Revolution in Republic of Moldova

[forest]

The Romanian citizenship position with regard to Rep Moldova is actually more restrictive than Ireland's with regard to the North. For Irish citizenship purposes Antrim is treated the same as Laois, but Rep Moldova is treated as a separate state to Romania.

Thats because they are separate states (look at a map)

Since Romania has now joined the EU I cant see Moldova rejoining Romania for a long long time
I dont think they would be allowed to

Its amazing looking back at the break up the USSR and the Communist states how some prospered Slovakia, Poland The Baltics(allowing the rest economic down turn) Czech Rep

While others like Moldova Albania sank even further into failed states

If we could do it agian

[Partizan]

Russia likes being provoked. It means that Putin and Medvedev can look strong by shaking their fists at the West, while using their decrepit military to bully non-allied small fry that they can actually take on. It creates the illusion of an emergency, which builds solidarity & national pride in Russia and nicely distracts Russians from what total b*astards they are (Putin and Medvedev, not russians in general).

I'm sure thats what a certain Georgian thought in late summer 2008 when his 40,000 strong NATO trained got pulverised in South Ossetia and Abkhazia by the army of the aforementioned Russian henchmen.

[Catalpa]

Romania offers fast-track citizenship to quarter of Moldova's population - The Irish Times - Thu, Apr 16, 2009

An article here (originally from Financial Times, but printed in Irish Times) about Romania giving citizenship to Rep Moldovan citizens.

I found the article misleading. Already Romania gives citizenship to most Moldovans as the vast majority are decended from the same people who were there in the interwar period when it was part of the Romanian state.

What the article omits is that people in Rep Moldova can apply for Romanian citizenship in Moldova, but can wait years for it to be processed. This is due to corruption. Giving a bribe helps to speed the process. I know one girl who applied years ago for the passport.

The Romanian citizenship position with regard to Rep Moldova is actually more restrictive than Ireland's with regard to the North. For Irish citizenship purposes Antrim is treated the same as Laois, but Rep Moldova is treated as a separate state to Romania.

We also have the grandparents rule. How else could we have gotten to Italia 90

Yeah but the North is part of the EU and Moldova is not.

Surely this is illegal as in effect it amounts to a State outside the EU gaining access for its citizens to the EU without meeting the criteria for membership.

[cactusflower]

Moldovan Communists top parliament vote: exit poll | International | Reuters

The Moldovan Communist Party won the election at about 45% of the poll.

So awful is the poverty and corruption of the "democratised" states around them that even a stalinist party looks better than the alternative.

[IvoShandor]

it's understandable to a degree that Russia wants to have this friendly fragment in Transdniester. The breakaway of ByelloRussia and Ukraine, in addition to the Baltics, left Russia pushed far to the east,away from their old Imperial (both russian and Soviet)spheres of influence so they are eager to hang onto these (Transdniester and Kaliningrad ) little far-flung putposts that display a Russian presence in Central Europe. I suppose two comparisons would be the Guanatanamo base in Cuba and Spains Ceuta and Melilla enclaves.
An unhappy area. The poorest, most corrupt and impoverished EU state has an even more troubled and impoverished breakaway region which itself has a still more corrupt and impoverished breakaway region of its own, like a set of Matrushka dolls.

[Trampas]

An unhappy area. The poorest, most corrupt and impoverished EU state has an even more troubled and impoverished breakaway region which itself has a still more corrupt and impoverished breakaway region of its own, like a set of Matrushka dolls.

Just let the lot of them into the EU and everything will be fine. Won't it ?

[Thac0man]

While the 2005 election was given a clean bill of health, election monitors have been detained or refused entry during both the April poll and the most recent one.

The ENEMO mission to observe the election has been rather scathing in their criticism of the election:

NDI Deplores Expulsion of International Election Observers from Moldova | NDI

And a member of the OSCE has also spoken out about irregularities:

European observer: first the Communists had 35% - Moldova Azi

To be honest, the Moldovan government has not exactly covered itself with glory here or done near enough to distance itself from accusiations of electoral corruption.

There is an interesting piece on the BBC about the background ot the elections and the parties:

BBC NEWS | Europe | Moldova: Divided as ever over new poll

Judging by this they seem to be living in a timewarp of sorts:

Teenagers wearing red T-shirts and waving hammer-and-sickle flags gathered outside the government buildings this week.

"Lenin! Lenin!" they chanted.

But their T-shirts, too, carried the EU logo and their party vocally supports a path to EU membership.

It would seem that "mature" and "democracy" are not words readily associated with the poltical sphere in Moldova. While I would hold off on criticism of the results, it does seem strange that in a country of grinding misery and poverty, the worst affected form the powerbase that votes time and again for the incumbant government. Odd.