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The new Moldovan Parliament may be convened as the Constitutional Court (CC) validated the April 5 elections on Wednesday, April 22. After the Court pronounced its validation endorsement and the decision to hand the mandates to 101 parliament members, the Liberal Party’s leader Mihai Ghimpu told journalists: “We’ve got one vote which is stronger than all those 60 votes of the Communists.” Thus, the first 60 candidates on the Party of Communists (PCRM) list, 15 candidates of the Liberal Party (PL) and Liberal Democrat Party (PLDM) and 11 candidates of the “Moldova Noastra” Alliance (AMN) have entered the parliament. The PCRM are short of one vote to elect the President, who will designate the prime minister. The Constitutional Court adopted its decision after five hours of pleadings and deliberations. Mihai Ghimpu has asked the CC to postpone the pronouncement of decision, saying those three center-right wing parties entering the parliament need more time to unveil electoral frauds in the voters rolls. The PL has also asked the CC to order the Ministry of Information Development to produce the list of people who died after 2005, since the PL considers ballots were cast instead of the dead voters. The Court ignored this request, as it did with the requests of the AMN and the PLDM to invalidate the April 5 elections. The PL has brought a number of folders with documents that would certify 20,000 electoral breaches, but the CC has not issued an immediate decision on this, while its integral decision will be published in the “Monitorul Oficial”. According to Ghimpu, those three parties that would apparently to be in opposition will continue to elucidate the voter rolls frauds in order to present them in a file to international bodies. (Source: Info-Prim)

The opposition is asking the Constitutional Court (CC) of Moldova to invalidate the election results and to hold a repeat voting, the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova, Vlad Filat, told journalists on Wednesday afternoon. He made this statement after the opposition leaders have met the outgoing Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, who visited Chisinau on behalf of the country which chairs the European Union. “We have presented all the election fraud evidence. As well, we provided evidence that the authorities have set up a terror regime after the Chisinau protests, paying off scores with the participants in the demonstrations. We hope that the European Union will assess all the developments appropriately,” Filat stated. (Source: Infotag)

The outgoing Czech Premier Mirek Topolanek, whose country is chairing the European Union, has advised the Moldovan authorities “to start working on a national consensus concerning the divergences which led to the conflict.” Moldova’s outgoing President Vladimir Voronin has made this announcement while addressing the media after meeting the Czech prime minister in Chisinau on Wednesday. The chief of state was confident that these measures are positive and shall be implemented urgently. “I do not want to hide that the crisis situation in Moldova alarms the European Union. We carefully watch the situation and will monitor it in future as well,” Topolanek stated. “Us, the EU, we stand ready to contribute actively and legally to settling this problem,” Topolanek added. During the one-day visit to Chisinau the Czech official has met both the Moldovan authorities and the opposition and nongovernmental organisations. “Everybody sees the developments in a different manner. I am concerned that the willingness to begin a dialogue is present just in words,” Topolanek stated. “I have stressed the means to stabilise the situation during all meetings: the dialogue; the functioning of the state based on the rule of law; the guaranteeing and respect for human rights and freedoms; the end of assaults and violence; the establishing of an investigation commission representing both the opposition and international organisations; the free access to the media,” the Czech premier added. (Source: Info-Prim)

The leaders of the three Opposition parties that passed the election threshold had a meeting with the outgoing Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Mirek Topolanek on Wednesday, April 22. They showed to him proofs that the April 5 elections were rigged. The opposition demands that the invalidation of election results and repeat elections. Topolanek met with the opposition leaders before the meetings with Moldova’s outgoing president Vladimir Voronin and Prime Minister Zinaida Greceanii. “I have received from the representatives of the three parties a series of documents on situation after elections, some evidence on the possible ballot-rigging. Certainly, I will present all these materials at the Summit of the EU Foreign Ministers next week”, Mirek Topolanek told the reporters. The Czech official refrained from making assessments before discussing with the President and the Prime Minister (Source: Info-Prim)

