“The principle of legality must stay in the basis of any procedural act, so that the registration procedures shall not hamper the consistent enforcement of the legal provisions,” states the Justice Ministry (JM), in a response to the joint statement of the representatives of the EU countries and organizations in Chisinau, isued on November 25. Info-Prim Neo quotes a press release issued by the JM, specifying that “all the procedures related to registering political parties or the modifications to their statutes take place in legal terms, in strict conformity with the law. Insuring a high degree of transparency in this process, of some beneficial game rules, to display maximum neutrality represent a priority of the JM, it being a desideratum of national interest. In this respect, the JM's decisions related to the registration of political parties are always reasoned and published on the official page – www.justice.gov.md,” the communique of the JM reads. The Ministry reiterates “the firm commitment to contribute to ensure fair game rules in the electoral process and in holding fair, free and democratic elections, to guarantee the respect for political pluralism and not to affect the fair competition among different electoral competitors.” At the same time, the JM expresses its “concern with the tendencies of escalating the public polemics related to unfolding the procedures of registering political parties, under way, and with the media pressure the JM is subjected to in this context.” “The JM stands for unfolding the registration procedures out of any pressure and supports the efforts of all the actors involved for the good unfolding of this process. The JM reasserts its availability for the dialogue on principles and considers that signaling the real problems of the system, as well as the constructive criticism related to those shall be dealt with within the boundaries of political non-affiliation and mutual respect. We are open to any requests for clarifications, in case they are addressed,” reads the MJ's communique. Tuesday, in a joint statement, 10 EU embassies and two EU institutions from Chisinau urged the Moldovan authorities to make sure the coming parliamentary elections will unfold in conformity with the international standards of democratic elections. The diplomats underline “the importance of guaranteeing the full respect of the principle of political pluralism, including the competition among parties and candidates, and of the ideas pursuing to protect the voter's option to the highest degree”. “We note in this regard that a number of political parties have complained of difficulties encountered in complying with the new registration procedures introduced by the Law on Political Parties which was adopted in April this year. Delays in obtaining proper registration could jeopardise the chances of political parties or candidates of participating fully or at all in the upcoming elections. We therefore call upon the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Moldova to ensure that the procedures for registration of parties and movements are applied in a timely, fair and transparent manner”, the joint statement reads.