CA nr. 80 14 noiembrie 2018 Enquiry Committee for the elucidation of the de facto and de jure circumstances surrounding the interference of the Foundation „Otwarty Dialog” (Open Dialogue) and its founder Ludmila Kozlowska in the internal affairs of the Republic of Moldova and the financing of certain political parties from the Republic of Moldova R EP O R T 1. PREAMBLE The Enquiry Committee for the elucidation of the de facto and de jure circumstances surrounding the interference of the Foundation „Otwarty Dialog” (Open Dialogue) and its founder, Ludmila Kozlowska in the internal affairs of the Republic of Moldova and the financing of certain political parties from the Republic of Moldova (hereinafter – the Committee) was established in accordance with article 34 of the Parliament’s Rules of Procedure through the Decision of the Parliament no. 204 of 4 October 2018, with the following membership: ▪ RĂDUCAN Marcel – Parliamentary Faction of the Democratic Party of Moldova; ▪ REŞETNICOV Artur – Parliamentary Faction of the Democratic Party of Moldova; ▪ VREMEA Igor – Parliamentary Faction of the Democratic Party of Moldova; ▪ BOLEA Vasile – Parliamentary Faction of the Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova; ▪ LEBEDINSCHI Adrian – Parliamentary Faction of the Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova; ▪ GRIŞCIUC Simion – European People’s Parliamentary Group. 1.1. The goal of the Committee The goal of the Committee is to elucidate the de facto and de jure circumstances regarding the accusations, made in public, of interference in the internal affairs of the Republic of Moldova and illegal financing of certain political parties by the Foundation „Otwarty Dialog” (Open Dialogue) and its founder, Ludmila Kozlowska. The Committee intended to study, establish, elucidate and take attitude in accordance with the constitutional competences of the legislative forum of the country with respect to the risks to the national security posed by the activity of the investigated subject, qualifiable as an activity of foreign diversionary intelligence directed against the Republic of Moldova. Republica Moldova, MD-2073, Chişinău [email protected] Bd. Ştefan cel Mare şi Sfînt 105 www.parlament.md In accordance with the competences with which the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova invested the Committee, the Committee set out to identify the presence or absence of potential threats to the constitutional order and sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova and to the relations of the Republic of Moldova with foreign development partners, especially with the European Union and its institutions. Besides this, the Committee was tasked with defining from a political and legal viewpoint the potential threats and to formulate, within the limit of the checks and balances, recommendations for the institutions with a view to suppressing and combating them, in accordance with their legal competences. 1.2. Organising and procedures In accordance with the provisions of article 35 para. (1) of the Parliament’s Rules of Procedure, the enquiry committees are established in conformity with the provisions referring to standing committees. Thus, the Chairpersons, Deputy Chairpersons and Secretaries of the Enquiry Committees are elected by the Parliament with the vote of the majority of the elected MPs. On 5 October 2018, the Committee convened in the first sitting and, given the lack of an express appointment through the Parliament’s Decision no. 204 of 04.10.2018 of the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson and Secretary of the Committee, the majority of the MPs present voted for the following leadership of the Committee (subsequently, on 12 October 2018, it was approved by the Parliament’s plenum by Decision no. 210): ▪ Chairman of the Committee – VREMEA Igor; ▪ Deputy Chairman of the Committee – REȘETNICOV Artur; ▪ Secretary of the Committee – GRIȘCIUC Simion. By Decision no. 204/2018, the Parliament established a 30 days deadline from the moment of the adoption until the submission of the report. Considering the complexity of the activity of the Committee, the lack of responses to all the requests submitted, the number of persons invited and heard, the checking of documents that had to be analysed by the members of the Committee and the drawing up of the final report, the deadline for the submission of the report was changed from 30 to 60 days through the Parliament’s Decision no. 211 of 25 October 2018 on the amendment of art. 2 of Parliament’s Decision no. 204 of 4 October 2018 regarding the establishment of the Committee. In its activity, the Committee abided by the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament, adopted through Law no. 797/1996, as well as the relevant active