Activity of the Parliament on May 10–30, 2004

May 10–14, 2004

On Monday, 10 May, the first TV show in the cycle The Hour of Parliament was broadcast. At the show, the Speaker answered questions from the moderator and the viewers. The show focused on relations between the opposition and the ruling party.

Over the same period the official visit to Italy of the Moldovan MPs delegation headed by the Speaker Eugenia Ostapciuc took place. During the visit, the Moldovan delegation met with the heads of both chambers of the Italian Parliament, the Italian Minister of Labour and Social Protection, other officials, as well as with Moldovan citizens working in Italy.

During the plenary meetings of the Parliament, the People’s Christian Democratic Party (PCDP) continued to block the central tribune and insist that information be published on public money spending. This made the Speaker deprived the PCDP deputies of the right to take the floor throughout the entire session. The parliamentary majority has not yet examined in the second reading the draft providing for sanctions such as expulsion from the sitting room and prohibition from the plenary meetings of those deputies who breach the regulations.

The following drafts examined and adopted by Parliament over the period of reference may be mentioned:

Law on Amending the Law on Judicial Organisation

This law has increased the number of judges in the Botanica District Court, Chisinau Municipality. The respective court investigates more cases than other district courts, including due to the fact that the central administration institutions are located within the area covered by this court as well as a series of law enforcing institutions. The opposition press often mentions the fact that this court is controlled by the power, since most of the cases opened against mass media representatives at this court have been won by government structures and government representatives.

Law on the Exemption of Monument Construction Works from the VAT

The law provides for the exemption from the value added tax (VAT) of works of technical expertise, planning, design, construction and restoration financed from donations by physical and legal entities. The list of eligible objects is to be approved by the Parliament.

Law on Additions to the Law on State Security

The amendment added to threats to state security the cases of organised crime and corruption, which are likely to undermine state security.

These cases are regarded as particularly dangerous. Respectively, one can presuppose that in such cases the investigation will be carried out by the state security bodies.

According to these provisions, the following represents major challenges to state security:

Actions aimed at changing through violence the constitutional regime, undermine or suppress the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the state;
Activity that contributes, directly or indirectly, to military actions against the state or leads to civil war;
Military actions and other violent actions that undermine the foundations of the state;
Actions conducive to emergencies in transports, telecommunications, the activity of economic and other vital sites;
Espionage, transmittal of information regarded as state secrets to other states, as well as obtaining or illegally owing information that is regarded as state secret with a view to turn it over to other foreign states or anticonstitutional structures;
Treason by assisting other states in carrying out activities against the Republic of Moldova;
Activities that are aimed at usurping power through violence from the legally elected public authorities;
Activities likely to harm the constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens and thereby endanger the security of the state;
The preparation and deployment of terrorist acts, attempts against the lives, health and inviolability of top officials, state officials and leading public figures of other states residing in the Republic of Moldova;
Theft of weapons, munitions, arms, explosives, toxic substances, etc., smuggling in these, production, use, transportation and storage thereof, where interests of state security are harmed;
Setting up or taking part in the work of organisations or illegal groupings that endanger the state security.

Law on the Amendment of the Law on Preparing Citizens for Defence of the Motherland

The amendment added provisions that allow students at private higher and secondary education institutions to defer their service in the army. Current laws allows this only to state and accredited higher education institutions.

Draft Law on Amending the Law on Declaring the Winemaking Factory of Cricova National Patrimony

The draft law adopted in the first reading provides that a series of objects are to be excluded from the public patrimony. It is proposed that the status of national patrimony be withheld by the following:

Stone galleries from Cricova where the underground factories producing classical sparkling wines, banded wines and collection wines are located, as well as the tasting rooms;
The buildings and adjacent terrain of the sparkling wine making factories;
Collection wines of cultural and historical value.

Draft on Cancelling the Penalties and Sanctions Applied on the Diaries Factory in Leova

The draft was adopted in the first reading and is a legislative initiative by the deputy Antonina Baldovici (elected in the Leova district). It provides for cancelling the penalties and sanctions worth 2 million Moldovan lei against the factory. The factory was privatised in 1994 and has accumulated the said debts to date, most of which originate in its failure to pay back a state loan.

Parliament decided in the first reading to cancel all penalties save for the interest rate calculated for the non-payment of the credit.

Draft Law on Amending Legislation on Customs

The adopted law provides for the following additions:

Customs duties paid for goods in active perfecting customs regime, on which duties are being applied, are to be reimbursed within no more than 30 days of the end of the regime.
The regime of active perfecting is the regime whereby foreign goods are subjected to operations of transformation or procession in the customs area, without measures of economic measures being applied, and with the restitution of charged rights of import, except for the fee on customs procedures and the special fee where the resulting products are taken out of the customs territory.

