Promo-LEX Association, member of the Civic “Coalition 2009” for Free and Fair Elections issued the third monitoring report of the Parliamentary Elections in the Transnistrian region of Moldova for the period April 3rd – 22nd, 2009
The project “Monitoring of the electoral process in the Transnistrian region of Moldova” is financially supported by the Eurasia Foundation with funds provided by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida/Asdi) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Summary
The authorities have not ensured minimal conditions for suffrage right exert by people from the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova. There was registered a lack of information as regards the electoral competitors and their programs as well as the place, date and the documents necessary for exerting the suffrage right.
On the Election Day the roads to the localities where the polling stations have been established were strongly patrolled by numerous teams of road militia, being recorded cases of withdrawal of driving license and vehicle number plates form persons transporting voters to polling stations (Grigoriopol district). Some of the access ways to the localities in which the polling stations have been established were blocked.
The CEC Decisions have not been uniformly respected, in compliance with which the elections’ result should have been registered in a special separate form.
This very fact increased the number of voters enlisted on additional rolls. There has been registered a deficit of 674 voting ballots for the electoral district 15 Dubăsari.
Promo-LEX has obtained CEC consent for the verification of the voter rolls for the 10 polling stations at which Transnistrian region people participated, but the access to rolls was ensured only to six polling stations.
We were not able to get access to voter rolls from the electoral districts No.18 Floreşti, No.26 Rezina and No.3 Anenii Noi.
No cases of dismissal on the grounds of participation at the elections on April 5, 2009 were reported, despite the threats to some people or representatives of various region structures and institutions.
There have been ascertained various encroachments of the electoral legislation, as a result of monitoring polling stations set up for Transnistrian region voters: the impossibility of establishing Corjova polling station No. 5/15, the lack of indicator plates of the polling stations, the presence of police men in civilian clothes nearby the polling stations, the electoral campaign on the election day, inappropriate appliance of the provisions as regards the application of the seal „Elections 5.02.2009”, acceptance of voters on the basis of other documents than those provided for by the legislation, the inadequate training of electoral officials, inappropriate appliance of legal provisions as regards the concomitant disposal of “domicile” and “residence”, the impossibility of movement of a mobile ballot box on the territory effectively controlled by the secessionist authorities, etc.
As a result of the siege of Corjova polling station No. 5/15, only 91 voters, out of 1350 enlisted on initial rolls, came to the two polling stations where the voting for locality voters was allowed. The peace keeping mechanism could not ensure minimal conditions for suffrage right exert in the region.
Therefore, 4042 voters from the Transnistrian region participated in the 5th April a Parliamentary elections, which is about 50% of the number of voters who participated at the previous elections, and 1, 8% of the total number of Transnistrian voters. The decrease of voters’ number can be explained by unprecedented actions of intimidation, prosecution and control exerted over the region voters. In the same time the constitutional authorities have not ensured a necessary minimum of electoral information to voters for their participation in the elections.
Generally, the mass media means of information from the region presented the parliamentary elections from April 5, 2009 on the Election Day. During the post-electoral period, the mass media depicted strongly the events from the center of the capital. As compared to the pre-electoral period, the post-electoral information was impartially presented.
Recommendations:
- Strengthening efforts as regards the electoral system amendment, in order to ensure rights and non discriminatory conditions for Transnistrian;
- Strengthening diplomatic efforts as regards raising national and international public opinion awareness and persuading Tiraspol administration to ensure minimal condition for the exert of suffrage right;
- Notification of Transnistrian voters about all electoral procedures;
- Continuous professional training of electoral officers;
- Ensuring strict evidence of printing and distributing voting ballots for the purpose of insufficiency non admission or exaggerated excess;
- Reviewing the system of voter roll preparation;
- Investigation all the cases which created barriers for electoral rights exert in the Transnistrian region and sanctioning all the culpable persons in compliance with the current legislation.