pss no.2 february 2008

8/14/2019 PSS No.2 February 2008

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POLITICAL & SECURITY STATEWATCH

Focus

Domestic Policy Sector:

Crisis Situations Reveal the Governments

Inability to React Rapidly

Foreign Policy Sector:

What Holds Back Moldovan European

Development: Democratic Achievements and

Communist Drawbacks?

Security Policy Sector:

From KGB to ISS: What Changed?

Monthly analytical bulletin on Moldovaissued by IDIS VIITORUL

The Institute for Development and SocialInitiatives (IDS) Viitorulis a research, educationand outreach organization which activates in the

eld o economic analysis, governance, law, political

sciences, strategic and organizational science. It

was set up in June 1993 in Moldova as a non-

governmental, not-or-prot organization, non-

political entity.

www.viitorul.org

No.

2(9),February

2008


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Overview

The independence of the judiciary becameagain a top issue after the ECHR rejected the

first list of Moldovan judges and after Moldova

lost a case requiring it to pay the record sum of2.5 million euros to an economic agent. New

parties accuse the Ministry of Justice of abuses,

while the parliamentary parties adopted theLaw on Political Parties stipulating that, from

2009 on, major parties will benefit from state

financing. The Moldovan government was not

prepared to cope with the epidemic of mumpsand only after mass protests of the holdersof commercial licenses agreed to discuss

implementation of Law 208.

ECHR questions independence ofMoldovan judiciary

Last year, the Republic of Moldova

submitted to the Council of Europe a list

of judges as candidates for the European

Court of Human Rights. The names onthat list represented persons close to the

Communists Party, hence the list was rejectedand Moldova had to send a second list.

The second list included new names and

subsequently Mihai Poalelungi was elected asthe Moldovan judge replacing Gleb Pavlovici,

who was the last Moldovan judge at ECHR

and previously expressed critical opinionson the independence of the judiciary in the

Republic of Moldova. Cases against Moldovaincreased and the country currently ranks high

among countries charged by their citizens

at the ECHR. The most notable case lostby Moldova in February was Oferta Plus vs.

Republic of Moldova. In that case the state

lost and was consequently required to paythe record sum of 2.5 million euros to the

Moldovan company Oferta Plus. Moreover,the Oferta Plus case revealed that high ranking

officials were responsible for violating the law.

Plaintiffs lawyer Vitalie Nagacevschi read alist comprised of the names of the Minister of

Justice, First Vice-Premier, Prosecutor, etc.

Especially when the case involves politics,the judiciary is subject to political pressures.

The department from the Ministry of Justice responsible for the registration of

political parties is often seen as a tool of thegoverning party used to control the political

competition. Patria-Moldova, the European

Action Movement, the Popular ActionMovement and the Liberal Democratic Party

of Moldova (PLDM) are four new parties

that had difficulties during the registrationprocedure. The Ministry of Justice mentioned

the existence of false signatures in their

applications without any evidence to supportthis claim. However, some of the above-

mentioned parties produced the persons whose

signatures the authorities claimed were fakeand accused the Ministry of Justice of abuse

of power and respecting political orders. The

Ministry of Justice has already lost a case to

the European Action Movement that claimedthe ministrys refusal to register the party wasillegal.

2

Political and Security Statewatch no. 2 (9), February 2008

Domestic Policy Sector

Crisis Situations Reveal the

Governments Inability to React

Rapidly

by Ion Marandici

[email protected]

Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDSI) Viitorul


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Political and Security Statewatch no. 3, August 2007

3

It seems the Ministry of Justice became a

gatekeeper for political party participation. A party needs a lot of patience to overcome

this obstacle. PLDM representatives declared

they have talked to vice-ministers of Justicedemanding evidence that some of the

signatures were faked, but the officials couldnot come up with any plausible explanations.

Another abuse reported by the political parties

is the fact that the Ministry of Justice didnot hand back the membership applications

that are party property. The leaders of the

political parties argue that through unfoundedaccusations the authorities damage the image

of the new political parties. In the same line,

lawsuits against major opposition politicianscontinue: Mihai Ghimpu (Liberal Party),

Dorin Chirtoaca (mayor of Chisinau), Nicolae

Andronic (Popular Republican Party), andSerafim Urechean (AMN) face legal actions.

Some obervers believe that these lawsuits areintended to harass the Opposition and are

another proof of the political control over the

judiciary.

