Moldovan parliament speaker, Venice Commission experts discuss legal framework on financing political parties

Chisinau, 18 October /MOLDPRES/ – The legal framework for funding of political parties and electoral campaigns was discussed during the meeting of Parliament Speaker, Andrian Candu, with experts of Venice Commission, OSCE/ODIHR and GRECO, the parliament's communication and public relations department has reported.  

The speaker noted that the Law on Political Parties has been since 2015 in the middle of several debates and proposals as from parliamentary, extra – parliamentary and civil society parties.

Also, Andrian Candu referred to provisions on the threshold of donations by individuals to political parties, international funding, the existing risks and the importance of strengthening efforts of institutions to prevent and combat such risks.

"Moldova is in a region with high risks of foreign intervention in electoral elections. That is why, the way of financing the parties is a subject to be carefully regulated. We are open to taking into account the recommendations of Venice Commission to keep pace with democratic norms," said Andrian Candu.

During the discussions, the Speaker also referred to the change of the electoral voting system, beginning with the parliamentary elections 2018. According to Parliament amendments to the Electoral Code, there are a number of stimulating measures to ensure gender equality. In line with the commitments made to the development partners and recommendations of Venice Commission to promote women in politics, the parties that will maintain the existing quota of 40 per cent and for uninominal constituencies will benefit a budget increase of at least 10 per cent according to a coefficient increasing with each candidate woman in Parliament.

The joint Delegation of Venice Commission, OSCE/ODIHR and GRECO announced that the Commission's opinion would be made public in early December.