Moldova to Introduce Criminal Liability for Political Corruption
The Parliament of Moldova has voted in favor of a bill that amends the Criminal Code with two articles introducing liability for active and passive political corruption. Such crimes will be punishable by imprisonment for up to 7 years, as reported by the Moldovan publication NewsMaker.
The first new article addresses passive political corruption and stipulates punishment ranging from three to seven years of imprisonment for elected officials who receive money or other material benefits for leaving their party and/or joining another party.
The second article pertains to active political corruption and carries a similar penalty for bribing elected officials with the same intent.
Additionally, the Moldovan Criminal Code will now hold political parties or electoral rivals responsible for obtaining unlawful funding from a criminal group.
During a meeting of the Legal Commission, the head of the commission, Olesia Stamate, explained that the new provisions in the Criminal Code are intended to combat the phenomenon of political tourism, particularly within the parliament.
It is worth noting that the same bill also imposes a ban on elected officials from parties recognized as unconstitutional from participating in elections.
As a reminder, on June 19th, the Constitutional Court, at the government's request, declared the activities of the pro-Russian party "Shor" as unconstitutional based on evidence of illegal funding and bribing of protest participants.
The Moldovan government stated that "Shor" will also be unable to register as a new political entity by using a closely related name.
In addition, Moldova has decided to reduce the personnel of the Russian Embassy in Chisinau due to an investigation into the surveillance activities of Russian special services. The Moldovan government announced that the number of accredited diplomats and technical-administrative staff at the Russian Embassy in Chisinau will be reduced from 84 to 25 individuals.
Earlier, the Speaker of the Moldovan Parliament, Igor Grosu, stated that individuals with diplomatic status from Russia, who are present in Transnistria, engage in activities beyond the scope of diplomacy. In an interview with Romanian and Moldovan media, Grosu mentioned that the issue of possible expulsion of Russian "diplomats" is being considered based on reciprocity. He also noted that special filters are applied for specific individuals and visitors of certain profiles upon entry into the country.