The Law on political parties: a hidden dealof the parliamentary parties?

The newly adopted Law on Political Parties

sets rather restrictive criteria for foundingnew political parties and is a result of the

negotiations of the parliamentary parties which

tried to restrict the access to the political arenafor the extra-parliamentary parties. Drafters

of the law discussed some rather normative

arguments, stating the need for political

stability as more important than the right tofound a party. However, the activity of the

extra-parliamentary Opposition parties wassignificant: the Liberal Party won the electoral

contest for the mayors office in Chisinau; thePLDM plans to initiate a referendum in order

to modify the Constitution, and the European

Action Movement organized numerous streetdemonstrations. The law on political parties

was co-drafted by the Council of Europe

and its major positive innovation is that thepolitical parties will be partially financed by

the state budget. While the Democratic Party

and the Alianta Moldova Noastra party insisted

on having state budget financing for partiesbeginning January 1, 2008, the majority

decided that the provisions of the law will be

applied only after the parliamentary electionsbegining July 1, 2009. The most radical was the

Democratic Party that left the plenary sessionof the Parliament as a result of the discussions

on the Law on Political Parties accusing the

Christian-Democrats and the Communists ofrestricting the activity of political parties. Two

independent deputies, Vitalia Pavlicenco and

Vladimir Filat, disagreed with the manner inwhich the law was drafted.

The new law provides that 0.05 % of the

state budget revenues will be directed towardspolitical party financing. The criteria forobtaining state financing are simple, but rather

strict and bound to the success of the party

in the elections. Thus, half of the sum willbe divided according to the number of seats

a party wins in the Parliament and the second

half will be distributed to parties that win atleast 50 representatives in the 33 districts.

The amount of donations was limited

to 0.1% of the revenues of the state budget(approximately $1.2 $1.3 million USD).

Some deputies argued that limitation of theamount of donations for political parties is

unjust. While in the draft the figure was 0.2%,the Communist deputies voted for lowering the

amount of donations for parties as a percentage

of the budget from 0.2% to 0.1%. The Courtof Auditors will be responsible for controlling

the spending of the financial resources coming

from the state budget and the political parties will be obliged to present financial reports

annually until March 31 to the Court of

Auditors, Ministry of Finance and the Ministryof Justice.

Even if the main goal of financing parties

from the state budget is to make the political

class more responsible, it is doubtful that statefinancing will help parties be more efficient.

The parties can use the state finances

to improve their facilities, for personnelspending, to cover costs related to advertising

materials, trips abroad and in the country,




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telecommunication costs, costs related to

the organization of political activities, feesrelated to the membership in an international

organization, investments in various types

of goods, electoral campaigning, protocol oroffices.

Actually, the innovation of this law is that it

stipulates that the parties can be financed also

by the state (but not state enterprises) and notonly from donations or personal contributions.

Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, France,

Romania and others have developed laws thatensure political party financing. Financing

from abroad of political parties is forbidden

and the new regulation states that any donation

will have to be registered. Other goals ofthis law include diminishing absenteeism atelections and developing political pluralism.

In addition to that, the parties are obligedto update their member lists and submit them

to the Ministry of Justice before December

31 of the pre-electoral year. This means theymust submit lists with at least 5,000 members

with at least 150 members registered in any

of the 33 districts. The law does not stipulate

whether independent candidates can obtainstate financing.

The Government is not ready to cope with

crisis situations

The governmental activity was marked

by the competition between the local andcentral authorities. While central authorities

accuse district leadership controlled by the

Opposition of promoting destructive politics

as opposed to the real politics promotedby the Government, the local authorities

accuse the central authorities of financialstrangulation. At least in two cases the reaction

of the Government was delayed: the mumps

epidemic and the Law 208.

The mumps epidemic started in December2007, but the Government was not able

to tackle the issue and did not inform the

public opnion about the scale of the disease.

The Government did not have the necessaryfinancial means to buy the necessary

vaccinations and consequently ordered them

only two months later. Cases of disease wereregistered in all the districts of the republic,

but the most affected regions are Chisinau,

Balti, districts of Comrat, Orhei, AneniiNoi, Hancesti and Ialoveni. 80% of the

patients were between the ages 18-25. Theauthorities forecast the peak of the epidemic

in the March-April period; at the same time

the Ministry of Public Health requested fromthe Government almost 700,000 euro in order

to buy approx. 600,000 vaccinations from an

Indian manufacturer. The authorities managedto pay only for 310,000 vaccinations that will

be used at the beginning of March. According

to certain sources, from November 2007 untilFebruary 2008 more than 10,000 persons were

infected with mumps, while for February the

data indicate an upward trend.

