Prime Minister Pavel Filip during May 8-10 paid a visit to the Czech Republic at the invitation of his Czech counterpart Bohuslav Sobotka. During the visit, there was signed a memorandum of understanding between the Republic of Moldova and the Czech Republic on cooperation in energy efficiency and other related sectors. The officials considered possibilities of stimulating bilateral trade and the export of wine products, the Czech Republic being one of the target markets for Moldovan winemakers. The commercial-economic relations between Moldova and the Czech Republic were discussed in a Moldovan-Czech business forum that involved over 80 entrepreneurs from the two countries. Premiers Filip and Sobotka spoke about the economic potential and experience of the two states and emphasized the importance of stimulating mutual investment and trade, of launching long-term projects with prospects and of establishing contacts between Moldovan and Czech businessmen.
On May 8, the President of Moldova Igor Dodon started his working visit to the Russian Federation, paid at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. On May 9, he took part in the military parade mounted in the Red Square of Moscow on the occasion of Victory Day. After the ceremony, Vladimir Putin and Igor Dodon laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and flowers at the memorial plaques with names of heroes in the Aleksandrovski Park. The two Presidents observed a minute’s silence in memory of unknown soldiers and the national anthems of Moldova and Russia were played afterward.
Representatives of civil society organizations on May 8 demanded to withdraw the bill to change the electoral system that was adopted by Parliament in the first reading on May 5. NGO members in the course of last week daily mounted protests in front of the Parliament Building to show their disagreement with this proposal and to demand that the current electoral system be kept.
For the first time the Republic of Moldova on May 9 celebrated officially Victory Day and Europe Day simultaneously. A number of events were staged on this occasion, including marches to the Memorial Complex “Eternity” and a concert in the central square of Chisinau. The events staged to mark both of the holidays involved tens of thousands of people, some of them being mobilized by political parties and councils of public organizations. There were reported no violations of public order.
The Democratic Party on May 10 proposed structurally reforming the Government by reducing the number of ministries from 16 to 9. The nine ministries are: Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure; Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration; Ministry of Finance; Ministry of the Interior; Ministry of Justice; Ministry of Defense; Ministry of Education, Culture and Research; Ministry of Health and Social Protection; Ministry of Regional Development, Agriculture and Environment. After the party’s working meeting, the Democratic leader Vlad Plahotniuc said the number of governmental agencies should also be cut. After the reorganization, the vacant executive posts will be occupied by professionals who will not be named based on political criteria.
The Socialists on May 11 started to collect signatures in support of the referendum for dismissing Mayor General of Chisinau municipality Dorin Chirtoaca. President Igor Dodon was the first to put his signature at the tent pitched at Kilometer Zero in central Chisinau. After signing, Igor Dodon told the press that he came to sign as a resident of Chisinau municipality and to give an example to the rest of the citizens. Chairman of the Socialist group on the Chisinau Municipal Council Ion Ceban said that similar tents will be put up in all the districts of Chisinau. Signatures will also be collected from door to door. Also, the people from suburbs will be able to sign at the place of residence. The 63,000 signatures that need to be collected during 60 days will be gathered swiftly and the referendum will be held in November at the latest. There are no reasons for suspending the referendum.
The Chisinau Municipal Council on May 11 adopted the 2017 municipal budget in the final reading. The revenues were projected at 3.356 billion lei, while the expenditure at 3.775 billion lei. The deficit, which totals over 418 million lei, will be covered with money earned from the sale of publicly-owned apartments to the population, with external and internal loans.
Judge Tudor Pantaru on May 12 was elected president of the Constitutional Court (CC) for a three-year period. He replaced ex-president Alexandru Tanase, whose term in office expired. The new president was elected by secret vote.
The same day, Victoria Iftodi was sworn in as a judge of the Constitutional Court in Parliament. The ceremony was attended by President of Moldova Igor Dodon and chairman of the Superior Council of Magistracy Victor Micu.
The chairman of the Broadcasting Coordination Council Dinu Ciocan and deputy chairman Nicolae Damaskin tendered their resignations in the May 12 meeting. In the same meeting, Council member Dragos Vicol was elected as the new chairman.
A large crowd of people came together before the Parliament Building on May 14 to protest against the modification of the electoral system. The protesters criticized the government for adopting the Democratic Party’s bill on the uninominal voting system and then the Socialists’ bill on the mixed-member system and their merger in breach of the law and in secret. The people said the current government wants to remain in power at any cost. Dozens of police officers were mobilized around the Parliament Building. The participants in the protest carried placards with such inscriptions as: “Your vote, Plahotniuc’s MP”, “Sop political harassment”, “Shame”, “Rain is not a calamity. You are calamities, thieves”, “PDM and PSRM the same mafia”, “Stop mafia vote” etc. The protest organizers, representatives of civil society, said they will stop mounting protests for a period so that the authorities withdraw the bill to modify the electoral system. If these do not, a new protest will be staged on May 28. According to the organizers, the May 14 protest involved about 3,000 people. A number of parties announced their support for the protest. Among these are the Liberal Democratic Party, the Political Party “Platform Dignity and Truth”, the Party “Action and Solidarity” and “Our Party”.
Selection by Elena Nistor