Candidates for the Moldovan Parliament from three opposition parties have achieved a concerted decision to give up their Romanian citizenship, Corina Fusu, a representative of the Liberal Party told the Romanian press. According to Romanian press such decision was taken by all the 20 parliamentary candidates from the three opposition parties concerned, who either have the Romanian citizenship or have applied for it. According to legislation by April 21, the candidates, which entered the Parliament had to choose between the parliamentary seat and second citizenship. Dual citizenship in Moldova is allowed by law, but according to the latest amendments, if the holders of dual citizenship have been elected to Parliament, they must submit to the Constitutional Court an official confirmation that have applied for the renunciation of second citizenship. (Source: Infotag)

The Constitutional Court cannot validate the elections, as only in 10 rayons have been revealed almost 20 thousands frauds, claims Mihai Ghimpu, Chairman of the Liberal Party (PL). As a consequence, PL submitted yesterday, on April 21, a contestation to the Central Electoral Commission, and today, other two to both the Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court. According to PL data, 6139 persons voted without identity cards, 1475 — by using other documents than identity cards, 1373 cases when dead persons voted, 5214 cases of multiple voting, 1328 cases of false signatures — these are the evidence made public by the PL leaders. Nevertheless, Ghimpu declared the main fraud was the inflation of voter rolls. (Source: Unimedia)

The Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) left in force the judgement of the Chisinau Court of Appeal prohibiting the political parties to make copies of voter rolls. The SCJ took this decision at its session held on Wednesday. Initially, the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) has allowed the three opposition parties to check the voter rolls and make copies of them. The Party of Communists contested that part of the CEC decision that allowed making copies. In the PCRM view, CEC decision violates the legislation on citizens’ personal data. Last Friday, the Court of Appeal cancelled the “copy section” of the CEC decision. In their turn, CEC and the Liberal Democratic Party challenged the decision of the Court of Appeal in the Supreme Court of Justice, but the SCJ left in force the decision of the Court of Appeal. As a consequence, parties may check voter rolls, but may not make copies of them. (Source: Infotag)

The Moldovan Bar condemns both violent actions committed by protesters on April 7, 2009 and the disproportionately violent and repressive actions taken by the state authorities further on. According to a statement by the Bar, attorneys express deep concern in connection with “rough violations of human rights committed starting April 7, 2009.” They do not find any moral and legal argument to justify the ample terror and violence committed by authorities against protesters, though the latter surpassed the admissible limits of the public manifestation of political options. “The massive arrests of young people, the torturing of the detained persons, the disappearance of people, the trying with violation of proceedings and without providing the most elementary real and efficient defence possibilities are a disproportional reaction of the authorities who went beyond the necessity to ensure the rule of law and national security,” reads the statement. (Source: jurnal.md)

Prosecutors keep dealing with 20 criminal cases filed against participants in the massive unrest two weeks ago, the Prosecutor-General’s Office has reported. Nineteen criminal cases have been filed under hooliganism and robbery charges. The 20th case was opened under massive disturbance and power usurpation charges. The press service of the Prosecutor-General’s Office said that 10 people are being kept in custody and another two are under arrest at home. (Source: Info-Prim)

Moldova’s outgoing President Vladimir Voronin believes that “the opposition shall learn to lose as well.” He made this statement in front of journalists on Wednesday after laying down flowers at Lenin’s monument. “Those who introduce themselves as politicians, who got involved in great politics must be responsible for their actions. The opposition shall learn to lose as well, and explain the reasons of the failure through own mistakes, not through such protests. Paradoxically, they did not wait for the formal election results but went to street protests,” the chief of state said. According to Voronin, “the situation shall be made clear to the end.” “We will hold out all the organisers of those disturbances,” Voronin promised. The opposition leaders, he continued, “are the only guilty for failing the elections.” The president labelled as “folly” the allegations that the communists have provoked the disturbances. “We have created, built, won the elections for eight years. Then why to destroy everything now?” Voronin added. (Source: Infotag)

