Moldova will increase fines for electoral corruption
This is provided by a package of legislative amendments aimed at fighting corruption, which was passed by the parliament in the first reading. The document was drafted after the Constitutional Court in late November upheld this year's presidential elections, but noted the high number of cases of vote-buying reported by investigative bodies and the seized funds. In this context, the Constitutional Court asked the parliament to improve legal mechanisms to prevent and combat electoral corruption. As a result, a group of MPs from the ruling party faction, in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice, drafted a bill that also contains proposals of authorities with powers to fight electoral corruption. The authors of the document propose to amend the Criminal Code by toughening criminal liability for electoral corruption and falsification of voting results, in cases when these facts are committed in the interests of an organized criminal group or criminal organization. Thus, people who will be involved in electoral corruption, acting in the interests of an organized criminal group or a criminal organization, will face a fine from 67,500 to 92,500 lei or imprisonment from 4 to 7 years. In case of legal entities, the fine will be up to 550,000 lei with deprivation of the right to engage in certain activities for up to 5 years or with liquidation of the legal entity. In case of falsification of voting results, committed in the interests of an organized criminal group or criminal organization, criminal punishment will be applied in the form of a fine of up to 92,500 lei or imprisonment for 3 to 7 years. For legal entities, the fine will be from 350,000 to 450,000 lei with deprivation of the right to engage in certain activities for up to 5 years or with liquidation of the legal entity. Citizens will also be fined for videotaping the voting, not just for photographing it. At the same time, individuals collecting signatures without authorization will be fined up to 4,500 lei. In the case of individuals holding responsible positions, the fine will reach 9,000 lei. More severe punishment will be imposed on campaigning by non-profit organizations, unions, patronages, representatives of religious cults or their components, including in places of worship, during the election period. In the same way, it is proposed to amend the Law on Special Investigative Activities by establishing additional grounds for conducting special investigative activities outside criminal proceedings. This will become possible in the case of electoral corruption. The authors also propose a number of amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure to make the consideration of cases of corruption offenses more effective. For example, prosecutors will be able to challenge and verify actions to join cases or involve more parties in the process at the request of the parties, the recognition of which leads to an increase in the volume of evidence and the case and, consequently, to a delay in the trial. Legislative changes are also proposed to avoid the constant postponement of trials and the delay of cases due to the defendant's lack of counsel. More precisely, if the defendant has several defense lawyers, the absence of one of them will not be grounds for postponing the hearing. The document also contains provisions regarding the procedure for scheduling court hearings on election corruption offenses. The document also contains amendments to the Audiovisual Media Services Code, the Electoral Code, the Law on Political Parties, the Law on Countering Extremist Activity. Let us remind you that last week at the plenary session of parliament, public hearings were held on the facts of falsifications revealed at the presidential election and the constitutional referendum. The competent bodies also proposed a number of legislative changes to combat electoral corruption. // 20.12.2024 - InfoMarket
