The number of offenses against children during the last five years rose by 65%. Sexual abuses represented 26.4% of the total number of offenses against children committed in 2015, as opposed to 20.4% in 2014. Head of the National Center for Child Abuse Prevention Daniela Samboteanu said 39 cases of child abuse involved the biological parent, the partner or close relatives.
“These are alarming, but real figures recorded by the Ministry of the Interior and I’m absolutely convinced that this is only the top of the iceberg. These figures do not show the total number of cases that happen in the communities of the Republic of Moldova because many children are afraid to speak and many parents do not know how to hear them. Therefore, violence remains a hidden phenomenon until maturity is reached. There are many persons who never tell about the traumatizing experiences of childhood,” stated Daniela Samboteanu, quoted by IPN.
She noted that the sexual abuse in childhood is one of the most traumatizing experiences. Most of the times, the abuser is the person who is responsible for the care of the child and who is in a close relationship with this. Such cases lead to loss of confidence. The consequences are serious – the cognitive and social capacity of the child is affected, mental disorders can appear, the sexual behavior is traumatizing, etc.
Deputy Minister of Education Elena Cernei said violence against children continues to grow in all its forms. “It is considered that the number of reported cases represent only a small part of the acts of violence against children. Though the number of cases of domestic violence increases, the specialists often lack means to help these children. In Moldova, violence is caused by alcohol abuse and poverty. In the vulnerable families, when the children do something wrong, some of the parents shout at them and hit them,” she stated.
The deputy minister noted that the Ministry of Education considers one of the problems of child abuse is the fact that violence against children is not recognized as a problem. A study shows that shouting is the most frequent form of abuse, followed by threats and beating. The situation can be changed through the agency of social workers and teacher, who should talk about positive education methods with parents.
Igor Racu, pro-rector for scientific work and international relations of the State Teacher Training University “Ion Creanga”, said a new curriculum should be worked out so as to teach how to prevent and combat domestic violence, especially violence against children. As some of the local social workers do not know how to deal with cases of abuse, many of them have now inefficient capacities of team work.
