Moldova Elections

November 30, 2010

As promised, I am writing to you now regarding the elections in Moldova that took place on the 28th and polls closed about 45 hours ago.
The good news is that the Alliance in favor of closer ties with the EU gained seats and now has 59 out of 101; the bad news is that to elect a President, 61 members of Parliament must agree and the other 42 seats are held by Communist party members.
I will comment on the election process and then on the current situation and prospects for post-election activity.
As to the process, I was certified as an international observer and visited 9-10 sites in the southeast part of Moldova--closest to the Transniestria region and the Ukraine border.  Two cities were regional centers with towns about the size of Battle Creek and they had 5 of the sites. We also visited small villages with populations of 1,000 or even less and we were in 4-5 sites (my memory is not perfect here).
I also participated in a debriefing at the USA Embassy here with about 20 other people and their comments were quite in line with what I found and they were all over the country. Essentially, this was a fair election with few problems and no significant corruption.  Over 50 % of the population turned out--more outside of the capital city than inside, probably due to low student turnout but some students did vote at their home villages rather than in the city. The election was validated because > 30 % participated.

There were NGO, international and local politcal party observers at all the sites we visited although at one or two small villages, we questioned whether the various political parties had their represetatives or whether locals just represented them for the day. Practically every site reported a very high turnout compared to recent elections.  The weather was nice and there had been a lot of advertising by the parties.  The one exception was in a village that we were told, by members of a nearby village we visited 1/2 hour earlier, was a communist stronghold. The representatives in that place  told us there was a low turnout there. I'm not sure if that is true or why, but that was the story we received. I found the election officials well prepared and seemingly very competent.  They had no problems answering any question we posed--via our translator.

The country uses a mobile ballot box for those unable to vote that day.  Officials, along with observers, visit homes of people unable to travel.  In cities, no problems can really occur because numerous people accompany such a box.  In the villages, it is hard to say.  All the people know one another so how they implement safeguards--not sure! One of the dilemmas is that it is the villages that are so poor and they suffered under 8 years with communist rule out of the last 10 (may be not exact figures, but close). Yet, they are old people and the vote communist --probably because they have done so all their life--but the communist did not really help them. Several villages--with 1,000 registered voters--said they had 30% who had left the country for jobs outside th country as there is no opportunity in the villages. So, the turnout may seem low compared to registered, but in fact not too bad if you subtract 30% from the possible votes.

So now what? The negotiations are underway. While the communist received the largest perentage of any party (41%) there seems little chance they can form a government as all other parties say ( at least for now) they will not align with them. So, the pro-European 4 parties need to find 2 communists who will vote with them to elect a President.  That is what is going on today--probably tomorrow and for who knows how long. No one seems to want another 1-2 years with  an interim President, but the communists have stuck together.
The talk is that many of the 30% of villagers currently working outside the country (Italy, Spain, Russia, Ukraine, Romania) would return if the pro-EU can get power. There are also apparently some potential investors looking at the low wages here as attractive.
Moldova was a part of Romania in the early part of tis century (independent before that and part of USSR after that), so by law a number of Moldovans can claim romanian citizenship through grandparents--etc.
So what? In early 2011, Romania is supposed to be eligible for free movement of "its citizens" into other EU coutnries for work, etc. So, I've heard about 100,000 Moldovans can also be Romanians and work wherever they want in EU.  It'll be interesting to see how it plays out. the web sites below look at these issues.

http://www.presseurop.eu/en/content/article/406921-moldovas-diaspora-looking-way-home

http://www.presseurop.eu/en/content/article/295311-back-door-promised-land


You ask, do you have some photos? My answer, yes, of course. Some from elections and a couple others re some recent activities. I'll likely do at least one or two more blogs before leaving Moldova!

Ballot box and observant election official nearby

Lining up to vote

A small crowd, but all seem patient

Part of our informal exit polling-Vlad asks some Qs.

Election workers check registration

Milling around before and after voting

Ballot is about 3 feet long; you just vote for one person/party/

Cities register by street names; villages alphaetically by family names as street names are basically non-existant.

Temporary Office of Interim Moldovan President Gimpu; located 50 yards from my apartment.Jouralists with cameras setting up fo photo shoots--occurs at least weekly now!

O.K. That's it. comments or Questions are welcomed!
 I'll be in touch again soon!

Bill

November Potpouri

Hello,

I'm adding a blog now before the November 28 election here as after that I will write about the results and my participation as an international observer in a couple of small towns.
For now, I'm focusing on activities just before Alma left on November 15--specifically the Marine Ball--and some of the presentations I've been doing.
The Marines here put on a ball around the mid-November anniversary of the founding of the Marine Corps.  They honor the local marines (6 are at the Embassy), provide photos of past and present Marine activities, bring in some dignitaries, and provide dinner and dancing.  It is a black tie opional affair, so it provides a chance for all to show their best sides and tickets sell out as it is always (I hear) a fun night. The donation goes for the Marines, their projects and some R and R for them.
After my buiness ethics class ended, I've been giving lectures to various professors and students, local groups interested in the USA or a law/ethcis topic and some business managers. My topics have included U.S. educational system, Intellectual Property, Business Ethics and Sustainable Business Practices. There's a bit of prep time due to different topics, but also some down time between preparation and presentations. I'm going to travel within Moldova on a couple of day trips and will include that in a future blog as well as the election for all of the 101 members of parliament.
So, for now, here are some photos. Hope there are at least a few you'll enjoy.