The second case refers to the holders ofcommercial licenses. After many protests,

government authorities agreed to discuss and

negotiate with commercial license holders.This happened only after significant protests

took place in Balti and Chisinau. It seems the

government will postpone the implementationof the Law 208, obliging the traders to register

an individual firm, to have an accountant

and to issue a bill after each transaction. The whole history of the implementation of the

Law 208 reveals that the Government reacted

and accepted dialogue only after proteststhreatened to become more intense.

Government activity will probably

be marked by recent changes to the Code

of Conduct for Civil Servants adopted byParliament. While there are certain positive

aspects like limiting the value of presents that

bureaucrats can accept, it also stipulates thatpublic information will be distributed only by

the person responsible for that in each ministry

or institution. Critics claim that that wouldrestrict the freedom of expression, but also the

free access to information of public interest.In the course of parliamentary debates, the

representatives of the Opposition partiesdemanded that President Voronins portrait not




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to be hung on the walls in the offices of high

ranking officials saying this is actually politicalcampaigning on public money since the function

of the head of state is not depoliticized and the

President has in a parliamentary republic arather symbolic competences as compared with

the Parliament and the Government.

Further regarding public administration

reform, the Government announced that theMinistry for Industry and Infrastructure will

be dissolved. Another change in Government

was the dismissal of Constantin Mihailescu,the Director of the Ministry for Ecology and

Natural Resources for unknown reasons by

the head of state. At the end of February, the

authorities announced their plans to reducecosts of the governmental spending to 10%from the state budget by dismissing approx. 10

000 persons from the budgetary sector. More

than a half of these persons are employed bythe Ministry of Education.

Surprisingly, but the law regardingprohibiting public servants from holding

double citizenship was not promulgated

by the President and was returned to the

Parliament for further examination. Probablythe President realized that the promulgation of

such a law would make the reintegration of thecountry impossible because many persons on

the Nistrus left bank hold double citizenship.The local public administration will see its role

diminished in matters concerning the freedom

of assembly. If until recently the organizers of apublic meeting needed the approval of the local

authorities, the new law on public meetings

stipulates that the organizers of such eventshave only to inform the authorities, but do

not need their authorization. If the meeting is

expected to exceed 100 persons, the organizersmust notify authorities. Many consider the

new law more liberal than the previous one.

Still, Moldovan authorities did not welcomemeetings organized by the Union of Journalists

from Moldova. The February 3 meetingtriggered reactions from news portals in the

Russian Federation which extracted certainstatements from the speech given by the Directorof Timpul newspaper, Constantin Tanase,

accusing him of xenophobia. Subsequently the

Prosecutors Office of Moldova reacted in thesame manner, but the journalist repeated his

statements explaining he meant rather Russian

influence and not an ethnicity. Public debatesin the square revealed another problem of

Moldovan society: minority integration andthe ambigous status of the Russian language.

Prognosis

March will be the month of Gagauzian

elections for the local parliament. Highranking officials already started their visits in

the region in order to support the Communist

candidates. On the other hand, the initiatives

launched by the Liberal Democratic Party ofMoldova are likely to stir discussions about

the efficiency of the institutional design ofMoldovan democracy. Liberal Democrats

propose the direct election of the President and

a mixed electoral system for the parliamentaryelections. However, critics suggest that the

initiative to organize a referendum on the

best way to elect the President and the mostappropriate type of electoral system are just

methods of pre-electoral campaigning, even ifthe PLDM assured the public that the party

will also promote these initiatives after the

2009 elections.


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Overview

Moldova finds itself in a rhetoricalentrapment in relation to the European Union

which makes the future of an enhanced EU-

Moldova contractual agreement highly

uncertain. That is how one would assess the

state of affairs between the two entities after

Benita Ferrero-Waldner, EU Commissioner for

External Relations and Neighborhood Policy,

visited Chisinau. Moldovan authorities had to

face the reality that any further evolution of

this relationship is conditional upon a strongcommitment of the Moldovan government

to the rule of law and continuing reforms.

