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The results of a study on the topic of corruption in electoral campaigns revealed that during the campaign, especially in case of opposition parties, the anti-corruption promises are part of propaganda, designed primarily to attract voters, rather that to encourage qualified solutions, workable in practice. Experts who assessed the electoral promises in parliamentary elections during the last 12 years have found that:

• general approach to the electoral messages also determines the further superficial approach in the governmental programs;
• in cases when there is no stable parliamentary majority, in situations of major political conflict, the political responsibility to prepare the anti-corruption components of the governmental programs of government corruption (including the electoral promises) is diffuse and the public credibility is reduced;
• after accumulating a certain politico-administrative working experience, the approaches of electoral candidates become more pragmatic and more efficient, and more comprehensive, planned and strategic documents are being developed;
• in anti-corruption activity, the ruling majority often shows trends of internal protection, preservation of status quo, as long as they are controlled and from which the profits might be drawn;
• extra-parliamentary parties are positioned in opposition, accusing the current and former parliamentary majority of establishing and maintaining a systemic corruption;
• parties that are longer in power are more careful in formulating and promoting anti-corruption messages as over-critical or populist formulations may hit in their own image and harm the electoral score;
• insufficient cooperation between political power and judicial one considerably reduces the efficiency of anti-corruption efforts;
• from the analysis of electoral programs it is not clear what the political parties are based on in the formulation of anti-corruption components/messages in electoral campaigns;
• the anti-corruption components of electoral platforms avoid or ignore certain areas (education, health, police, customs), which on the social level are perceived as the most corrupt ones.

The study was conducted under the auspices of the Anti-Corruption Alliance by independent experts and contains a number of recommendations for electoral competitors and public authorities, in order to increase the efficiency of anti-corruption messages and efforts. (source: Anti-Corruption Alliance)

The Civic Initiative for a Clean Parliament (ICPC) expresses concern about disproportionate attacks and actions by some politicians and political parties on the civil society, following the publication of the list of candidates who do not meet the criteria of integrity. ICPC qualifies as “attack on democracy” the actions of Alexandru Oleinic, AMN candidate, of the Democratic Party of Moldova and the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova, who sued ICPC in court and demanded to ban the distribution of leaflets “Know your candidate!”, thus depriving the citizens of the right to be informed about those who aspire to public office, that affecting the free and fair elections. ICPC qualifies the court’s conclusions as unfounded and disproportionate in the situation when factual and legal precedents already exist: in 2009 ICPC carried out the same activities and won the process claiming the damage of honour and reputation. ICPC has appealed against the courts’ rulings, but this examination is delayed. (source: ICPC, www.moldovacurata.md)

According to a preliminary assessment, carried out by Development Partnership Centre and the Resource Centre for Human Rights (CReDO), compared with previous campaigns, political parties involved in the electoral campaign had higher payments in electoral funds, the difference reaching over 20%.However, the monitoring of campaigning expenditures highlights certain findings:

• total number of donors who have supported political parties are more than 400 people, 100 of them have secured 75% of the total donations;
• about 3/4 of the revenue was used for broadcasting and street advertising;
• over 10% of individual donors are pensioners and unemployed people;
• political parties fail to declare expenses related to maintaining regional and central staff (personnel, offices, communication expenses, office supplies, trips, etc.), those concerning the organization of public events, billboard design, invitation of artists;
• financial activity of political parties requires a greater transparency;
• the list of parties and donors raising suspicions will be made public after the elections;
• the cases reported by media will be re-approached in March, when citizens will filed their annual declarations of income with tax authorities.

Also a report was expected, it has not been presented, and these two organizations declared their main purpose is to find shortcoming in the legislation on financing the electoral campaigns of political parties. (source: Info-Prim Neo)

The Centre for Information and Documentation on Child Rights (CIDDC) assessed how politicians’ programs address children’s rights, and to this end being studied electoral programs of 7 political parties running in parliamentary elections of November 28, 2010: Democratic Party of Moldova, Liberal Party, “Our Moldova” Alliance, Humanist Party, Party of Communists, Liberal Democratic Party and the Social Democratic Party. According to the research results, politicians are not concerned with the interests of citizens under 18 years and very rarely in the electoral programs they include the child theme. Four of evaluated electoral competitors (PDM, PCRM, PL and AMN) refer in their programs to ensuring the access to education for all children of school age and ensuring equal opportunities to learn, some of them insist on improving the school curricula, expansion of early education. A party indirectly addresses the topic of children, as beneficiaries of religious education programs in pre-university education (PUM).The PSD electoral program, in the section devoted to foreign policy, proposes to draft the law “On social functions of guardianship” concerning taking care and educating the children who are temporarily are not supervised by parents. Provisions for deinstitutionalization of children are found only in case of one party’s electoral platform (PDM). Some electoral competitors encourage childbirth by promising to increase the amount of single birth allowance (PDM and PLDM). CIDDC also finds that electoral programs of the parties do not take into account the recommendations of the Child’s Rights Committee concerning important aspects:

• preventing and combating child abuse;
• preventing child’s separation from family;
• supporting children and families affected by migration;
• human rights learning at all schooling levels;
• preventing and combating child labour;
• promoting reforms in justice for children.