  These are good friends Rich and Rali at the lobby area of the Marine Ball

Alma and the Marine Commandandant

The merry couple at the Ball

Fulbrighter Bill, Ambassador Chaudry and Fulbrighter Juidithanne at the Ball

Bill and Valerie Colby, Head of Public Affairs which includes Fulbrights

Department Head Jalencu welcomes faculty on Dept. Day celebration

 Intellectual Property presentation to SUM law students

I've picked up the gestures!

The Head Table at SUM International Econ and Marketing Conference

Business Managers from Moldova Small and Medium enterprises at Business Ethics presentation sponsored by European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

One of the two teams of managers working on a case presentation at the Business Ethics Seminar

OK,  That's it. I'll provide the next update after the electons-probably late the first week of December.
Bill

November Romanian Trip, Soroca trip and class for presentation

November 8, 2010

It's another beautiful day here in Chisinau with current temperature at 3 p.m. around 66 degrees. We also had great weather for our trip to Romania on November 1-3 and my visit with university professors to Soroca to see the business incubator there as well as the famous fortification and nearby monastery. I made several presentations on business functions after my return so these are the topic's for today's blog.

We hired a dirver to drive to Romania and it was a good decision because of a combination of hairpin turns on the hills around Brasov, roads where turns were not well-marked, fog for an hour on the return and a one hour delay leaving Romania at the border for what seemed to be pure inefficiency and lack of concern by border guards.

I'm no longer teaching a regular class, but instead making different presentations for the classes of various professors, for small and medium businesses, law students, and groups who simply want to learn a little about the U.S.A. and to practice their English.

The trip to the Brasov area of Romania (2nd largest city) took about 90 minutes to exit Moldova. Once in Romania, we had another 5-5 1/2 hours until we arrived at our hotel. We went on good roads in Moldova, driving through the countryside, but mostly saw farms and vineyards with villages mostly just beyond the roads. Once in Romania, the roads went through the villages.  Good because we could get a good glance at the life there but bad because our drive had to slow considerably for travels through each of probably a dozen different villages. This eastern part of Romania is poor.  We saw many villagers travelling on carts--some packed with straw, cornstalks or wood for burning--mostly pulled by one or two horses or perhaps a pair of oxen--travelling down the road becaause there was no other path for them to use. These people all looked old and the sights seem from times even before my parent's time--perhaps life in our rural areas around 100 years ago.

As we moved along, we came to hills or small mountains and the roads were better, but always only two lanes--one in each direction-with switchbacks and hairpin turns every other minute. I was glad to sit back and watch the scenery rather than drive in an area that lacked clear directions. The small towns looked better, but still mosty soviet style buildings that seemed to be built 40-50 years ago or so. Some new buildings could be found in the center of such towns, but they were the exception--not the rule. Of course here, the traffic was almost totally cars with a few motorbikes and busses.

Brasov was bigger than I expected--quite spreadout--with a population that is somewhere around 400,000 --less or more.  It took a while to get into town and the places I had identified as possible hotel/inns were not in a great location so we drove into the center of town and looked there for a place.  At first, I thought the place we eventually stayed was too expensive, but finding no great alternative decided it would be all right. Turns out we loved the hotel, its location, restaurant and rooms and paid what was a reasonable amount for what we found (around $105/night with breakfast). We looked around the town a bit that night, then spent the next day touring the countryside and seeing the Braun castle famous as the home of Vlad Dracula. The castle is actually furnished with items from the 1900s when Romanian monarchs and family lived there for some time. Dracula lived in the 1400s, but of course is famous for being the basis--in part anyway--for the Dracula book written in the 1900s by an English author-who had never been to Transylvania, the area where the castle is located.
We spent another half day or so in Brasov on the 3rd before leaving.  Photos are of the town and castle and nearby area. We loved the town--great old town area and very easy to sightsee and visit interesting spots.

I returned and found an invitation to go with faculty from the state university and other Chisinau area universities to visit Soroca--the site of a business incubator for emerging businesses and also the site of a famous fortress and monastery. I went with 30+ other faculty for the day and  just before that trip and on my return gave several lectures to combined student groups. 
The professor for these students was clearly in charge, had them stand up to greet me and hushed any attempt on their part to talk during the presentation. Several good questions emerged and it was an enjoyable experience.
Hope you enjoy the photos and my commentary.  Let me know if you have any questions!
photos below! I put Alma in most of the photos because she is leaving in a week, so future blogs will unforunately not include her photos.
Bill

Alma at Brasov's eastern fortification--built between 1400-1650

View of Black Church and rooftops of Brasov from wall around city

View of Barsov's Old City Hall from front of our hotel

Brasov Town Square

Poiana ski resort outside Brasov, Romania

Hotel Bella Musica, our hotel opposite city hall in Brasov,Romania

Castle Braun, home of Vlad Dracula in late 1400s

Alma on Rope Street (Strada Sforil), Europe's narrowest street

Vlad Dracula and his family tree

This medieval fort is really in the boondocks!Viscrii fortress, north of Brasov.

Republicii Street, Brasov

Schei neighborhood.  When Saxons were living here, Romanians could not live inside the Brasov walled city so lived in this area.

Business incubator is Soroca--opend in 2009-sponsored in part by Norway!

Soroca fortress, Moldova-built 1453-1456.

At top level of fortress in Soroca!

Folk group awaiting photo shoot in Soroca; Some from a wedding party awaiting photo shoot as well!

State university students (3 classes combined) awaiting my presentation on

Business functions in USA firms!

That's it for now!