Brendan Whyte wrote:
> No, my sources are just what i've been reading on this group, but i
presume
> an agreement to transfer the road, Vennbahn style, would have
mentioned the
> Vennbahn as the inspiration in the parliamentary debates in the
article. I
> am willing to be wrong, but I think the formation of a true enclave
would
> have had specific mention of that made. The opposition seem most
likely to
> be stirred up less by the road transfer than by pastures, 'soil of
the
> motherland' etc. Of course, as in the Cooch Behar case, journos and
even MPs
> frequently get their facts WAY wrong in such cases. An actual copy
of the
> agreement is what we need.
I think you're right. What has probably happened, is that everything
south of and including the road passed to Ukrainian sovereignty, but
the lands south of the road stayed Moldavian property. In this way it
will fall under the special provisions for Moldavian property in the
Ukraine, which were also mentioned (apart from that, there are still
other properties of Moldavia in the Ukraine, like a winery, a holiday
home, a quarry, etc., some quite far away from Moldavia).
I found an interview with one Al'bert Arutjunjan, a farmers leader in
the area. He is of course not happy with the treaty at all, and says
a.o.:
"The automobile road from Odessa to Belgorod-Dnestrovskij, which
occupies a part of Moldavian territory, was transfered during the
course of demarcation of the state boundary to the Ukraine, and along
with it it was decided to do away with the enclave that thus came
into being. The civil servants reckoned that if you can give land to
farmers for free, you can take it from them as well if there is
a "political need" to do so. However, you don't do it like that in a
civilised country. If the national cause is at stake, the state
should buy the lands from the proprietors, paying a real price for it
and compensating for any loss of investment."
(
http://logos.press.md/Weekly/Main.asp?
IssueNum=400&IssueDate=22.12.2000&YearNum=48&Theme=10&Topic=2850 )
I suspect that in the end (the interview dates from december 2000),
the farmers were allowed to keep their lands; only the lands are now
in the Ukraine. In this respect, crossing the road with or without a
passport remains an issue for these farmers. It is just that they
only cross one international boundary when going to their lands, not
two.
So the lands south of the road are maybe a virtual enclave Arif-
style, but not a real one.
Peter S.