The director of the European Institute of Political Researches in Moldova, Viorel Cibotaru, wants to be excluded from the state commission in charge with elucidating the reasons, conditions and consequences of the April 7–8, 2009 events, established under a presidential decree. Cibotaru says he has learned from the media that he was included in the commission concerned and fears that this commission “does not ensure the platform needed for an unbiased, fair and credible analysis of the April 7–8 developments.” According to a statement released on Wednesday, April 22, Cibotaru says that he does not want to participate in this commission because he has earlier expressed his “concern with the worsening social-political situation after the April 5 voting.” He notes that he has sought then “a plenary, fair investigation, with the international participation, of causes of the acts of vandalism” and stressed that “the settlement of the crisis is impossible without involving a large circle of political players, civil society and international organisations.” “Or, this commission does not meet these basic requirements and criteria, it does not ensure the necessary platform for an unbiased, fair and credible analysis of the April 7–8, 2009 events,” Cibotaru added. (Source: Info-Prim)

The Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova (PLDM) describes the initiative of outgoing President Vladimir Voronin to set up a state commission in charge with investigating the April 7–8, 2009 events as a manipulation of public opinion and denigration of the opposition. The PLDM indicates the biased composition of this commission, its predictable conclusions and the complete absence of representatives of civil society, independent media and opposition parties. It regrets that the incumbent president keeps dividing the society, radicalising the spirits and running counter Moldova’s national interest this way. The PLDM reconfirms its position and continues to seek an international investigation of developments in Moldova, the identification of causes and organisers of the violent April 7 incidents, as well as the assessment of further actions of the communist governance. (Source: PLDM statement)

The Moldovan opposition consider that the vote recount initiated by the Communists was useless and a waste of money, that would not have the chance to unveil the election rigging. This opinion is shared by the three opposition parties that passed the electoral threshold in the April 5 elections – Liberal Party, Liberal Democrat Party of Moldova and "Moldova Noastra" Alliance. (Source: europalibera.org)

“The European integration, democratising the society and building the state based on the rule of law are the priorities of the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova (PCRM) in fulfilling its commitments towards electors.” PCRM chairman Vladimir Voronin made this statement on Wednesday during a ceremony in front of the monument of Vladimir Lenin, former leader of the 1917 Russian revolution. Voronin stated that the communists’ victory at the April 5 elections entrusted the PCRM to promote the people’s interests the next four years. He made a parallel with Vladimir Lenin’s instructions to defend the results of the 1917 revolution, noting that nowadays the Moldovan communists must protect the electors’ will and use the authority efficiently to promote Moldova’s European integration course. (Source: Moldpres)

Three people were killed, another three went missing and 41 persons were subjected to inhuman, degrading treatment and torture. These are the first totals of the April 7 developments released by the Chisinau City Hall. Although outgoing President Vladimir Voronin has announced an amnesty for the arrested young people, the police keep assaulting citizens on street, according to Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca. “The arrests violate the legal proceedings. Two cases were recorded near the Cathedral Nasterea Domnului in Chisinau on the Easter’s Eve,” reads a statement by the Chisinau City Hall. The Chisinau City Hall continues to investigate cases of ill-treatment of people arrested after the April 7 protests, noting that it has recorded 25 new cases when the police applied the force. (Source: Unimedia)

The OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission has released a post election interim report, where it is mentioned that the authorities from Chisinau confirm one death connected with the riots. “The Moldovan authorities alleged that the dispute over the election results that led to demonstrations was a cover for an attempted coup d’etat organized with the involvement of foreign special services. Some 150–200 persons, mostly young people, were reported as having been arrested by the police on 7 and 8 April, with further arrests carried out in the subsequent days, including detentions in universities and arrests of minors. There have been credible reports by NGOs about mistreatment of detainees and three fatalities were reported allegedly in connection with the demonstrations and detentions. Moldovan authorities confirm one such death as connected with the riots.” says the OSCE/ODIHR EOM report. (Source: jurnal.md)