Weekly Roundup
May 29, 2023
The European Political Community Summit
This week all political news in Moldova is focused on the upcoming EPC Summit on Thursday June 1st both in the substance of the event itself and in the logistical preparations. In advance of the summit European heads of state and EU leaders have been putting out short video messages confirming their attendance and reiterating their support for Moldova. Ursula von der Leyen put out a message saying:
“The European Union supports Moldova. We support your energy security. your economic stability. We support your reforms on the way to our European family. Moldova is not alone. The European Union is with you,”
Similar messages were posted online but numerous heads of state and government and all shared the common message “Moldova is not alone.” These messages set the tone for the summit which will largely focus on the war and related crises in the region as well as stress European solidarity.
Security preparations also continue with the announcement of military exercises from May 25th - June 2nd between the Moldovan, French, British, Romanian and American militaries. These exercises are designed to cross train in areas related to air defense and will also provide air defense for the summit itself. Moldovan authorities have said that military equipment for the exercises will enter the country from Romania starting Monday and ask that people do not photograph equipment moving on the roads. Recall that the entire Moldovan airspace will be closed to aircraft and drones during the June 1 - 2 summit excepting planes of official delegations.
Here are a few other stories relating to the logistics of the summit…
Road closures starting May 31st - Police have announced road closures during the summit and provided alternative route suggestions for navigating the city. Large sections of downtown will be closed entirely while other roads will be closed as delegations pass through and then reopened. Follow this link for a map of closed roads and this one for the website showing suggested alternative routes.
The Chisinau-Iasi train canceled from May 30 - June 1st - The reason for the cancelation of the train route was not made explicit, but most likely it will be used for transporting summit participants to Castel Mimi. The Chisinau-Iasi train has Moldova’s most modern locomotive and passenger cars and is likely being used so the country puts the best foot forward to the delegates and attending journalists.
Hotel prices soaring in Chisinau - This is especially true to hotels representing international chains which are mostly sold out. Local hotels still have some vacancies and industry representatives note that rooms remain available in high quality hotels. But the price spike has been enormous with the Raddison Blu announcing first full occupancy and then the opening of 2 additional suites for 1300 euros / night. These rooms are available at other times in June for 300 euros / night. Similarly the Marriott Hotel is charging 1060 euros / night for standard rooms normally costing 149 euros / night. While comprehensive industry data is not available it is clear that this will be the most expensive ever week to rent a room in Moldova.
Author’s Note: We’ll be covering the EPC summit from Moldova Matters this week. This coverage will include an article after the summit concludes as well as some real-time coverage and thoughts posted on Substack Notes. If you aren’t on substack notes consider following Moldova Matters there. The platform is new and we haven’t used it much in the past but will be posting photos / commentary on the event there in real time.
Gagauzia Threatens Secession?
Fallout of the Gagauzian elections continues this week with a group called the “Civil Coalition for Free and Fair Elections” comprising 35 NGOs signing a joint letter calling attention to numerous “violations and irregularities” in the conduct of the election. The coalition adds to previously reported violations in voter bribing, transportation and illegal financing with new information about substantial problems in the voter lists. Specifically this refers to the addition, pre-election, of 10.7% of the voting population of Gagauzia to “special lists” reflecting a status where they may vote but may be abroad or otherwise not expected to vote. This reflects a six-fold increase in the use of “special lists” when compared to the 2020 Presidential elections and meant that the turnout threshold for the required 50% of voters was lowered by 37,000 votes. In an election where the final turnout was 52,300 voters, this represents a large portion of the electorate excluded from the required turnout threshold by the Gagauze Central Election Commission GCEC. The coalition calls for new legislation firmly subordinating the GCEC and election processes in Gagauzia to national election authorities.
This analysis, and the drumbeat of accusations of election improprieties and mismanagement from the Chisinau authorities are not sitting well with the authorities in Gagauzia. On May 27th Gagauzia held a “congress of deputies at all levels” bringing together local elected officials and members of the People’s Assembly to draft a list of demands for the Chisinau government. The list of demands that resulted from the assembly includes:
A stop to "illegal interference" in the elections of the autonomy.
Inclusion of the provisions of the law "On the special legal status of Gagauzia" in the constitution.
Fair and transparent allocation of financial resources regionally.
The banning of political parties that advocate for the “liquidation of Moldova as an independent state.”
The final point refers to advocates of “Union” between Moldova and Romania. Clearly they did not mean to imply the banning of parties that advocate for Moldova’s subordination to Russia’s sphere of influence.
