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On Monday, June 29, 2009, the Central Electoral Commission organized a training seminar with participation of heads, secretaries and finance managers of district/municipal/UTA Gagauzia electoral councils. The purpose of the seminar was to contribute to the right and regular implementation of the effective legislation and ensure conditions for the July 29, 2009 parliamentary elections. Participants discussed issues such as drafting and checking of voter rolls, establishing of polling stations and bureaus, other matters included in the Action Planning Calendar foreseen by the Election Code for early parliamentary elections. Another topic discussed at the seminar was the funding of the electoral process and management of funds allotted for this year’s elections. (CEC communiqué)

The National Council of nongovernmental organizations from Moldova (NGO Council) warns electoral contestants that certain essential aspects needed for the development of an active civil society are insufficiently covered by their electoral platforms, according to a news release. It recommends contestants to introduce in their electoral platforms the priorities “which would build an appropriate social and economic environment for the efficient development and functioning of civil society for the benefit of communities”. Political parties are also invited to ensure access of all citizens to the governing act, by using information technologies, especially for those who left the country and disable persons or people in need; it recommended a ceaseless development and consolidation of the partnership between Parliament, Government and civil society, live broadcasting of parliamentary sittings. Another requirement is to make the Parliament and Government change their negative attitude toward civil society organizations, which runs counter the partnership principles between state and civil society. The NGO Council is a representative body of civil society elected by the NGO Forum from December 15–16, 2008, which brought together more than 100 representatives of at least 1,000 nongovernmental organizations from Moldova, reads the communication. (Info-Prim Neo)

According to the report on the April 5 parliamentary elections in Moldova presented during the sitting of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Vilnius, “the exnewsion of will was recognized as democratic, transparent and in accordance with all international standards.” The report was presented by the delegation head, Greek legislator Petros Efthimiou. “The elections met all criteria and were organized well,” the Greek official assured. He noted that the April 5 elections and the post-electoral developments in Chisinau should not be mixed up. Petros Efthimiou, who was delegated again by the OSCE PA to head the monitoring mission to the new parliamentary elections in Moldova, added that as many as possible observers should be invited at the early elections. (Omega)

Alexandru Botnari, who has served two terms as Mayor of Hincesti town in succession as an independent candidate, has announced his joining the Democratic Party of Moldova (PDM). He told a news conference he had taken such decision finally upon the coming of ex-Speaker Marian Lupu to this organization and upon Lupu’s becoming PDM leader. “Before that moment, some 5–6 parties, both right- and left-wing, invited me to join them, but not a single one was convincing enough for me to make such a step. The Democratic Party of Moldova led by Marian Lupu is an organization capable of bringing a new breath into the Moldovan political life, a party which so many people had waited for to come”, presumes the Hincesti Mayor. He added that will urge the undecided electorate from Hincesti district to vote for PDM in the forthcoming snap elections. (Infotag)

At the forthcoming snap parliamentary elections, the currently governing Party of Communists (PCRM) will win minimum 61 seats in the 101-member Parliament of Moldova, prominent PCRM member Vadim Mishin has stated at a news conference today. “Liberal parties will take maximum 25% of votes on July 29. The opposition will certainly be present in the next Parliament of Moldova but will not be able to decide anything. We are not considering whom to collaborate with in the new legislature, as we will have enough mandates to pass decisions necessary for the country”, Mishin said. In his opinion, the Moldovan society has been split at the moment and “this is an electoral split, not an ethnic one”. In his words, the Liberal Party leaders stated recently they want the Republic of Moldova to stop existing as an independent state. The statements made by the leaders of the three main opposition parties — the Liberal Party, the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova and the Moldova Noastra Alliance — that the April 5 parliamentary elections were allegedly rigged by the Communist authorities are but an attempt to smokescreen the opposition’s actions undertaken last April 7, Vadim Mishin stated. (Infotag)

The Liberal Democratic Party will shortly challenge the new Code of Administrative Offenses before the Constitutional Court, the PLDM parliamentarian Vitalie Nagacevschi stated at a news conference on Monday. The prominent local lawyer said the Communist authorities have designed and written the new Code (in force since May 31, 2009) in a way to make it a very useful instrument for replenishing the State Budget at the population’s expense. In addition, the Code abounds in non-constitutional provisions that are contrary to the European Convention, and has already caused a new wave of corruption in the country. Lawyer Nagacevschi said the punishments envisaged in this Administrative Code have been toughened manifold without whatever ground, and have reached the severity of a Criminal Code. Vitalie Nagacevschi hopes that many of the Code provisions will be recognized by the Court as non-constitutional and will be cancelled. The Liberal Democratic Party is demanding from the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission and the Audiovisual Coordinating Council to compel local radio and television companies to block election-related foreign programs these companies broadcast in Moldova. Lawyer Alexandru Tanase, the PLDM First Deputy Chairman, stated at the news conference the party will lodge such a petition based on a concrete instance — a fairly long report telecast by the NTV channel of Moscow last Sunday, which “was ruinous for the Moldovan opposition”. (Infotag)

