At a roundtable of March 6, 2012, The Association for Participatory Democracy ADEPT and the independent think tank EXPERT-GRUP presented the results of monitoring the implementation of commitments assumed by Moldovan authorities in the European integration process in 2011. The monitoring findings as well as the recommendations for speeding up the reforms were published in the 22nd issue of the quarterly report Euromonitor.

In particular, there was monitored the implementation of political reforms by Moldovan authorities (protection and realization of human rights; independent and efficient justice; governance reform and anticorruption fight; Transnistrian settlement) and economic reforms required to start negotiations on the establishment of a deep and comprehensive free trade area between Moldova and the EU.

The experts have ascertained the following developments in the monitored areas:

• Protection and realization of human rights: The human right situation in the Republic of Moldova remains a problematic area in 2011, despite adoption of several normative acts and action plans on protection of human rights. Torture and ill-treatment, discrimination and domestic violence remained the most widespread human rights violations. The lack of a palpable progress in the protection of human rights area is mainly due to the absence of an efficient mechanism of application of existent legislation and investigation/ sanction of human rights violation cases, corruption of public officials and law enforcement bodies, politicization of state institutions, as well as low level of awareness of human rights importance among bodies responsible for legislation enforcement (representatives of police, judges). Positive evolutions were observed in ensuring freedom of conscience and religion and freedom of assembly. Despite the undertaken commitments, Republic of Moldova has failed also in 2011 to adopt the law against discrimination.

• Independent and efficient justice: Justice reform did not have positive results perceived by society and by representatives of judicial system. Trust in justice continued to drop, the views on the promoted reforms were neither consensual nor supported. Justice in Republic of Moldova is far from being perceived as independent and efficient.

• Governance reform and anticorruption fight: Progresses of the Central Public Administration (CPA) reform in 2011 are related to the elaboration, adoption and enforcement of some regulatory and legislative acts, adopted in the period concerned or previously. The main problems of CPA are the same: lack of some ample strategic documents, continuous politicization of public institutions and lack of progresses in ensuring their depoliticization. Progresses in the field of combating corruption are related to the enforcement of new strategic documents and promotion of new normative-legislative regulations, in line with international standards and recommendations in the area. Deficiencies in anticorruption activities create an impunity phenomenon and it does not have preventive effect. The delay of reforms in certain institutions (CCECC, MIA, justice, Prosecutor’s Office) feeds public opinion about the high level of corruption in legal institutions.

• Transnistrian settlement: The greatest result in 2011 – in the Transnistrian settlement process was the decision to resume the official 5+2 negotiations. Another important event concerns Transnistrian region’s political elite change as a result of presidential elections in the region. Those two events provide new perspectives for a sustainable progress in conflict settlement which could be undermined by the political instability in the Republic of Moldova. The failure of Moldovan governing forces to elect the president of the country is likely to lead to extremely dangerous deficiency - the legitimacy of governance recognized at the international level is challenged by the opposition while the unrecognized administration from Transnistrian region enjoys internal legitimacy and international sympathy.

• The fulfilment of the EU recommendations for the establishment of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA): In 2011 the economic and commercial evolutions with the EU were overall positive. At the same time experts believe that the speed of reforms could be higher. The greatest results were achieved in financial services, while critical areas for commercial development, such as Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Trade Facilitation and Customs Administration have made moderate progress.

  Systemic problems which negatively affect the implementation of European Commission recommendations by Moldova and restrict DCFTA negotiations are: training of negotiators team especially at sectors level, inefficient policy coordination and defective budget reflection on European integration policy as a whole.

  The quarterly report Euromonitor is published as part of the project " EU-Moldova relations – monitoring the progress in the framework of the Eastern Partnership", funded by Soros Moldova Foundation.