The electoral legislation is modernized without taking into account the provisions of the law on the special legal status of Gagauzia. The new Electoral Code proposed for adoption does not contain clear stipulations concerning the elections to the People’s Assembly or of the Bashkan (Governor) of the region and the work of the Comrat Central Election Commission that is responsible for these elections. Also, the new electoral provisions do not take into account the Venice Commission’s recommendations about the representativeness of ethnic minorities. Such statements were made by representatives of the People’s Assembly of Gagauzia in public hearings on the draft Electoral Code that were staged by the Parliament’s legal commission for appointments and immunities, IPN reports.
Attending the hearings, vice president of the People’s Assembly Gheorghii Leiciu said the law on the special legal status of Gagauzia stipulates that the elections in Gagauzia are held in accordance with the local legislation adopted by the People’s Assembly. In Gagauzia, there is a local Central Election Commission responsible for the holding of the elections to the People’s Assembly and of the Bashkan of the region.
“Regrettably, the new bill does not say anything about this. It seems that Gagauzia is intentionally detached from the processes taking place in the country. I think these aspects should be very clearly stipulated, first of all what regional elections are, like those to the People’s Assembly and of the Bashkan, and what duties the Central Election Commission of Gagauzia has,” stated Gheorghii Leciu.
According to him, the proposal to modernize the electoral legislation does not take into account the recommendations of the foreign partners, including the Venice Commission, as regards Gagauzia, namely the guaranteeing of the political representativeness of ethnic minorities, in this case of the Gagauz people. In this respect, the deputies in Comrat formulated proposals, including to institute a mixt electoral system so that 96 MPs are elected in the national constituency, while five MPs in single-member districts that would be created in ATU Gagauzia. There are no other solutions to guarantee the political representativeness of Gagauzia and its people at national level.
Promo-LEX program director Nicolae Panfil said the elections in ATU Gagauzia should be somehow regulated by the Electoral Code. “It is not clear if the electoral bodies that organize elections to the People’s Assembly or of the Bashkan will work within legal limits,” he stated.
“As regards the electoral bodies of Gagauzia, we should realize that in accordance with the special law of 1994, elections in Gagauzia are held to choose the elective bodies of this region. Their status in the structure of the electoral bodies of the Republic of Moldova should be specified somehow,” noted the executive director of the Association for Participatory Democracy (ADEPT) Igor Boțan.
Members of the legal commission said that between the first and second readings, the bill will be submitted to the Venice Commission and ODIHR for appraisal. A final reading will be given when the two organizations present their opinions, expectedly after the second half of October.
