PAS Proposes New Restrictions on Party Formation

Ruling party MPs intend to ban the creation of formations that declare themselves successors to a previously outlawed party. Moreover, the authorities may consider the new party as a successor even if it is created by the former representatives of unconstitutional formations, even though the new political entity will have a different ideology, symbols, programme or statute, ziua.md reported. “In determining the successor status of a political party declared unconstitutional, the affiliation of members of the central bodies or representatives of the political party to the political party declared unconstitutional or to persons who actively participated in the activities for which the political party was declared unconstitutional will be taken into account,” says a new amendment by PAS MP Igor Chiriac, signed by nine of his other faction colleagues. The PAS amendment also provides that a new formation may be declared a successor if it has “substantial similarity to the attributes of a political party declared unconstitutional” and “substantial similarity in the manner of coordination, organization and operation to a political party declared unconstitutional”. In addition, the status of “successor party” can be granted to formations that will nominate candidates for elections from among persons who “took active part in activities for which the political party was recognized as unconstitutional” or if the funding of the nominated candidate’s campaign will be from sources coming from persons affiliated with the party prohibited by law. In the history of the Republic of Moldova there is only one formation recognized as unconstitutional. This is the SOR party, which was banned by law following a decision of the Constitutional Court in June 2023. At that time, the party was accused of violating the rule of law and of acting against the sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova.