Moldovan top court declares unconstitutional lie detector test for aspirants for office of president, deputy president of National Integrity Authority

Chisinau, 10 April /MOLDPRES/ - The Constitutional Court (CCM) today declared unconstitutional the compulsory practice of lie detector test for getting the office of president or deputy president of the National Integrity Authority (ANI).  

The decision was taken, after the former candidate for ANI management, Teodor Carnat, had submitted a notification to this effect to the Constitutional Court. Carnat contested the provisions which establishes the lie detector testing and which obliges the candidates for the office of president or deputy president of the National Integrity Authority to pass (positively) this test.  

The Court found out that the lie detector test did not represent a scientific way accepted at the European level or internationally and a certain procedure of detecting simulated conducts. Thus, CCM stated that the scientific certainty of the lie detector test had, in general, a low weight, while the right to participate in the management of public affairs and right to labour had a bigger weight, especially as, if they do not pass the lie detector test positively, the candidates for the office of president or deputy president of the National Integrity Authority cannot be nominated winners of the contest.    

From this viewpoint, the Court considered that the compulsoriness to positively pass the lie detector test represented a disproportionate measure.  

The ruling is final, cannot be subject to any appeal, enters into force on the date of adoption and is published in the Official Journal (Monitorul Oficial) of Moldova.

(Reporter A. Ciobanu, editor M. Jantovan)