Hate speech in the public sphere and online, organization of a low number of polling stations for the diaspora and for the voters from the Transnistrian region, lack of transparency in the financing of some of the parties and vote buying practices that were insufficiently monitored and penalized by the responsible authorities are the observations of the Electoral Mission of La Francophonie that were presented in a news conference, IPN reports.

According to the Mission, the snap parliamentary elections of July 11, 2021 mark an important stage in the political life in the Republic of Moldova. They were conducted in a free and transparent manner, in accordance with the legal framework. Observers representing political parties and civil society, primarily members of BeCS and PAS, were present in all the polling stations.

Security forces were present near the 41 polling stations of the Transnistrian region without intervening in voting. The observers ascertained a number of incidents, such as the defective functioning of cameras, election posters near polling stations and attempts to influence voters or to buy votes.

“A final report will be compiled at the end of the electoral process and this will include recommendations for improving the legal framework and organizational provisions for all the elections in the Republic of Moldova,” said Mission head Eva Descarrega Garcia, Ambassador of the Principality of Andorra to the French Republic and the Representative of the Government of Andorra to the International Organization of la Francophonie.

The mission consisting of high-level experts from different francophone countries recommends assessing the electoral framework after the elections, by engaging all the political players and civil society so as to harmonize and improve the electoral legislation for guaranteeing high-quality informing and correct media coverage and for ensuring the citizens’ right to freely elect their representatives.

At the end of the conference, the Mission expressed the readiness of the International Organization of La Francophonie to assist the institutions in implementing the formulated recommendations so as to strengthen democracy in the Republic of Moldova.

The Electoral Mission of La Francophonie has been in Chisinau since June 29, 2021, being invited by the electoral authorities of Moldova to ensure impartial and transparent monitoring of the campaign prior to the snap parliamentary elections of July 11, 2021.