An expert conference on Migration processes in Pridnestrovie – the state and society possibilities was held in the T.G. Shevchenko Pridnestrovian State University today. The event was supported by the Fund for the support of integration of Pridnestrovie into the Eurasian space "Free EurAsia" under the patronage of the Council of Elders of the President of Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic. The conference was attended by the Head of the Consular Department of the Embassy of the Russian Federation, the members of the Council of Elders of the President of the PMR, representatives of Pridnestrovian national communities, experts and representatives of various ministries and governmental agencies of the republic. The PMR's Ministry of Foreign Affairs was presented by Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Shornikov and Head of Consular and Legal Department Vladimir Luzhanskyi.
The main topics of the discussion were the ratio of positive and negative factors of labor migration of Pridnestrovian citizens, interaction between government structures of PMR and relevant state authorities of Russia in order to protect the rights and interests of citizens of Pridnestrovie, and also the problem of forced documenting of Pridnestrovian citizens by the competent authorities of the Republic of Moldova.Opening the expert meeting, the chairperson of the Council of Elders Grigoriy Maracutsa noted that the increase in labor migration from the country is a troubling sign. "Migration processes have a great influence on various aspects of socio-economic life and the situation in the country. Many experts noted that migration has become one of the most visible and current factors in ensuring the safety and stability of the country ", - said the chairperson.One of the issues related to the problems of ensuring human rights in Pridnestrovie is the practice of forced documenting of Pridnestrovians by the competent authorities of the Republic of Moldova. In this regard, Igor Shornikov drew attention of the audience to the problems connected with receiving Russian citizenship for Pridnestrovians. In particular, young people from Pridnestrovie, being of full age, with parents having Russian citizenship, cannot obtain Russian passports on the basis of documents issued by PMR authorities. The Consular Department of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Moldova offers them to acquire a Moldavian document, identifying personality and the status of stateless persons. The diplomat reminded that Pridnestrovie and Moldova within the negotiation process, the mediator and guarantor of which is the Russian Federation, had signed an agreement on mutual recognition of documents, including passports and identity cards in 2001. At the same time, Igor Shornikov highly appreciated the progress in ensuring consular services for Russians in Pridnestrovie, which has occurred in the Embassy of the Russian Federation in recent years. Vladimir Luzhanskiy, the Head of Consular and Legal Department of the PMR's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also made a report for the audience. The diplomat paid particular attention to the analysis of norms of international law and domestic legislation of the Republic of Moldova, evidencing the validity of the Pridnestrovian position on forced documenting. "Today, we witness the development of obviously paradoxical situation, when Pridnestrovian residents, due to their beliefs, refuse to obtain citizenship of the RM and the RM refuses under its international obligations to grant the status of stateless persons. As a result, a person, who has not fulfilled the intermediate requirements, does not get the desired foreign citizenship, which leads to infringement of a wide range of his/her rights, and the Republic of Moldova, without documenting that person, does not solve the problem of statelessness, thereby formally violating its international obligations "- said the MFA representative in his speech.
The Head of the Consular Department of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Moldova Vladimir Malyshev stressed that it is possible to obtain citizenship of the Russian Federation according to the standard procedure, if the applicant resides in the territory of the country; otherwise, to obtain the citizenship in a simplified manner, being outside Russia, is possible only if meeting the strictly limited criteria. Speaking about the work development of the Consular Department station in Tiraspol, the Russian official noted that "every Tuesday a diplomat from the Russian Federation arrives in the Republic and receives people on issues of citizenship. Besides, a hotline operates, by which anyone can learn about all the nuances of obtaining Russian Federation citizenship and passports exchanging. "
At the end of the meeting, participants expressed the hope that in the near future civil society with its force would be able to contribute to the achievement of concrete results on the problems of migration and forced documenting of the Pridnestrovian citizens.