The Moldova Noastra Alliance (AMN) said they presented evidence of electoral frauds committed in the April 5 vote to the Constitutional Court and the Chisinau Court of Appeals, but it was ignored. “What’s the good of it anyway, if the Moldovan judiciary is controlled by the boss of the Moldovan mafia, Vladimir Voronin”, the AMN leader Serafim Urecheanu declared at a news conference on Monday. Nicolae Raileanu, the party’s representative to the Central Electoral Commission (CEC), said the AMN discovered more than 6,500 electoral frauds after verifying 28 percent of the voter rolls. According to Raileanu, many voted without an ID card, many voter rolls lacked information on the birth year of the voters, and many voters weren’t included in the basic or additional voter rolls. Another violation discovered by the AMN concerns the lack of proceedings in some ballot boxes, which can be interpreted as a replacement of the ballot boxes, said Raileanu, adding that this practice was discovered at almost all the polling stations in Hancesti district. Lawyer Ion Plesca, the number three candidate on the AMN lists, accused the outgoing president Vladimir Voronin of usurping power in the state, arguing that “all the sick things he does and says are offenses falling under the Criminal Code”. At the same time, the lawyer said Voronin violated the presumption of innocence enshrined in the Moldovan Constitution when he said the Moldovan opposition was led by criminals. Serafim Urecheanu says violations are continuing to occur during the ongoing election campaign as well. The AMN will notify the CEC of the fact that Vladimir Voronin traveled to Larga, Urecheanu’s native village, with the helicopter, allegedly threatening people not to vote for the AMN. The AMN will petition the CEC to draft a regulation that will facilitate the students’ vote. At the same conference, the AMN presented a short film describing the events of April 7 and titled “In Moldova’s Defense”, in response to the documentary “Attacks on Moldova”, which contains the official version of the events. (Info-Prim Neo)

The Democratic Party of Moldova (PDM) proposes setting up an Anti-crisis Cooperation Council that would work out a program for overcoming the economic crisis in Moldova, declared at a news conference Marian Lupu, the former Speaker of the Moldovan Parliament, now standing the 1st on the PDM electoral list. Marian Lupu said the PD invited all parties and civil society organizations able to offer their ideas and proposals for overcoming the crisis to participate in founding the Council. He considers the ongoing election campaign should not be ruinous for the country’s ability to manage the crisis. “Despite the July 29, parliamentary elections, the anti-crisis program must be worked out by the beginning of August”, said the PDM leader. In his opinion, not a single party in Moldova is able to work out independently an all-embracing anti-crisis program that would find the entire society’s support, “so a national consensus is necessary… The preparation of such program is in the interests of the nation, so it should not be politically colored”. (Infotag)

The National Council of the “Actiunea Europeana” (European Action) Movement has adopted a statement to call for the union of democratic political forces against the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova (PCRM). MAE recalls that it had invited all national, democratic and pro-European political parties to participate on a common list in the early elections on July 29 and assures that “this is the best solution to remove the communist ruling and bring back Moldova to the normal path, to Europe.” “For this purpose, MAE is ready to support a joint political construction of democratic parties which would defeat the communists and send them to their place: the recycle bin of the history,” reads the statement. (Deca-news)

Last Saturday, the Moldova Noastra Alliance adopted its election strategy, according to which the AMN will run for Parliament under the slogan “Let’s Unite, Moldovans! If Not Us — Others Will Win!” The AMN leader Serafim Urechean remarked that this slogan was promoted at the earliest days of the Republic of Moldova’s independence, but is again becoming very topical “because the situation now is worse than in the early 1990s — in all spheres”. In his words, the main AMN’s objective for the July 29 elections is “elimination of the Voronin clan from state power”. Urechean presumes that if democrats lose the forthcoming elections, Moldova may disintegrate as a country. The Moldova Noastra Alliance has made public its electoral list of 103 candidates that contains 28 women, 25 persons under 30 years of age, and only 6 persons aged 60 and older. (Infotag)

Alexandru Oleinic, legislator of the Moldova Noastra Alliance considers the 500-million-dollar credit, which Russia has promised Moldova, is but an electoral myth. Oleinic published a statement reading that in the situation of economic crisis, which Moldova has been in for about one year, nobody is certainly casting doubt about the advantageousness of receiving means. However, he believes this should have been done in the fall of 2008. “But as our Communist authorities concealed the truth that the crisis is inevitable, now they have invented an electoral myth that Russia is allegedly going to provide 500 million dollars”, presumes Alexandru Oleinic. He also reminded that Moldova is not the only country, to which Russia promised financial assistance, but nobody has received anything, so far — neither Ukraine, nor Armenia, nor even Belarus. “The promises, given to Moldova in an analogous pre-election context to underpin the Communists, have not been fulfilled, either: where are the 50,000 thousand tons of Russian furnace oil promised earlier?” questioned the Moldovan parliamentarian. (Infotag)