{"id":1854,"date":"2019-10-28T21:26:07","date_gmt":"2019-10-28T19:26:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zdg.md\/eng\/?p=1854"},"modified":"2019-10-28T21:26:08","modified_gmt":"2019-10-28T19:26:08","slug":"moldova-explained-by-zdg-october-28-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zdg.md\/en\/moldova-explained-by-zdg-october-28-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"Moldova, Explained by ZdG. October 28, 2019."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

HAPPENING THIS WEEK<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greetings from Chi\u0219in\u0103u! Here\u2019s what\u2019s happening this week: our feature investigates the grounds for two criminal investigations targeting the President of Moldova\u2019s Supreme Court \u2013 one for illicit enrichment and the other for undermining judicial autonomy. We explain the unexpected success of the Democratic Party in nationwide local elections, as well as the geopolitical dimension of the vote in Chi\u0219in\u0103u and how it might impact the second round of voting in the capital\u2019s mayoral race. We also feature an exclusive interview with Moldova\u2019s Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Nicu Popescu. All of that and more in this week\u2019s newsletter. Happy reading!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THIS WEEK\u2019S FEATURE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

SUPREME COURT TROUBLE<\/strong>: Moldova\u2019s prosecution is investigating Ion Dru\u0163\u0103, the Chief Justice at the Supreme Court, for illicit enrichment and interference in the execution of justice. Over the past five years, the magistrate\u2019s family members have purchased several pieces of real estate in Chi\u0219in\u0103u valued at over 742,000 dollars. And according to the prosecutors, these pricey properties don\u2019t cross-check with the family\u2019s declared income. Meanwhile, a second criminal case is pending after a search of Judge Dru\u0163\u0103\u2019s office revealed memos instructing judges to make specific rulings in a number of high profile criminal cases.\u00a0ZdG\u2019s own investigation<\/a>\u00a0found the properties Dru\u0163\u0103\u2019s family members acquired in recent years and obtained access to several incriminating memos from the magistrate’s office.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FROM THE EDITORS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

EXECUTIVE COMMENTARY<\/strong>: In an exclusive comment for the newsletter, our Executive Director Alina Radu breaks down the upcoming second round of elections in Moldova\u2019s capital city: \u201cThe voters will be forced to choose between a pro-Western candidate and a pro-Eastern one, as if that makes a difference for better roads, parks, a cleaner city and more  engaged city dwellers. And while in a state with a normal democratic system and politically educated people the best manager would\u2019ve become the mayor of the capital of Moldova, Chi\u0219in\u0103u\u2019s electorate is continuously fighting to maintain a European mayor.\u201d
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MOLDOVA BETWEEN TWO WORLDS<\/strong>: The October 20 local elections in Moldova showed that the ousting of the oligarchic regime in June did not significantly change voter preferences. Despite being recently marred by scandals involving their leaders\u2019 involvement in the Billion Case, the Democratic Party (formerly led by oligarch Vlad Plahotniuc) and the Shor Party obtained easy victories in city halls across the country. The Democratic Party in particular won the biggest number of mayoral posts in the first round. And soon the second round of voting will break the ties in cases where less than a majority voted for one candidate. The main electoral battlefield, the capital city, is currently captured by a traditional for Moldova geopolitical divide, with the ACUM Bloc candidate Andrei Nastase and Socialist Party candidate Ion Ceban preparing for a face-off in the second round by rallying their pro-E.U. and pro-Russian electorates, respectively,\u00a0writes ZdG\u2019s Politics Editor Petru Grozavu<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE FOREIGN BRIEF<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

RUSSIAN LANGUAGE<\/strong>: The Russian Ambassador to Moldova has proposed a legal strengthening of the status of the Russian language<\/a> in Moldova, including maintaining Russian language instruction schools. Up until 2018, Moldova still had a law on spoken languages from the Soviet period that made Russian the lingua franca among ethnic minorities. The Constitutional Court then declared the law outdated in 2018 and concluded that ethnic minorities can use any language for communication, claiming that making Russian the default language of interethnic communication was discriminatory. According to the 2014 census, around 14.5 percent of Moldova\u2019s population is Russian, while less than 10 percent of the population speak Russian as their first language. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

DOING BUSINESS<\/strong>: Moldova places 48th among 190 countries in the World Bank\u2019s Doing Business 2020 report, which assesses business regulations around the world. Although the country has fallen four spots in the last two years, Moldova has made improvements to the business climate through reforms related to dealing with construction permits, paying taxes and enforcing contracts that are making it easier to do business. This puts Moldova ahead of countries like Romania and Ukraine, and in the same league as some E.U. countries like Belgium and the Netherlands. Read the World Bank\u2019s full report\u00a0here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ZDG INVESTIGATES<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ZDG ASKS<\/strong>: \u201cThe battle for good governance is eternal,\u201d says Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Nicu Popescu, and as a part of the governing ACUM Bloc-Socialist Party coalition that came to power in June 2019 he is continuing to experience this first hand. As Foreign Minister, Popescu has been working with Prime Minister Maia Sandu to re-open communication channels with the European Union and institutions like the International Monetary Fund, as well as restoring their financial support. Now, the West has new hopes for Moldova implementing reforms to the justice system and fighting corruption, but according to Popescu there\u2019s still a long way to meeting E.U. standards. \u201cWe, as a country, have missed many chances to become a functioning European state,\u201d the Foreign Minister said. Here\u2019s what else he told ZDG in our exclusive interview<\/a>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n