The Press Council receives an increasing number of complaints about the covering of cases of violence involving children by not respecting the deontological norms. In a roundtable meeting on January 31, the Council’s secretary Petru Macovei said that in a society that takes care of children, such situations should not be allowed, while the media outlets to blame should be penalized, IPN reports.

Press Council head Viorica Zaharia noted that human rights professionals complain about the violation of children’s rights by journalists through news articles or other journalistic content about cases of abuse. “Even if there are clear legal provisions about the protection of children’s rights, some of the media outlets neglect these and the consequences of such behavior can be serious both for the victim and for the family,” she stated.

Press Council Olga Manole said the cases of abuse against children are not unique. They reveal repetitive abuses and very clear tendencies. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is the relevant legal framework that should be taken into account. There is also the law on the protection of children against the negative impact of information. It is not only about children featured in journalistic content, but also about children who are media consumers.

The complaints submitted to the Press Council refer to the violation of the rights to a private life and dignity of children, non-protection of their identity. Most of the cases include the same violations. Experts recommend consulting psychologists and other experts when it goes to a case of abuse against a child so as to cover it in the best way and bring benefits to society, not to infringe on the rights of the involved children.

The Ombudswoman for Children’s Rights Maia Banarescu spoke about the educative role of the press. The journalists, when covering a case of abuse, should take into account the major interest of the child first and should report on the issue only with the permission of the legal representative of the child. When images of children are published, it is hard to remove them. “We should not wait for the law to tell how and what we should do. The law is only a norm, but there are also the ethics of each person,” she stated.