The Gagauze authorities have given Chisinau 6 months to implement these demands and threaten a referendum on the future of the autonomy. The document states:
“In the event that the central authorities of Moldova continue to ignore the legal requirements for observing the competence and powers of Gagauzia, as well as fixing the political and legal status of autonomy in the Constitution, all responsibility will fall on the central authorities of Moldova,”
The threat of holding a referendum on secession if their demands are not met is putting a clock on attempts to “reset” relations between the central government and the representatives of the autonomy. In the short term President Sandu announced that the new Bashkan will be seated as an ex-officio member of the government pending the outcome of investigations saying:
“The presidential administration will carry out all legal procedures regarding the swearing in of the Bashkan of the ATU Gagauzia as an ex officio member of the government. With regard to suspicions of corruption and links to a criminal group, the prosecutor's office must complete all investigations and bring to justice those found guilty of fraud,"
It is worth noting that this statement by the President is much more in line with European democratic norms than some of the statements coming from parliament and the government. The Presidency is clearly indicating that they will proceed according to the law and not take a position until the justice system independently works through open cases. It stands in contrast to fairly belligerent statements from MPs and even the Prime Minister which are driving resentment in Gagauzia.
Political Roundup
Here is a quick roundup of the other key political stories in the news this week:
Parliament Adopts the Resolution of the Grand National Assembly - The resolution, printed here in last week’s Quick Hit article, was adopted by parliament with 54 PAS deputies and “independent” MAN party MP Gaik Vartanian voting in favor. It’s worth highlighting that even for important symbolic votes like this PAS almost never musters their full 63 MPs for the vote. None voted against, but sometimes people don’t show up. This is less an indication of splits in the party than it is of laxness in whipping the vote. Speaker of Parliament Grosu clarified the PAS position that including EU integration in the constitution does not require a national referendum as the people have already spoken by electing PAS to power on a pro-EU platform and in the streets during the assembly.
PAS Proposes a bill to replace “Victory Day” - The bill would recognize the end of WW2 on May 8th, the US and European day marking the end of the conflict in Europe, instead of May 9th as per the Soviet Union tradition. The bill would do away with “Victory Day” and rename the holiday the “Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation in memory of those killed in World War II” or “Remembrance Day” for short. The move seeks to recast the end of WW2 as remembrance of a tragic war rather than a jingoistic Soviet victory celebration. Predictably Russian authorities are not happy and the Socialists and Communists staged small protests outside of parliament against the bill.
The European Court of Human Rights ECtHR ruled that Romania is obliged to recognize same sex marriages after a case brought by 20 same-sex couples. The ruling follows recent rulings establishing that all countries under ECtHR jurisdiction are obliged to create legal structures for same-sex couples under "Article 8 of the Convention, the right to respect for private and family life." Moldovan activists are following the same path to the ECtHR and hope for the same outcome. President Zelensky in Ukraine recently stated that the Verkhovna Rada is in the process of creating a structure for “Civil Partnerships” as a temporary recognition for same-sex couples. The Ukrainian President explained that it is illegal to make any constitutional changes during a state of emergency and the Ukrainian constitution defines marriage as between one man and one woman.
Prime Minister Recean spoke about the need to increase government salaries - The Prime Minister noted that the January increase of 19,520 lei to 27,790 gross salary (pre-tax) for ministers is not sufficient to attract talent. He stated:
“It is absurd when ministers have lower salaries than those who work in construction. Both professions are respected, but the competencies are still different. We need talented personnel to prepare our legislation for harmonization with the European one. Again, with all due respect to the profession, the salaries of the heads of each department in the ministries are lower than those of the waiters in the cafe opposite. This is the reality that we have to face,”
Marina Tauber stripped of Parliamentary Immunity - The Shor Party leader lost her parliamentary immunity as prosecutors prepare to bring her 3 ongoing criminal cases to court. At the same time the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs announced sanctions against 5 individuals - Vladimir Plahotniuc, Ilan Shor, Marina Tauber, Gheorghe Cavkaliuc and Igor Chaika - for carrying out actions intended to destabilize Moldova. These sanctions must still be approved by the EU Council. Tauber called her inclusion in the sanctions “high praise.” At the same time, as the only member on the list that is in Moldova or an EU jurisdiction and with criminal cases moving forward in the courts she is very exposed compared to her colleagues hiding in Israel, Turkish Cyprus or Russia.
Farmers Prepare Protests - Farmers are threatening protests after the Minister of Finance failed to show up to a planned meeting with them last week. The Minister sent a State Secretary in her place but farmers considered it a snub. They demand increased subsidies, block of the import of Ukrainian grain and exclusive rights to the Moldova port of Giurgiulesti for local farmers. They plan a protest involving 1000 people and around 300 tractors “non-stop” from June 7 - June 30 in the center of Chisinau. Journalists investigating the problem of Ukrainian wheat have confirmed government statements that only an insignificant amount is entering Moldova - 177 tons from January to May or around 7.5 truckloads. Regional “dumping” of Ukrainian grain has driven down prices to levels that are unsustainable for Moldovan farmers, but the data shows this to be a regional issue and not specifically an issue of imports to Moldova directly.
That’s it for this Weekly Roundup! Follow us on Substack Notes for live coverage of the summit and look for an article after the summit discussing the organization and impact of Moldova’s biggest international political event ever.