(source: CIDDC)

Prime Minister Vlad Filat had a meeting with Vladimir Garkun, head of the CIS Mission of observers for the parliamentary elections of November 28, where he stated that all measures will be taken to ensure that elections are conducted according to democratic norms and the citizens are able to freely express their will. The Head of Monitoring Mission, comprising 70 representatives of legislative and executive authorities, said that close contacts were established with the OSCE/ODIHR observer mission, and election observation will be based on principles of political impartiality, non-involvement in the electoral process and in internal affairs of the state. Immediately after the elections of November 28, a summarizing document shall be prepared, which will be based on their observations, on official information and material provided by the electoral bodies and state institutions. (source: DECA press)

The Humanist Party of Moldova proposes the former Soviet republics to establish “EU-2” — Eastern European Union, following the analogy of Western European Union. PUM proposes the reintegration in two stages in the Eastern area: in the first stage to join the Customs Union of Belarus-Kazakhstan-Russia; in the second stage — to establish a political union following the example and principles of the European Union. In PUM opinion, reintegration in Eastern area “would contribute to restoring the economy, would create sale and investment markets, new companies and jobs, would provide high wages and would return gastarbeiters home, would lower the gas and electricity tariffs, would ensure increased pensions and decent aging, the Transnistrian problem may be resolved and the country may be united”. At the same time, Moldova “will remain a component part of the single spiritual space of the Russian Orthodox Church”.

Chairman of the Humanist Party of Moldova, Valeriu Pasat, declared that he does not claim any state position and the only solution to overcome the current political crisis is to create a broad, non-party coalition of national survival. Pasat called upon all party leaders to follow his example, to give up personal ambitions and to form a non-party governance.

PLDM Chairman, Vlad Filat, reiterated the third time his invitation to Vladimir Voronin, PCRM leader, to participate in a public debate. Filat signed an open letter, where he formulated some questions for the Communist leader, questions that were received from voters. (source: PLDM)

Conservative Party leaders Oleg and Natalia Nirca deny any involvement in the kidnapping case of the PCRM candidate, former head of SIS, Artur Reşetnicov, who is also their wedding godfather. The two Conservative members have convened a press conference where they announced that they had been questioned by police regarding the explanation made by Reşetnicov, where he has written that he had been tortured and forced to sign some receipts whereby committing to give to Oleg Nirca 3 or 5 million USD, several CDs and an USB memory stick with compromising information on Vladimir Voronin. Oleg Nirca confirmed that he met Reşetnicov shortly before the time when he says he was kidnapped, but the discussions were focused on opportunities for political cooperation and the parties didn’t agree, so that everyone kept his own position. Spouses Nirca have also confirmed that they had previously borrowed considerable sums to Artur Reşetnicov, which he did not return during the period when holding the public office, but only after the 2009 elections, when he was dismissed from the position of SIS director. The joint Investigation Group from General Prosecutor’s Office and Ministry of Interior investigates several versions on Reşetnicov case: kidnapping, staged kidnapping, property disputes, etc.

The party Our Moldova Alliance (AMN) made public today a database of the Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova, which was brought to the AMN office by a person who wishes to remain anonymous. According to AMN deputy Chairman, Victor Osipov, this is a database on the organizational structure of PCRM, the party’s system of fees, information on migration to and from the party, monitoring the actions of other parties. Osipov believes that leakage of such information speaks about some tensions and divisions within PCRM. Simultaneously, AMN made also public some videos from a meeting of a group of PCRM agitators in the town Durleşti, caught consuming alcohol early in the morning hours and who later had an altercation with road-police, which found that driver was driving drunk.

The Liberal Party announced that on November 22 in Cahul several unknown persons abusively removed a PL billboard, and also they are the ones who installed a PLDM billboard on the opposite side of the same billboard. On November 20 several persons have vandalized with painting spray a PL billboard in Zirnesti village, Cahul district, and on the night of November 22 to 23 that very billboard has disappeared. (source: PL)

Several organizations of Moldovan liberal Diaspora have released a “Call of Basarabians in Italy to all Basarabians”, whereby they urge voters to support the Liberal Party in parliamentary elections. (source: PL)