May 17–21, 2004

During the period covered here, a Moldovan delegation visited Strasbourg, where, according to press releases from the Parliament Press Service, the Moldovan Speaker Eugenia Ostapciuc attended the European Conference of Speakers of Parliament, to which she made an address. During the same visit, the parliamentary delegation had meetings with the Chairman of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Pieter Schieder, the Council of Europe Secretary General Walter Schwimmer, the Speaker of the Russian Federation Council Serghei Mironov and the Chairman of the German Bundestag Wolfgang Thierse.

The sitting of the Parliament on Thursday, 20 May took place by the now traditional scenario: at the beginning of the sitting People’s Christian Democratic Party (PCDP) deputies blocked the central tribune in protest against failure by the ruling party to publish information on public spending, following which the Speaker called for order and banned the PCDP deputies from taking the floor.

Nonetheless the deputies did examine and adopt a number of legislative initiatives, most of which had been submitted by the President for preliminary review. On the occasion of having participated in a TV show, the Speaker said that Parliament adopted in 2001–2004 almost 90% of the proposals of the President, and only a few are still under consideration.

At the end of the meeting, during question time, several deputies from the ruling party requested information on how legal was the privatisation of PCDP premises, as well as which PCDP leaders owned these. The PCDP deputies objected by saying that the ruling party’s deputies are being defensive and only want to distract attention from the accusation brought tot hem by the PCDP.

Law on the Amendment of the Criminal Code

The law adopted in the final reading provides for the amendment of provisions related to:

1. Forgery, import, transportation, storage, sale of products, provision of services dangerous for the life or health of consumers (Art.216, Criminal Code).

It is provided that the above activities, depending on the gravity and damages caused to the consumers, as well as the method in which they have been caused, will be applied penalties ranging between fines from 900 MDL to imprisonment of up to 7 years. Also is provided such a penalty as banning activities or even liquidating guilty enterprises.

2. Sale of low quality products, or products not meeting current standards (Art.254, Criminal Code).

For intentional sale of goods of low quality or not meeting current standards, penalties will range between fines of 6,000 MDL to imprisonment for up to seven years.

Law on Amending the Law on State Awards and the Decision on Instituting the Anniversary Award “60 Years of the Liberation of Moldova from the Fascist Occupation”

The President proposed the Parliament to institute the medal “60 Years of the Liberation of Moldova from the Fascist Occupation” to mark on 24 August 2004, 60 years of the liberation of Moldova from the fascist occupation and to thank those who participated in the liberation operations. To put this into practice, the Parliament amended the Law on State Awards, and approved the statute and sample of the respective anniversary award.

The following will qualify for the award:

Military personnel from the USSR Armed Forces, the troops of the people’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs, and the civil employees who took part in the liberation of Moldova;
Participants in the partisan movement and the undercover movement which were active at the time on the territory of the republic.

The costs related to the award will be covered by the Government, which will have to determine the source of funding, from the state budget. The mass media have already discussed this issue, and have determined that about 300,000 people will be receiving the award. The amount will be much lower should the award be conferred to citizens of Moldova only and only in unique cases to other deserving nominees.

Law on the Amendment of the Law of Joint Stock Associations

This law provides for the obligation of joint stock associations to pay as dividends at least 30% of the net profit that they make after they fulfil other obligations according to current laws. This draft was criticised by representatives of joint stock associations as one limiting the autonomy of enterprise administration and freedom of economic activity. On the other hand, the authors of the draft said the draft was aimed at supporting minority shareholders, whose number is considerable, but who often are treated in an unfair manner by not receiving their yearly dividends or receiving them in small amounts.

Draft Law on Amending and Completing Article 49 of the Fiscal Code in order to Support Small Businesses

This draft is an initiative of the president and proposes to establish a mechanism to stimulate small businesses by exempting them from taxes.

The following arguments to adopt the amendments have been put forward: the importance of small businesses in tackling such problems as unemployment, razing revenues to budgets of all levels, ensuring stability in the society.

According to the proposed wording of Article 49 of the Fiscal Code, the economic agents with an average number of up to 19 employees, and whose net sales record does not exceed 3 million MDL, upon filing a request with the Territorial State Fiscal Inspectorate, may benefit of full exemption from income tax for an initial period of three years, and for the next two years — of a 35% reduction in tax. The beneficiaries entitled to facilities for payment of the income tax may be economic agents, farms and agricultural cooperatives, regardless of whether they manufacture products (provide services) or are involved in some other sort of commercial activity.

According to the new wording of Article 49 of the Fiscal Code and Article 1 of the Law on Support and Protection of Small Businesses, the mentioned facilities will be granted to all small enterprises and part of the small enterprises whose net sales do not exceed 3 million MDL, and the number of employees is of up to 19 people.

The proposed exemptions will not apply to the following economic agents:

That have a dominant position in the market;
That have a social capital in which the of shareholders who are not small business agents exceeds 35%;
Producers and importers of goods subject to excises;
Fiduciary or insurance companies;
Investment funds;
Banks and other financial institutions;
Currency exchange offices and lombards;
Enterprises specialised in gambling services.

