Functionaries having access to state secrets banned from dual citizenship

The Parliament passed into law the modifications forbidding the double citizenship to public servants and people exerting public functions. The law was voted by the Parliament on December 7, 2007, but was sent back on February 8 by the President, Info-Prim Neo reports. The new wording of the law establishes the access to the state secret as the main criterion in applying the restriction to have double citizenship. The restriction will not envisage police employees, local officials, customs officers, who do not have access to state secrets. The people with multiple citizenships will not be able to exert the functions of President, of a Government member, parliamentarian, district president, member of the Central Electoral Commission and of the Court of Accounts, judge, employee of the Information and Security Service, member of the National Bank’s Board, member of the Financial Market National Commission. Under the law, the candidates to the position of a member of the Parliament are to state whether their hold the citizenship of another state when registering for the race, and to confirm they renounced to the citizenship or withdrew the relevant application to obtain it, in case they get the mandate. According to the chairman of the Legal Committee for Appointments and Immunities, Vladimir Turcanu, international experts saw as too tough a measure to ban having double citizenship to wide categories of functionaries. Members of the committee have said, the European states accepting or tolerating double citizenship have enacted such restrictions for the officials related to exerting state sovereignty, independence or security. The law provides that the people having the citizenship of another state and holding one of the functions envisaged by the law will be deemed as incompatible to be appointed, unless they make proof they started the procedure of renouncing to the citizenship of another state, within six months. The people in elected positions will be deemed as incompatible only if their mandate is validated.