Moldova has Christmas controversy (12/31/2008)

You probably have had better things to do, what with the holidays and all that, but I've been following the great Christmas tree controversy in Moldova.

It takes a country as complicated as Moldova to make something as simple as a Christmas tree controversial, but in Moldova nothing is simple.

To begin to understand, you have to keep in mind that some of the country looks toward the West and some of the country looks toward the East.

Those looking to the West are largely - though not entirely - ethnically Romanian. Romania is right next door and is a member of the European Union.

Those looking to the East are largely - though not entirely - Russian speakers, ethnically Russian or Ukrainian.

Most of the church-going Christians in the country are members of the Orthodox church, but some churches use Romanian and others use Russian. Meanwhile, there are Catholics and Baptists as well to be found among the indigenous population.

Differences in church calendars dating back centuries have the East celebrating Christmas on Jan. 7 and the West celebrating it on Dec. 25.

Complicated enough for you? Hang on. Now it's time for the politicians to get involved.

Governmental authority is roughly divided among the president, the parliament, and the mayor of Chisinau, the capital city. Some entities may be city-controlled in name only, with parliamentarians and party factions calling the shots.

Just to make things interesting, the president is a Russian-speaker who looks to the East and the mayor of Chisinau is an ethnic Romanian who looks to the West. The mayor is also a pragmatist and sees better opportunities for economic growth by allying his city with more prosperous neighbors in Europe.

The trouble started a year ago, when the mayor thought it would be a good idea to extend the Christmas season to include both the Eastern and Western observances. In what seemed like a simple move, he decided that the city should have a public Christmas tree decorated from about the third week of December through the mid-January.

Chaos ensued. Trees were put up. Trees were taken down. Trees were moved.

This year, he tried it again with equally crazy results.

First, he announced his plans to erect a Christmas tree on a public square on Christmas Eve. But before the tree could arrive in the capital, it was arrested.

You read correctly. It was arrested.

In Moldova, it's possible to detain or seize objects and hold them like prisoners. (I once worked with a newspaper whose computers were arrested when local officials were angry about something that had been published.)

Then, for a time, it seemed that the tree would be released to the custody of an orphanage. Then it disappeared completely.

Who was responsible? Possibly the president. Possibly forces in parliament. Maybe someone just making mischief.

But the mayor was not to be deterred, and his next strategy was so clever it's a wonder he didn't think of it in the first place.

For decades, there was a long Soviet tradition of planting blue spruce trees outside public buildings. Why? Who knows. But the trees are pretty much still there.

This week, the mayor declared that three large spruce trees outside the National Opera and Ballet Theater would henceforth be the capital's Christmas trees. He invited the whole city to show up on the square outside the opera theater to decorate the trees and enjoy a free concert on Dec. 24.

It seemed to be a masterstroke. There was no way the president or the parliament would order the trees cut down.

They did, however, have a few tricks up their sleeves.

On the morning of Christmas Eve, the local traffic police - under orders from somebody looking East - impounded the equipment for the stage being set up for the concert.

Fortunately, the Christmas spirit prevailed. Hundreds of people showed up in the cold, sang carols, decorated the trees, and enjoyed a delayed concert on an impromptu stage that was hastily put together.

One wonders what will happen next year.

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