jesus Christ. What we’re going through is beyond difficult.
Let me approach them, it doesn’t matter! [Others: don’t approach (the gendarmes)!]
I dare to approach them. You can arrest us, but I’m not here to steal. I want to remind you that we, the Malagasy people, are suffering. I know I shouldn’t go there, but enough is enough. Okay, I won’t go there because you’re my elders. We’re students, and we know there are limits. I want to make it clear that it wasn’t us, the protesters, who burgled the houses. We don’t know who was paid to do that, we came here today to show our signs.
There he is, Colonel Tojo. Finally, we’ve run into you today. Colonel Tojo, don’t you see what the Malagasy people are going through? Every day, you say the Malagasy people are doing fine. Think carefully, Colonel Tojo. You wouldn’t have become a colonel without education. And look at teachers’ salaries now, look at what they’re going through. Think hard about it. You wouldn’t be here without teachers. Think hard about that. And you won’t let us go on strike. But it’s our right. We’re not destroying anything. We’re just here to say that the governance structure is failing. What we need, we’re not saying the cable cars and other things are useless, but we need to eat healthily morning, noon, and night. Besides that, when we sleep at night we need security. But we don’t know where to express our opinions.
We need healthcare. It’s not right that when we get sick, we have to self-medicate because we don’t have money. The Malagasy people are poor. And you tell us to go blow off steam. That’s not right, especially the way you think. Tell that to General Bomba too. General Bomba, I want to remind you today that the Malagasy people are poor…
My grandfather was killed in 1947. Tied up in a sack, thrown in, and drowned in the water. Isn’t that hard for you? Remember well, you armed forces. Without them, you wouldn’t be here. Maybe it makes you laugh today, but go there in memory. Sooner or later, I’ll be in power, even if it’s just a street speech. When I’m there, for the gendarmes and police. No more corruption! We’ll restore order! I know that right now, someone is targeting me and wants to kill me with a weapon. It doesn’t matter! It’s your right, you can do it…
Our food is chayote in the morning and pumpkin at night. These are the most hated food by men, but we are forced to eat it. And you’re going to say to arrest me? You’re saying that right now—I can see it! But we’re also people who have studied, just like you. But whoever wants to arrest us today will be struck down tonight. I’ve already warned you…Stop arresting people because they are not to blame!
Nepal
Anticorruption protests, organized via social media by a group of students calling themselves “Gen Z Rebels,” began in the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, on 8 September 2025 and, in a matter of days, inadvertently toppled the government. Amid the protests, a March 2025 speech by 16-year-old Avishkar Raut resurfaced and spread online. Raut’s speech begging Nepalese youth to rise up and stand against corruption is excerpted below.
Today I stand here, stand here with the dream of building a new Nepal. With the fire of hope and passion burning within me. But my heart is heavy, because this dream seems to be slipping away…
Nepal, our mother, this country gave us birth. Nurtured us. But what did it ask in return? Just our honesty, our hard work, our contribution. But what are we doing? We are bounded by the chains of unemployment…we are trapped by the selfish games of political parties. Corruption has woven a web that is extinguishing the light of our futures.
Youth! Rise! We are the torchbearers of change. If you do not raise our voices, who will? If you do not raise our voices, who will? If you do not build this nation, who will?
We are the fire that will burn away the darkness. We are the storm that will sweep away injustice, and bring prosperity!
Our ancestors shed their blood to give us this nation. We cannot sell it. We cannot lose it.
We are the fire. We will burn every despair away…Now, we must decide: Will we drown in the darkness of despair, or rise as the sun of hope? Will we change the fate of this nation, or will we let it remain in shackles?
King Virendra once said, even if I die, shall my country live on. All the youths: Carry these words in your heart, and engrave a monument of change in the course of history! Nepal is ours, and its future is in our hands!
Jai Nepal! Jai Nepal!
China
The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China was established in 1989 after the Tiananmen Square massacre. The Alliance was forced to dissolve after its chairperson, Lee Cheuk-yan, and vice-chair, Chow Hang-tung, were arrested on 9 September 2021 and charged with “inciting subversion of state power” under the National Security Law. Lee and Chow have been held for more than 1,500 days without conviction. Their trial was set to begin in November 2025, but has since been postponed to 22 January 2026. On October 29, the Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders released the statement below demanding the immediate release of Lee and Chow.
We, the undersigned 92 civil society organisations and individuals, call on the governments of the G7 and EU/EEA members to exert diplomatic pressure, both bilaterally and multilaterally, on the Hong Kong government to drop all charges and release Chow Hang-tung and Lee Cheuk-yan immediately and unconditionally.
We are appealing for international attention to their impending trial.
Chow, a distinguished barrister and an Amnesty International-recognized prisoner of conscience, and Lee, a prominent labour leader and fellow pro-democracy activist, have been unjustly imprisoned for over 1,500 days simply for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly.
Both activists are defending their charges of inciting subversion of state power under the 2020 National Security Law (NSL) for their roles in the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (Hong Kong Alliance). These charges carry a maximum penalty of ten years’ imprisonment. Their trial scheduled to begin in November 2025 is now further delayed two more months without providing any reason.
For thirty years, the Hong Kong Alliance had organized the world’s largest annual commemoration of victims of the military crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests on the 4 June 1989. The peaceful, student-led protests advocated for political and economic reforms, and an end to government corruption in China.
The Chinese Red Cross estimated that 2,600 protesters and Beijing citizens lost their lives in the crackdown. Since 1990, hundreds of thousands have gathered in Hong Kong’s Victoria Park for an annual candlelight vigil to remember the victims of the massacre.
It is imperative that on the eve of their trial – set to commence on 3 November 2025 – we stand united to demand justice and freedom for Chow and Lee. Their involvement with the Hong Kong Alliance, as well as their rightful calls for the Chinese authorities to disclose the truth about the crackdown and to accept responsibility for the loss of lives, must not serve as grounds for persecution.
Copyright © 2026 National Endowment for Democracy and Johns Hopkins University Press