The Venice Commission and the Council of Europe consider that article 78 of the Constitution should be modified in Parliament under a consensus between the Alliance for European Integration and the Communists Party. The modification must be followed by the dissolution of the legislative body and the organization of new elections, while the new Parliament must work according to new rules. The opinion was formulated by the PACE co-rapporteur for Moldova Josette Durrieu, who visited Moldova on April 6 together with another co-rapporteur, Lithuania's Egidijus Vareikis, Info-Prim Neo reports. In a news conference held at the end of the visit, Josette Durrieu said the head of state should be elected by 51 or 52 votes, which is a simple majority. She stressed that the constitutional crisis can be overcome this way. The French co-rapporteur said the head of state can be elected by the vote of the people, as the Alliance for European Integration proposed, but only in the future. “If the Alliance and the PCRM do not reach a compromise as regards the modification of article 78 in Parliament, a consultative referendum can be held, where the people will say if they want the President to be elected by direct vote or not,” Durrieu said. Egidijus Vareikis said a report on Moldova will be presented at the Council of Europe in September. It will be put to the vote in Strasbourg. “We want to have good news from Moldova by September so that we could include it in the report,” Vareikis said. Egidijus Vareikis also said that it is not difficult to amend the Constitution so that the head of state is elected by 51 or 52 votes not 61 as at present. “It is up to you to decide how to change these figures and how to elect the head of state. Not the Venice Commission but the competent Moldovan bodies and even the society should improve the Constitution of Moldova,” he said. In the same news conference, Head of Parliament Mihai Ghimpu said the Venice Commission does not instruct the Government how to elect the head of state – by direct vote or in Parliament. “The recommendations made by the Commission will be useful if we manage to reach a compromise with the PCRM,” Ghimpu said, giving to understand he doubts that a consensus can be reached with the Opposition party.