Campaign of mobilization against sexual violence launched in Moldovan capital

Chisinau, 25 April /MOLDPRES/ - A campaign of raising awareness and social mobilization against the sexual violence, titled, Spring in Life. Set Free, was launched in Chisinau today.    

The campaign is organized by the United Nations Population Fund Moldova (UNFPA Moldova), in partnership with Moldova’s government and the La Strada organization. The campaign’s goal is to inform people and promote services available for the people subjected to sexual violence, as well as the multi-sectoral mobilization for combating this phenomenon.    

Attending the campaign’s launch, Prime Minister Dorin Recean said the violence of any kind cannot have any justification. ‘’We have still to settle more cultural and education problems. The situation is worsening also because of the migration. I encourage the women and girls not to accept the violence, to oppose it and report to the institutions which deal with the rehabilitation of the violence victims. This is a common problem of the entire society. One cannot edify a prosperous society when violence is among us. I call on all citizens to mobilize against this phenomenon, which must not be tolerated,’’ Dorin Recean said.        

UNFPA Resident Representative in Moldova Nigina Abaszada said the victims of the sexual violence faced stigmatization and this renders difficult the accessing of the services they need. ‘’Namely for this reason, we have mobilized and concentrated the providers of services meant for the victims of the violence. Our goal is to enhance the degree of awareness and informing for the violence victims as to the services and support available for them, to promote also an answer and a backing on behalf of the communities and providers of services and boost the voices of the victims of the sexual violence through the professionals with whom we work,’’ Nigina Abaszada also said.         

MP Doina Gherman said that each third woman from Moldova had suffered from at least one form of violence during her life. ‘’Unfortunately, too many women and girls still suffer and live with the fear to share their experiences and to ask for help,’’ Gherman noted.    

According to the General Police Inspectorate, the share of offences as to the sexual life grew from 1.67 per cent to 2.36 per cent out of all the number of offences during 2016-2022.   

Moldova ratified Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence in 2021.