The 2009 parliamentary elections will be a

benchmark for measuring progress. At that

time, the EU will either endorse or further

postpone Moldovan claims for European

integration.

There have been positive signs that

Moldovan-Romanian relations could resume

normality. This comes as a result of themeeting between the foreign ministers of both

countries in Kiev where new talks regarding

the Basic Treaty and border recognition took

place. In their statements, both Mr. Stratan and

his counterpart Mr. Cioroianu confirmed that

the text of the treaty is in its final stages and

that there is strong support for a concluding

agreement. In the same vein, the Speaker

of the Moldovan Parliament, Mr. Lupu,

addressed the press emphasizing the need

for an amiable and beneficial relation with

Romania assuring that the institution he is

leading will be more involved on this issue.On the international scene, the international

community witnessed Kosovo declare its

independence from Serbia. After the major

powers recognized that independence, among

them the United States, Great Britain and

France, observers perceived a dangerous

precedent. This event precipitated new

declarations in Tiraspol about its special status

and that a similar solution has to be applied for

the resolution of the Transnistrian conflict.

A History of Failure: Reversed

Metamorphosis

Among the members of the

Commonwealth of the Independent States

(CIS), Moldova was considered a frontrunner

on the path to EU membership. It was the

first CIS country to negotiate the Partnership

and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) in 1994.

In 1999 the government at that time even

asked for a Free Trade Area with the EU

which was not endorsed for the simple reason

that Moldova was not yet a member of the

World Trade Organization (WTO). That was,

however, accomplished in the summer of 2001

when Moldova became a full WTO member.

Furthermore, Moldova was engaged in

regional development projects with EU

sponsorship as part of the Euroregions Lower

Danube and Upper Prut, which included

regions from Moldova, Romania and




Foreign Policy Sector

What Holds Back Moldovan

European Development: Democratic

Achievements and Communist

Drawbacks?

by Sergiu Panainte

[email protected]


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7

Ukraine, following an administrative reform

financially supported by the same EU. These

are the mere facts from the history of EU-

Moldova relations during the governance of

the Democrats.

Beginning in 2001, when the Communists

took power, one noticed a regression of this

relationship. First, Communist leadership

declared membership in the Russia-Belarus

Union a priority. Administrative reform was

reversed too. In accordance with the alleged

reason of power decentralization Moldova

reverted to the rayon system, bringing the

efforts of the EU to nothing. Moreover, the

desire for stronger ties with Moscow has

governed Moldovan foreign policy since

2001. As a result, the EU lost faith in the

belief that Moldova would follow a European

path.

However, the Kozak Memorandum

changed the rule of the game resulting in

Voronins realignment of the foreign policy

agenda. European integration was given

top priority, but facts speak for themselves.

Nothing has been done to strengthen

European ties in reality policies haverendered opposite results: delayed reforms,

economic growth that rests on remittances

from abroad, democratic degeneration, and

worsening living standards, to name but a

few.

Now, why this retrospective? Were the

Democrats good and the Communists

are bad and why are these terms bracketed?

First, this retrospective clearly shows that

EU-Moldova relations declined after theCommunist party came to power. One should

mention though that the European Union

Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM)

and Visa Facilitation Agreement are

Communist party successes, with strong

recommendations from the EU. Second, the

then Democrats were former Communists

who had to adjust to the new realities and the

present Communists are actually socialists,

who govern according to the rules of wildcapitalism, massive accumulation of material

wealth by those in power.

After Ferrero-Waldner visited Chisinau,

she concluded that the door of the EU

is neither closed nor open to Moldova.

There is a need for further reforms and

law implementation in order to fulfill the

provisions of the Action Plan. The chances for

an enhanced contractual agreement depend

fully on Moldovan authorities and the

benchmark, the parliamentary elections from

2009, should be carried out in line with all

the international requirements with all parties

subject to the same conditions.

This statement indicates that the PCA,

together with the Action Plan, will be

extended for another year until Moldova

can fully perform its commitments under

that agreement. The EU does not want

to proceed to a higher level just because

Moldova asks for it. However, in order

to make the pill sweeter, Ferrero-Waldner

acknowledged the progress Moldova made

in Action Plan implementation by rewarding

it with Autonomous Trade Preferences, the

Visa Facilitation Agreement and Common

Visa Center in Chisinau. As a bonus, the high

official introduced a Mobility Partnershipmeant to enhance the cooperation on migration

issues and to create better conditions for the

Moldovans working in EU member states.