legislation. From the procedural viewpoint, the Committee took into consideration the conclusions and findings of the Constitutional Court laid down in the Decision no. 3 of 15 February 1 2013 on the constitutionality check of the Parliament’s Decision regarding the enquiry committee in the Pădurea Domnească case (the competence of parliamentary enquiry committees) no. 29 of 23 September 2013. In accordance with art. 36 para. (l) of the Parliament’s Rules of Procedure, the Enquiry Committee shall summon as witness any person who is in possession of information about an act or a circumstance that could be useful in the investigation of the cause. The Committee mentions that, in the framework of the enquiry, the representatives of the judicial power, of the prosecution authority and the criminal prosecution entity cannot be summoned for submitting information that could prejudice the fairness of the trial and/or the confidentiality of the criminal prosecution. Concomitantly, judging by the findings and appreciations formulated by the Constitutional Court in Decision no. 29/2013, it is necessary to keep in mind the following: ▪ The goal of parliamentary enquiry committees is to establish the existence or inexistence of the acts, but without establishing (with certainty) the contravention liability or the material, disciplinary or criminal liability of a person; ▪ It is inadmissible to summon persons that are suspected or accused in criminal cause and to hear them in the enquiry committee with respect to the circumstances that underlie the criminal charges, otherwise, there is a danger of encroaching upon the right to silence, protected by art. 6 of the European Convention and, implicitly, the presumption of innocence provided for in art. 21 of the Constitution; ▪ It is inadmissible to make any public declarations (or made by other means) bringing serious accusations that are not proved under strictly regulated procedures, to concrete persons; ▪ The findings, conclusions and recommendations (proposals) comprised in the report of the enquiry committee shall not contain legal norms, as the legal norm, according to Law no. 780/2001 on legislative acts, is a compulsory social rule, a general, official, impersonal and sanctionable prescription applicable to an entire series of concrete situations. In the process of elucidating the de facto and de jure circumstances surrounding the interference of the Foundation „Otwarty Dialog” (Open Dialogue) and its founder, Ludmila Kozlowska in the internal affairs of the Republic of Moldova and the financing of certain political parties from the Republic of Moldova, the Committee received information with a degree of secrecy established in art. 11 para. (2) letters b) and c) of Law no. 245/2008 regarding state secret from the Security and Intelligence Service (no.2/2038c of 11 October 2018), the Prosecution Office for Combating Organised Criminality and Special Causes (no.7C of 1 November 2018) and the Service for Combating and Preventing Money Laundering (no.03/03-697 of 24 October 2018). The given information is contained in this report and will be presented during an in camera sitting, MPs being legally liable for its illegal disclosure. 2 1.3. Applicable legal framework Art. 25 para. (1) of Law no. 294/2007 on the political parties stipulates that the sources of financing for political parties shall be: • Party membership fees; • donations, including those raised at recreational, cultural, sports or other type of mass events organised by the party on the condition that they are recorded in the established manner; • state budget subsidies, pursuant to the regulations of this law and of the yearly budget law; • Other legal incomes obtained in accordance with art. 24 para. (3). Political parties have the right to carry out editorial activities, activities connected directly with the administration of their property, as well as other activities bringing profits for the needs of the party, if such activities are not prohibited by law and are explicitly provided for in the statute of the political party. Art. 26 para. (1) of Law no. 294/2007 on political parties indicates expressly that donations made to political parties may be of the following kinds: • Pecuniary donations, other than the membership fees; • Donations made in the form of property, goods, free of charge services or under conditions that are more advantageous than the commercial value on the market, the payment of certain goods or services used by the party. At the same time, art. 26 para. (4)– (5) of Law no. 294/2007 on the political parties establishes the legal limit of donations. Thus, a natural person may make donation to one or more political parties, not exceeding a total of 200 average monthly salaries, established for the respective year