The rights to exemption from the income tax will be granted on the basis of an application to be submitted by the economic agent to the territorial branch of the State Fiscal Service. The Economic agent will be deprived of this right should they have arrears in paying taxes to the national public budget, fail to submit in due time their fiscal reports for the preceding fiscal period, etc.

Many experts have showed sceptical with regard to these provisions, and thought that these are more politically rather than economically minded. Such views are motivated by the fact that practically all governments since 1990 have initiated programmes of support of small businesses and introduced fiscal facilities. The effect of those measures has been limited, in particular due to the attitude of public officers and the control bodies, but also the improper behaviour of salesmen and producers, who have always sought and found ways round making payments provided by current laws.

May 24–28, 2004

Parliament plenary sessions came back to normal as Christian-Democrats gave up blocking the central tribune. Christian-Democrat leader Iurie Rosca revealed the reasons behind his party’s decision when he stated that the move was aimed at drawing public attention to certain problems.

Once they left the central tribune Christian-Democrats regained their right to raise questions and to interpellations, thus being able to take part in debates on draft laws. It seems they have made good use of that time.

Law on the Amendment of the Law on Declaring “Cricova” as National Cultural Heritage

Parliament excluded a number of its units from the list of heritage that would enable the company to use them for its technological development and get credits, etc. Noteworthy the adoption of the law in 2003 attracted a storm of criticism of international organizations and together with the failure to introduce in time inspection before shipment was the major cause for not resuming foreign aid.

Law on the Amendment of Legal Acts Regulating Oil Products

The law extends the prerogatives of the National Agency for Regulation in Energetics, thereby entrusting it to regulate the prices and tariffs on oil. In addition several provisions were excluded in particular, binding oil marking, on the following grounds:

environmental aspects;
impossibility to mark the oil at the border because of changes in the quality standards of the oil from the exporting country;
lack of specialised equipment and of accurate methodology to determine concentration of the marker in the oil, and monitor the flow of oil on the internal market;
price hike on oil.

The law includes a number of provisions aimed at increasing the responsibility of the licence holders; their compliance with the technical norms, standards and licence terms, consumer rights, price estimation methodology, etc.

Law no. 461-XV on Oil Products Market was passed on July 30 2001 and was hailed by the governing as the major breakthrough in fighting oil smuggling and a mechanism able to ensure energetic safety. Since its adoption the law attracted a storm of criticism and even protest rallies by importers and retailers that led to its amendment several times already. Nevertheless, oil prices are on the rise, while the quality remains quite power. As for the revenues to the state budget, they still fall short of expectations. Initially it was claimed that 50% of the oil on the market was smuggled, and by enforcing the law it was expected revenues to the state budget would double.

In the eyes of many the law was amended to late as the price already went up by 10%, and no changes in the law would push prices down.

Draft law on the state of emergency, state of siege, and state of war

The draft passed in the first reading stems from the Constitution provisions and is aimed at defining the conditions and methods of declaring state of emergency, siege, or war; as well as the competences of the bodies decreeing such a state. The draft clearly defines in which of the cases the aforesaid states might be declared.

One of the draft’s norms specifies that upon state of emergency, siege or war the laws passed prior to declaring the state shall be observed as long as they do not run counter to the provisions of this law. Upon declaring state of emergency, siege or war on the entire soil of the Republic of Moldova, adoption, amendment or abrogation of organic laws and electoral law shall not be allowed, as shall be holding elections of central or local authorities or republican or local referenda.

The draft also provides that throughout the state of emergency, siege or war certain citizens rights might be infringed upon, proportionally to the seriousness of the situation that brought about the state of emergency, siege or war, in line with the Constitution provisions.

The law also defines which of the central and local authorities’ responsibilities are entrusted to other competent bodies, as decided by the Government.

According to Article 12 of the law state of emergency, siege or war are declared by a Resolution of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova. In case of military aggression of the country, the President shall take defensives measures, declare state of war and immediately notify the Parliament.

The aforesaid issues are currently regulated by the Law on the Legal Status of State of Emergency and Special Forms of Governing, passed back in 1990. That law is obsolete and some of its provisions may not be applied as they run counter to the Constitution, international acts Republic of Moldova adhered to.

Some experts are already making parallels between examination of the said law and events in Georgia, arguing that incumbent authorities might need the new provisions in case of massive protest rallies.

Draft law on the amendment of legal acts on licensing

Amendments operated to the law in the first reading are aimed at making more efficient the enforcement of the Law on Licensing Certain Types of Activities, by introducing new mechanism for issuing licensing and monitoring the activity of licence holders. In particular amendments refer to:

Delegating to second level local public administration the right to issue license for retail of beverages and tobacco.
Reducing and merging certain types of activities subject to licensing, that would benefit businessmen and would reduce cost of licence itself as well as of preparing the package of documents.
Excluding the obligation to submit the certificate to the effect that the company has no outstanding debts to the state budget and social security fund, as well as notary authenticated copies of the documents to be attached to application.

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