She also pointed to the fact that if progress

is achieved, Moldova could benefit from a

similar contractual agreement that Ukraine

will enjoy in the foreseeable future. What is

this agreement providing for?

Ukraine began discussing a New Enhanced

Agreement (NEA) to be implementedfollowing the expiration of its PCA. EU-

Ukrainian relations have achieved notable

progress and now the EU wants to reward this

by creating a Free Trade Area (FTA) as part of

that NEA. The only condition was that Ukraine

joins the WTO. Ukraine accomplished this on

February 5, 2008, beginning FTA negotiations

13 days later. That is where Ukraine stands

now, a position comparable to that of Moldova

in 2001. As previously said, Moldova hasbecome an outsider after having once been a

leader among CIS countries in strengthening




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8

EU ties. What would explain such a failure or

such a reversed metamorphosis?

Ukraine is geostrategicaly more important

for Europe than Moldova. However, the

objective facts are that Ukraine keeps

the pro-Western course of its policies, a

strategy reinforced by the September 2007

parliamentary elections. Ukraine truly wants

to join EU and NATO and so it complies with

European norms and values. The trade between

the two entities has steadily increased in recent

years, Ukraine being the 25th largest export

market for EU and EU being the first trading

partner of Ukraine.

Moldova lacks the size and resources of

Ukraine. Nonetheless, Moldova could startto truly comply with its commitments: rule

of law, market economy, and respect for

human rights and liberties. The EU does not

expect the Communist government to honor

these commitments as it has failed to do so

during seven years in power. That is why the

parliamentary elections of 2009 are seen as a

turning point where Moldovan citizens will

either endorse a mandate for the Communist

party or place Moldovas fate in the hands ofthe opposition. Hence, these elections have

to be democratic and any attempt by current

leaders to corrupt them will be the death

sentence for Moldova in its relation with the

EU. The only alternative for the party in power

to survive is to sacrifice the party interests for

the interests of the people, even if that will

mean losing power.

Pragmatic Approach to a Sensitive IssueDespite a strained relationship with

Romania in 2007, Moldovan authorities

exhibited more willingness to come to terms

with the western neighbor in the beginning

of 2008. While President Voronin is unlikely

to relax his attitude toward Romania, other

high officials called for setting up a friendly

dialogue with Romanian authorities. In this

regard, Parliamentary Speaker Lupu disagreed

publicly with Voronin defending his view thatMoldova must build a mutually beneficial

relationship with Romania based on pragmatic

approaches to the problems existing between

the two states.

The major problem that must now be

solved is the Basic Treaty, still non-existent

after 17 years of Moldovas independence.

The meeting in Kiev between Mr. Stratan and

Mr. Cioroianu during the reunion of foreign

ministers from the EU and Black Sea regions

signaled progress on the issue. The officials

stated to the press that the basic documents

which will govern Moldovan-Romanian

relations are to be finalized soon. Indeed, a

pragmatic approach that excluded emotions,

mutual fears and distrust.

The EU requires that Romania have these

documents to secure the external borders ofthe EU by settling all border disputes with

the direct neighbor Moldova. Moldova also

needs this agreement to ensure its territorial

integrity. Furthermore, the Basic Treaty will

outline priorities for joint cooperation and aid

the development of amicable relations. Now,

as there is political will, both in Chisinau and

Bucharest to make it happen, one shall witness

improvements in the dialogue between the

two neighbors.

Kosovo: Right to Self-determination or

Catalyst for World Separatism?

The world had to acknowledge a fait

accomplis when on February 17, 2008 the

parliament in Pristina declared independence

from Serbia. While the situation did not

escalate to an armed conflict between the

Kosovar Albanians and ethnic Serbs, massive

demonstrations and clashes between policeand demonstrators have been registered. In

violation of the UN Charter and disregarding

the Security Council vote, major powers like

the US, Great Britain and France recognized

Kosovos independence. Serbia severely

opposed this independence and will likely

never recognize it. Other opposed countries

include Orthodox Russia, Romania, and

Greece, as well as Spain. All except Romania

and Greece are confronted with separatistmovements.

