The second UPR of Moldova was held on 4 November 2016. Below are the advance questions and statement provided by Norway in connection with the review.
Advance questions: 1. Moldova has a very high proportion of judgments from the European Court of Human Rights which have not been fully executed. A pilot judgement from the ECHR even concluded that Moldova has a structural problem with non-enforcement of judgements from the European Court. What measures are the Moldovan authorities taking to remedy this issue?
2.The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture has pointed out several concerns pertaining to the conditions in Moldovan prisons, and have recommended the establishment of a National Preventive Mechanism. How do Moldovan authorities plan to follow up this recommendation?
3.The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) has highlighted different forms of discrimination that the Roma community is facing in Moldova. How is the government of Moldova working to prevent and combat discrimination against the Roma community?
4.What will the Republic of Moldova do in order to improve the procedure of appointment, transfer and promotion of judges to provide transparency in the judicial system and to ensure that the selection of judges is based on merits and not on discretion of the Supreme Council of Magistracy?
5.What steps will the Moldovan Government take to fight high-level corruption? E,g., what practical steps will be taken to implement the new Law on the prosecution service and to strengthen the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office?
6.What is the Moldovan Government doing to discourage self-censorship by journalists? Statement:
President,
Norway welcomes the delegation from Moldova, and thanks the delegation for the presentation of their national report.
Although progress has been made in many areas, challenges remain. Prison conditions are still cause for concern. Reports of mistreatment and torture by police are still relatively common. We recommend that Moldova takes further measures to improve the treatment of persons arrested, detained or imprisoned, including by strengthening the National Preventative Mechanism (NPM).
Also, while independence of the judiciary is guaranteed by the constitution, this remains a challenge in practice. In order to reduce corruption in the judiciary, increased transparency is of the essence. We recommend that Moldova takes measures to improve the procedure of appointment, transfer and promotion of judges in order to provide transparency in the judicial system and that the selection of judges is based on merit and not on the discretion of the Supreme Council of Magistracy.
While Moldovan laws also ensure press freedom and freedom of expression, reports point to issues such as the ownership structure of the media and self-censorship by journalists from fear of reprisals.
It is also crucial that the authorities and the police continue to allow the right to peaceful assembly and take a measured approach in accordance with the law and in line with international standards – which is largely the case today. Norway recommends that the Moldovan government takes concrete measures to address the issue of self-censorship among Moldovan journalists, limit media ownership concentration and ensure media pluralism.
Thank you.