European Court Asks Moldova To Reverse Election Law
November 21, 2008
The European Court for Human Rights (ECHR) has asked Chisinau to reverse a law barring Moldovans with multiple citizenship from seeking public office, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports.
The law was passed by Moldova's parliament in 2007 and is considered a major obstacle for several possible candidates in next year's general election. The Strasbourg-based court ruled that the ban is "unjustified" after a legal complaint from Alexandru Tanase, a Moldova lawyer and opposition politician who plans to run for parliament in 2009.
Like many Moldovans, Tanase has passports from both Moldova and EU-member Romania -- with which Moldova shares a common language and history.
Moldova has lost other cases at the ECHR, but this is the first time it has been asked to scrap a law.