However, with the support of the key




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9 Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDSI) Viitorul


international players, Kosovos independence

is already a fact, despite the opposition posed

by the rightful Serbian claims and other states

supporting Serbias position. Therefore,

an outrageous precedent has been created

for the stability in zones torn by conflict

and separatism movements including

Transnistria, Abkhazia and South Ossetia

and even within the Russian Federation.

Following Kosovos declaration for

independence there has been a flood

of scenarios describing how the situation

may evolve in the region. With regard to

Transnistria the most creative ones provided

for Moldova unification with Romania or

for creation of a Pridnestrovskaya Rossyia,

etc.

So far, Tiraspol authorities claimed

the recognition of its special status and

following the September referendum on

unification with Russia, it asked again for

this unification. There is a widely held opinion

that Moscow will not rush to recognize

either Transnistrias independence or its

unification with Russia given the alleged

fear of losing Moldova to Romania. Whilenot impossible, this scenario seems unlikely

to happen due to many reasons: identity

crisis of Moldovan population, the Russian

willingness to keep the status quo in the

region, a still precarious relation between

Romanian and Moldovan leadership. As

a consequence, for the short term it is

improbable that the Kosovo precedent will

cause any immediate or irremediable effects.

However, in the long run, one could noticealterations in the position of negotiating

parties participating in the 5+2 format,

mainly Russia. In its capacity as observer,

the EU pledged support for the resolution of

the conflict that would respect the territorial

integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of

Moldova.

Prognosis

As the result of the visit by theCommissar for External Relations and

Neighborhood Policy of the European

Commission to Chisinau it has became

clear that the EUs opinions of Moldova

will depend on the outcome of the 2009

parliamentary elections. This is the result

of the poor implementation of the Action

Plan and slow pace of reforms. Therefore,

from the frontrunner to European integration

from the CIS states (who expressed that will

explicitly), Moldova was outrun by Ukraine,

which awaits a decision that will engage it

in a New Enhanced Agreement with the EU

that provides for a Free Trade Area between

the EU and the subscriber state. Even

without further prognosis one could predict

no changes in the EUs attitude toward

Moldova as long as Moldovan authorities

continue their course of actions.

Relations with Romania seemed to have

resumed a state of normalcy where both

partners could solve existing problems and

enhance cooperation on various levels. The

Basic Political Treaty is expected to be signed

soon which should settle all the problems

pertaining to border recognition. Since there

are important politicians backing a friendly

approach to neighboring Romania, onecould witness a rapprochement or at least

reconciliation on basic issues requiring

Moldovan-Romanian cooperation.

Kosovos independence created a state of

wariness within the international community

giving birth to an unprecedented situation

that feeds separatist tendencies elsewhere in

the world. This applies to Transnistria as

well, but for the time being no rash decisions

have been made either by Tiraspol andChisinau or Moscow. Since Russia fiercely

opposes Kosovos independence it might not

recognize Transnistrian independence for the

fear of losing control over Moldova. Hence,

the situation will not change dramatically

in the foreseeable future. The task remains

as it was to bring the parties back to the

negotiation table and try to find a peaceful

and lasting solution to the conflict.


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Overview

On February 26 one could easily see thatthe Information and Security Service (ISS) re-

cently updated its website. According to the

same source, the update is part of the strategyfor ISS modernization. However, the recent

update shows that despite the ISSs claims tobe democratic and apolitical, it has not shed

its Soviet past.

The site states that An evaluation of secret

services in this period proves that they com-

ply with the necessary objectives due to theproper implementation of experience gained

over many decades. As a matter of fact, they

were created and still represent the rationalcontinuity of structures that existed before the

declaration of independence.

In addition, the ISS website section His-

torical files traces the beginning of the secu-

rity services in Moldova to the year 1924 whenthe Autonomous Moldovan Soviet Socialist

Republic was established within the Ukrainian

Soviet Socialist Republic. In other words, con-trary to development expectations connected

to the process of European integration and to

the modernisation of the security services inaccordance with the Individual Partnership

Action Plan, the Moldovan security establish-ment stresses its Soviet legacy.

Since August 27, 1991, when its Declara-

tion of Independence was drafted, the Re-public of Moldova made several attempts to

reform its security services. Immediately af-

ter gaining independence, The State Security

Committee of Republic of Moldova was reor-ganised into The Ministry of National Secu-rity. This Ministry existed until 1999, when a

new structure, renamed the Information and

Security Service, replaced it.

