The European Commission for Democracy through Law, otherwise the Venice Commission, at its 134th plenary meeting on March 10, 2023, approved a joint opinion on the draft laws on the Information and Security Service (SIS) of Moldova. In it, experts said that these regulations, if adopted, could give the intelligence service too broad powers and “unlimited power.” Experts stressed that if the law on the special service is changed during an emergency, this may lead to the fact that it will receive too broad powers. They noted several times that there are too many vague terms in the bills that can be interpreted too broadly.
Also, the Venice Commission published its interim opinion on the bill of the Republic of Moldova aimed at limiting excessive economic and political influence in public life (deoligarchization). The constitutional experts of the Council of Europe recommend that the Chisinau authorities carry out systemic reforms, rather than focusing on specific individuals, in order to achieve “deoligarchization”, according to a press release from the Council of Europe.
Moldova should not enact a “law on separatism” if it can negatively affect the negotiation process between Tiraspol and Chisinau. This opinion was expressed at a meeting with the President of the PMR Vadim Krasnoselsky by the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Minister of Foreign Affairs of N. Macedonia Bujar Osmani. Despite the recommendations of the OSCE, on February 2, the Moldovan parliament adopted in the final reading the so-called law on separatism – amendments that introduce new articles on criminal liability into the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova.
Under the Moldovan constitution, President Maia Sandu had a two-week deadline to return him to parliament. On February 16, this period expired, and after that the law was promulgated and put into effect. The main drawback of the law, in the opinion of many, is its arbitrariness, vagueness. During the preliminary hearings, even the Moldovan law enforcement agencies drew attention to this, saying that the Criminal Code needs clarity and accuracy.
Recall that in Moldova there is a state of emergency, introduced in the country solely for political reasons, because there is no “hot conflict” in Moldova, not to mention a natural disaster. As follows from the legislative activities of the regime in Chisinau, President Sandu, under the guise of democratic narratives, builds exclusively personal power. All legislative initiatives and already adopted laws are aimed at suppressing the opposition and civil society. Instead of democratic reforms, in dialogue with society, Sandu is engaged in strengthening the power apparatus of repression.