4
TĂNASE v. MOLDOVA JUDGMENT
residing in Bessarabia lost their Romanian nationality and became Soviet
citizens. Romania became a Soviet Union satellite State.
18. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, in the Declaration of
Independence of 27 August 1991, the Parliament of the Republic of
Moldova condemned, inter alia, the Russian annexation of the territory
from the Principality of Moldavia in 1812 and the Soviet annexation of the
territory from Romania in 1940 and proclaimed the independence of the
country within the boundaries of the former Moldavian Soviet Socialist
Republic. Shortly thereafter, Moldova joined the United Nations and was
recognised by the international community.
B. Nationality post-independence
19. In 1991 the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova adopted a Law
on citizenship and proclaimed as its citizens, inter alios, all persons who
had lived in the territory of the former Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic
before the Soviet annexation and their descendants.
20. The applicant obtained Moldovan nationality as a descendant of
persons living on the territory of the Republic of Moldova before 28 June
1940.
21. Also in 1991, the Romanian Parliament adopted a new Law on
citizenship, making it possible for persons who had lost their Romanian
nationality before 1989, for reasons not imputable to them, and their
descendants to reacquire Romanian nationality.
22. Initially, under Article 18 of the Moldovan Constitution adopted on
29 July 1994, which entered into force on 27 August 1994, nationals of
Moldova were not permitted to hold the nationality of any other State other
than in exceptional cases. However, the prohibition was ineffective in
practice as many Moldovans of Romanian descent used the provisions of
Romanian law to reacquire their lost Romanian nationality. At the same
time, many Moldovans of other ethnic backgrounds acquired other
nationalities such as Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian and Turkish.
23. In 2002 the Moldovan constitutional provisions prohibiting multiple
nationalities were repealed.
24. On 5 June 2003, following the repeal of the constitutional
prohibition on multiple nationalities, the Moldovan Parliament amended the
Law on citizenship, repealing the restriction preventing Moldovan nationals
from holding other nationalities (see paragraph 74 below). The new
provisions provided that the holders of multiple nationalities had equal
rights to those holding only Moldovan nationality, without exception (see
paragraph 75 below).
25. On an unspecified date the applicant obtained Romanian nationality.
His current Romanian passport was issued in December 2005.
Subsequently, he made public his holding of Romanian nationality.