The change in nomenclature seemed

to signal a transition from a bureaucratic,old-sfashioned Ministry to a more flexible,

mobile, Western-style Service. It implied a

change in attitude and was a first step in the

creation of viable security services in accor-dance with the Republic of Moldovas interna-tional commitments. Along with The Law on

the Information and Security Service promul-

gated in July 2007, the Moldovan Parliamentdrafted The Law on the Status of the Informa-

tion and Security Officer.

These two basic laws seem to provide all the

necessary support for security service reform.

However, there are several developments that

point to the ISSs increasing power and to itsplacement beyond any legal framework. In this

sense, one of the main security threats to con-stitutional order and to the Republic of Mol-

dovas fragile democratic achievements is the

lack of mechanisms to monitor ISS activity.

The return of the f ifth column

At the beginning of 2008, the Romanian

Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Mol-dova will be one of the main beneficiaries of

the Romanian governments financial support.

Security Policy Sector

From KGB to ISS: What Changed?

by Alex [email protected]


11/13




This declaration was issued despite the frozen

state of Romanian-Moldovan bilateral relationsexacerbated by the unilateral actions of Moldo-

van authorities. These actions include the expul-

sion of several Romanian officials and clerics andMoldovan President Vladimir Voronins accusa-

tions that Romania is the main security threatto Moldovan statehood because its citizenship

policy threatens Moldovas existence.

At the same time, previous anti-Romanian ac-

cusations and declarations have tended to be

disregarded, partly because of their frequencybut also because of evidence that from 2002 to

2007 Bulgaria granted 11,000 citizenships while

Romania only granted 2,500. In this sense, the

attitude of Moldovan authorities shifted frompersonal attacks on Romanian officials to Roma-

nias activities, calling into question the legal as-pect of Romanias financial assistance to several

Moldovan NGOs and media organizations.

These developments were widely reported

in 2007 when the former government newspa-

per, Moldova Suverana, published a series ofarticles, later claimed to have been written by a

former Romanian security agent. These articles

claimed that Romanian secret services, along with the Romanian embassy in Chisinau, spon-

sored newspapers and activities directed againstthe statehood of Republic of Moldova.

In line with previous developments, duringthe ISSs annual meeting to discuss its 2007 ac-

tivity and 2008 objectives, the Moldovan presi-

dent highlighted foreign financial assistance toparties and mass media. According to Vladimir

Voronin, special attention should be paid to il-

legal financing from abroad.

Despite Voronins professed commitment

to European values, this statement more close-ly resembles the attitude of Russian President

Vladimir Putin towards the British governments

alleged attempts to subvert Russian national se-curity with the aid of regional British Council

offices. Another example would be the accusa-

tions against Natalia Morari, a Moldovan jour-

nalist, who was denied access to the Russian Fed-eration because she is perceived as a threat to the

national security of the Russian Federation.

At the same meeting, Voronin stated that the

financial resources of political parties and massmedia should be monitored in order to annihi-

late all attempts to subvert the Republic of Mol-

dovas statehood and constitutional order.

From freedom to security of speech

When Moldovan officials declare that only theCommunist Party is really interested in the exis-

tence of Republic of Moldova, then all members

of the media and opposition parties who holddistinct opinions on foreign or domestic policy

issues, such as the resolution of the Transnistrian

conflict or the neutrality of Moldova, could bedeclared as threats to the security of Republic of

Moldova. A series of events this month show thatsecurity reform is far from being accomplished.

President Vladimir Voronins former advisor,Artur Resetnicov, was appointed ISS Director in

November 2007. At the same time a new Law on

the Status of the Security and Information Offi-cer was drafted. Artur Resetnicov replaced Ion

Ursu, who was appointed as Moldovan Ambas-

sador to Greece. This appointment of a formertop security official as ambassador reveals the ar-

bitrariness of Moldovan authorities and the arti-

ficial character of ISS, which merely serves as apolitical instrument against the Voronin Admin-

istrations opponents.

Considering the appointment of a former

presidential advisor to the position of ISS Direc-

tor, along with new laws that determine the civilstatus of secret service while granting the ISS ex-

clusive rights to intercept phone calls, there are

concerns that the ISS will heavily influence the2009 parliamentary elections.

