Moldovan speaker, Gagauz governor attend EU conference on parliamentary cooperation

Chisinau, 17 November /MOLDPRES/- Parliament Speaker Andrian Candu today participated in a conference entitled “The role of mediation and parliamentary dialogue in political transition and peace processes”, organised by the European Parliament in cooperation with the Crisis Management Initiative (CMI), the parliament’s communication and media relations department has reported.

During his speech held in the beginning of the event, Candu touched upon the binding role parliaments must assume both inside of their countries and also within parliamentary diplomacy. The speaker said parliamentary dialogue and communication was very important to prevent conflict and ensure consensus within the society.

As for Moldova’s experience in the management of internal conflicts, Candu set its Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia (Gagauz autonomy) as an example in this sense. He said the Moldovan parliament intended to create a working group in the near future to ensure permanent communication with the Gagauz Popular Assembly.

According to the Moldovan official, the lack of dialogue and MP’s experience were among the main triggers of the conflicts Moldova had faced in the early 90s. “The Moldovan parliament failed to make use of all the opportunities to prevent, and subsequently, settle the Transnistrian conflict. There is room for improvement,” Candu said.

Attending the event was also Bashkan (governor) of Gagauz autonomy Irina Vlah, who tackled cooperation ties between the autonomy and the Moldovan parliament.

CMI Chairman, Nobel Peace Prize winner Martti Ahtisaari, said peace-building was a permanent process and teamwork, going beyond the adoption of a single resolution or statement. “Besides the lack of violence, sustainable peace means also opportunities given to societies to develop and live in prosperity. Joint parliamentary support is needed to ensure sustainable and inclusive peace,” Ahtisaari said.  

Parliament Speaker Andrian Candu is paying an official visit to Brussels. The Moldovan official today will hold meetings with President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz, as well as other EU top officials.

(Editor M. Jantovan)