Svobodna Dnevnik

[Hadash]

El Correo Internacional

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Mordvania: Opposition tries to galvanize support before elections
By: Elena Manstein
Published: Alvan 4, 1585


President Zvezdana Serebryak

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The "political cohabitation" between Bogdan Privsek's government and President Zvezdana Serebryak seems to be reaching its end, only six months before the 1585 national legislative elections, as the latter has decided to send back to the Assembly of Representatives a bill of economic of reforms proposed by the Republican Council and passed by the Lower House. It is the second time President Serebryak to call the parliament to reconsider a law, the last time a month ago regarding a law which allowed voyvodeships to abolish inheritance taxation (the law was passed a week ago regardless, with only minor changes). It is expected that this second law will follow a similar path.

Minister of Finance Henryka Szczowsky has defended the bill as a "progressive reform" aimed to reduce state bureaucracy, promote entrepeneurship and innovation, improve competitiveness and efficiency, and avoid unnecessary costs. However, the United Progressive Socialist Party has been highly critical of one clause of the bill, which would allow the government to merge, dissolve, and sell state-owned companies and funds through administrative action in case of urgent need. The left-wing opposition believes that the clause could be used to privatize state-owned companies of strategic sectors of the national economy if the Mordvanian Republican Party wins the election on Septem.

With the liberal ZDU-KDK declining in polls and the Mordvanian Republican Party and the Republican Liberal Party -the ruling coalition since 1579- in advanced talks to form a joint electoral coalition, the elections are expected not only to be decisive but strengthen existing parliamentary groups. The United Progressive Socialist Party is currently in negotiations with other left-leaning organizations -such as the Mordvanian Communist Party and the Equality Party- to form a left-wing electoral coalition able to defeat Bogdan Privsek's government in the 1585 elections. The leadership of the United Progressive Socialist Party believes that it is key the republican-left Republican Social Radical Party join such left-wing coalition, in order to attract more moderate voters. However, the recently elected leader of the center-left political party -the popular Voyvode of Slawowo, Jakob Vurnik- does not seem willing to compromise the independence of the party. While the United Progressive Socialist Party and the Republican Social Radical Party formed coalition governments from 1573 to 1579, Vurnik has declared that should not be taken for granted, as he will be ready to negotiate to all political parties, including the current coalition government, although without compromise the basic ideological principles and policies of the party.

President Zvezdana Serebryak has relatively distanced itself from such debates and negotiations, continuing with her presidential agenda, and she is expected to start her second official tour abroad since elected president in the coming weeks. However, although she officially resigned as leader of the far-left United Progressive Socialist Party in mid-1583, she is believed to have a huge influence over the party and she is expected to be personally involved during the 1585 electoral campaign. Yesterday, she gave an interview to state-owned MRTV television channel, where she explained his differences with the Republican Council and her main goals for the rest of her presidency, ten months after her election as first president of the Republic of Mordvania.

President Serebryak also talked in detail about foreign policy during her interview, mentioning her phone conversation with Nylander President Anders Kohout hours after his reelection as president, and that she hoped that Mordvanian-Nylander relations will "keep improving in strategic issues". The Mordvanian President accepted that restoration of relations between "Severyane and the Republic of Mordvania" has not advanced as much as expected since Eva Yuryeva become the first democratically elected Severyan head of state but "it is understable that Severyane is facing more demanding domestic issues right now" and that she and "Minister [of Foreign Affairs Aljaz] Martelj are working closely on this issue". The Mordvanian president also expressed concern about the situation in Lanlania but declared that "we respect their internal affairs...and I hope that the Lanlanian government will be albe to solve their own problems and remain a force for stability and democratic governance in the region".

She was also asked about the situation in Nentsia, where a new chapter of pro-democratic demonstration against President Vynnychuk's government erupted the last weeks. Despite relations were often tense between Vynnychuk's government and the Mordvanian government when Serebryak was Foreign Minister and the President of the Republican Council, specially during the prosecution of Ksenia Vynnychuk on corruption charges in Mordvania, it seemed that both were able to build a more constructive relations recently, at least on paper. President Vynnychuk even quickly congratulated Serebryak as soon as she was announced President of the Republic of Mordvania, and both government seemed willing to cooperate to improve relations in the last year.

"It is important to understand that we must be pragmatic enough and we need to be willing to cooperate with governments we have important disagreements", President Serebryak tried to explain when asked this question, "even when we may dislike their government or political system...We do that not only to defend our national interests but in order to build a more peaceful and prosper regional stability, which eventually will benefit citizens of both countries...Sometimes that is not easy. It was not easy to negotiate the Denil Accords, and although it was not the ideal outcome, it was certainly the best outcome. It was a good agreement, and we remain committed to its final implementation. It's not going to be easy, but peaceful negotiations is the only way forward".

"But we can't fool ourselves", President Serebryak. "There is no point to deny reality. Nentsia is not a democracy. The fight against corruption and for the rule of law and economic prosperity can only be build through democratic governance and political reforms. It's up to the Nentsian people to decide their own future, to choose their own government and their own laws. We have no wish to interfere in their sovereignty, we never did. But the Nentsian government needs to decide if they are part of the solution or they are part of the problem. They need to choose: if they don't help to build democratic institutions and allow the Nentsian people to choose in free and fair elections, they will become not only an obstacle for their nation's progress, but the main problem".

"It must be understood that the region is moving forward", she continued. "The situation today is very different than five, ten years ago. Severyane's undergoing a democratic transition, and that progress can not be undone. Violence, corruption, crime, and instability in a country, it is not only a problem for that country, but eventually it threathens to become a regional problem. If a nation not only fail to advance, but it even goes backwards, that's going to have negative consequences for everyone...You have asked me about sanctions, but that is a complicated question right now. It is our understanding that dialogue must be always the first option. If things not only don't improve, but there's an escalation, that becomes a regional problem. I have had recently conversations with leaders from Saratov, Kubaniza, Severyane...It is my believe that we must cooperate to keep the region advancing in the right direction: democracy, economic prosperity, and political cooperation is the only way forward".

President Sereberyak also confirmed that she will visit the Free State of Khibland, becoming the first Mordvanian head of state to visit the Avidnan territory.