Moldovan Demonstrators Take Protest To The Countryside

Anticorruption demonstrators in Moldova have held a motor rally through the country's provinces instead of a regular mass demonstration in the capital, Chisinau.

Several hundred cars participated in the motorcade on September 20 as protest leaders took their message to Moldova's towns and villages.

The mass rallies got under way on September 6, when tens of thousands of people took to streets in Chisinau to protest the pro-Western governing coalition's failure to come to grips with corruption and implement genuine reforms.

After that rally, protesters set up a permanent camp of about 200 tents in Chisinau and have held weekly protests on Sundays.

They are demanding the resignations of President Nicolae Timofti and several anticorruption officials, as well as early parliamentary elections.

The government has rejected the demonstrators' political demands, saying it will only negotiate with them on proposed reforms and economic measures.

Based on reporting by TASS and Interfax