In an interview, Artur Resetnicov stated hisconfidence in Vladimir Voronins legal mandate,

as the guarantor of Moldovan statehood, to directISS activity. Marian Lupu, Speaker of Moldovan

Parliament, does not share this opinion. He was

visibly confused by Voronins declaration, statingthat the purpose of this declaration was unclear.

In addition, Lupu expressed his concern about

the public character of Presidents assumptions.In the same interview, the ISS Director called


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the media and opposition party reaction toVoronins statement hysteria among people

who feel that it is their part, which President

Voronin has in his mind when mentioningsome illegal activities. In addition, Artur Re-

setnicov said he was confident that the Infor-

mation and Security Service would increaseits efforts to preserve the constitutional order

in the Republic of Moldova. Not much timehas passed and the first results of this declara-

tion have already started to appear.

Already this month, two criminal cases

were reported involving mass media organiza-

tions that developed projects with Romanianfinancial assistance. In one case, Constantin

Tanase, Director of the daily newspaper Tim-

pul, is charged with instigating ethnic dis-crimination, while the second refers to radio

station Vocea Basarabiei, which is charged

with calling for the removal of the constitu-tional order.

In the case of Constantin Tanase, the Pros-ecutor General misinterpreted Tanases state-

ment during a public manifestation at the

National Opera Square. In the other case, the

acusations of the Prosecutor General and of theCenter for Prevention of Corruption and Eco-

nomic Crimes, which monitor the radio sta-tions implementation of Romanian financed

projects, are not in line with charges initiallybrought to the attention of radio manage-

ment.

In addition, Alexandru Lipcan and Vladi-

mir Filat, two opposition party deputies, re-signed from the ISS monitoring sub-com-

mission on the grounds that a parliamentary

majority was reluctant to call for an audit ofthe 2007 ISS activity report, in the framework

of the Parliamentary Commission on National

Security and Public Order. They said that theISS increasingly resembles the former KGB

and Soviet security services. Although this res-ignation enhances the image of these deputies

and their parties, opposition parties have lost

another means of monitoring ISS activity.

PrognosisUntil Parliament organizes an audit of ISS

activity and the Supreme Security Council is

regarded as a formal institution, Moldovan se-curity services will be the means of achieving

political goals instead of discovering real secu-

rity threats. Such threats include the RussianFederations attempt to ignore the constitu-

tional order of Republic of Moldova by inau-gurating 23 voting stations on the Nistrus left

bank during the presidential elections, whichare due on March 2nd. Until the Moldovangovernment initiates real reform, Moldovan se-

curity services will continue to remember their

Soviet legacy.

Te Bulletin is a bilingual monthly publication aiming to provide analysis on various elements ofdomestic and foreign policy, as well as on some issues of special interest for Moldova.

Political and Security Statewatch authors: Ion Marandici, Sergiu Panainte, Alex Leanu.

In order to subscribe to the distribution list of Political and Security Statewatch bulletin, pleasecontact us by e-mail: [email protected] and distribution of the bulletin: Ghenadie Mocanu.

Contacts:Chisinau, 10/1, Iacob Hincu Str., 2009 MD, Republic o Moldovael/ax: (+ 373/22) 21 09 32; 21.36.32; 22.71.30

E-mail: [email protected]: www.viitorul.org


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I tit t f D l t d S i l I iti ti (IDSI) Viit l


The Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDSI) Viitorulis a research, education and outreach organization which activates in theeld o economic analysis, governance, law, political sciences, strategic andorganizational science. It was set up in June 1993 in Moldova as a non-

governmental, not-or-prot organization, non-political entity.

Te IDSIs mission is to contribute to the growth o independent thinkingenvironment in Moldova and in other emerging democracies; to contributeto the strengthening o the local and regional governments; to assist theexpansion o the civil society in which the citizens act together to expresstheir own interests, to exchange inormation and to strive or mutual goals andinfuence government.

IDSI is also a common platorm that brings together young intellectuals who

are concerned with the models o transition towards the ree market and theopen society. IDSI helps them to contribute with their energies, values andvirtues, providing its logistic, moral and intellectual support and advices themregarding their uture projects and initiatives. Consistent with this mission,IDSI has orged several linkages between the academic and policy-makingenvironments, generating policy analysis and recommendations or variousareas o public interest, creating and disseminating o the best practices, goodgovernance and economic analysis.

pss no.2 february 2008

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