“Rewriting the Past for Political Gain”. What Drives PAS to Defend a Scandalous Textbook?

The 12th-grade history textbook is a key instrument in crafting a new national myth designed to uphold not only Moldova’s pro-European trajectory but also the long-term dominance of the PAS party

Semyon ALBU, RTA: While yet another war is erupting on the global stage, this time between Israel and Iran, Moldova remains embroiled in its own “local front”: a fierce battle over the 12th-grade history textbook. The authorities have taken a hardline stance, blatantly ignoring legitimate criticism and stubbornly clinging to their position. Let’s start with some facts. The controversy surrounding the textbook has been raging for over a year now. The issue is multifaceted, but what stands out most prominently is the whitewashing of Romania’s World War II leader, Marshal Ion Antonescu, along with a disturbing distortion of Holocaust history, widely considered taboo and unacceptable in today’s world. Slightly less attention has been paid to the portrayal of the Soviet era. Students are confronted with repugnant claims, such as the assertion that the working class of the Moldavian SSR was supposedly made up mostly of foreign citizens: “in most cases, individuals with a negligent attitude toward work: fraudsters, vagabonds, and alcoholics”. Or that the Soviet regime didn’t care about Moldova’s native population, it only wanted the land “to repopulate it with its own discarded elements”. No sane country would ever permit this kind of garbage to be taught to children. Its “authors” would be dragged into court for fueling ethnic division. At the very least, the textbooks would be swiftly pulled from schools, the print run scrapped, and the necessary corrections made. But what do we witness in this country? The Ministry of Education, and Minister Dan Perciun personally, are fiercely defending the textbook, flatly refusing to even consider its withdrawal from schools. Notably, the official’s “defense line” keeps falling apart. At first, under public pressure, he promised an international review of the textbook – and it was indeed sent for evaluation to Yad Vashem and the Romanian Institute for Holocaust Studies. The verdict was smashing for the authors. Historian Alexei Tulbure, who examined the expert reports, laid out the devastating conclusions in full. The textbook was slammed for falsified data, for whitewashing the Antonescu regime’s responsibility for the genocide of the Jews, and for portraying the dictator in a generally favorable light. Dan Perciun had little choice but to openly lie to the public, claiming there was “nothing dramatic” in the expert evaluations that would warrant pulling the textbook. Meanwhile, in true fashion of the ruling regime, the Ministry chose to keep the full reports hidden from public view. This week, the Ministry of Education staged public hearings on the already discredited textbook. This move was clearly intended to let off some steam from mounting public anger. But the effort fell flat. The entire event turned into a staged defense of the textbook by officials and handpicked “experts”. Unsurprisingly, all criticism of the textbook was dismissed as part of a “hybrid war waged by Russia against Moldova”. One particularly telling moment was the presence of Anatol Taranu among the textbook’s defenders – the same figure who recently used disturbingly Nazi-like rhetoric by referring to Russian speakers as an “ethnically inferior segment” of society. At this point, any observer is bound to ask: why are the authorities so zealously defending a textbook already exposed for numerous factual inaccuracies, hateful language, and accusations of antisemitism? Such a toxic cocktail of flaws should have been more than enough for the Ministry to make the obvious and long-overdue administrative decision. Especially considering that Moldova’s own Council for Equality ruled that even the title of the textbook is discriminatory and must be changed. I think the key point is that any regime coming to power with a rigid ideology and a determination to reshape state policy accordingly inevitably sets out to rewrite history in its own image. Sadly, history is one of the most vulnerable disciplines when it comes to such political experiments. Especially when those in power have full control over the information space and all the key institutions of government. PAS, as everyone knows, is driven by a “pro-European” ideology. Within this framework, Moldova’s entire existence is expected to serve one singular goal: accession to the European Union. This course has already been cemented constitutionally through a rigged referendum. But that’s not enough – the idea must be embedded in the public consciousness. As last autumn revealed, the population hasn’t yet lost the ability to think critically. So the brainwashing must be more active and start with the youngest. In the end, the authorities are crafting a national myth of a “historically European Moldova” – a country that was temporarily pulled away from the European family by a malevolent Moscow, first in the 19th century, and then again in 1940. The second date is especially significant. After all, it’s hard to claim a break from Europe in the context of freeing oneself from centuries of Ottoman rule, whose core was located in Asia Minor. But the 20th century events offer a more interesting narrative. In Soviet historiography, Romania’s annexation of Bessarabia was rightly called an occupation and was never officially recognized. Thus, in 1940, Moscow simply reclaimed territory that had belonged to it for over a century before World War I. From 1941 to 1944, the region was again under occupation until Soviet forces reclaimed the territory. But for PAS, it’s crucial to depict these historical twists in a completely inverted light once and for all. Why? There are several reasons. First, to present the idea that Moldova was already part of Europe even in the recent past, but that its European path was “defiled” by an aggressive Moscow. Second, to portray Russia as a perpetual “historical enemy” that has always illegitimately laid claim to our territory seeking control for its own sinister motives. This narrative fits perfectly into today’s climate of a constant Russian threat, which is conveniently used to justify any response, even if it means trampling democratic norms and values. In this light, the whitewashing of Antonescu suddenly makes perfect sense. After all, how could someone who “liberated” Moldova from the Russian yoke be cast in a negative light? And why tarnish the radiant image of the European family by bringing up the hundreds of thousands of killings it once sanctioned? What matters is to instill, first in schoolchildren, and then in their parents, the idea that the Russian period in Moldova’s history was nothing more than the byproduct of predatory ambitions which one large and malevolent empire had. Amusingly, even Maia Sandu has now stepped in to defend the textbook, dismissing the Equality Council’s verdict as an “overreach of authority”. The government’s reaction is clear. After all, building these myths isn’t just about fulfilling the wishes of the regime’s foreign patrons, who need to keep Moldova tightly in place as a strategic foothold for a future war with Russia. It’s also a tool for ensuring the ruling party’s longevity. If everything in the country serves the sacred goal of EU integration and PAS is officially anointed by Brussels as the “best Euro-integrator” – then obviously only PAS is qualified to govern Moldova. Makes perfect sense, doesn’t it?