The cases when children are abandoned occur most often because the parents, mainly single mothers, do not possess information about the assistance from which they can benefit. The young women fear they will be talked about in the community if the people find out about the pregnancy and this will be a tragedy for the rest of their life. Tragedy is yet when you abandon your child and are then unable to get this back, said the head of the Chisinau Division for the Protection of Children’s Rights. Rodica Terehovski has told IPN that the minor girls in difficulty, being pregnant and not being supported by close persons, can be held to keep the child.
“At the municipal Division for the Protection of Children’s Rights, we have all the things needed to provide assistance from pregnancy up to crèche. We help these mothers to give birth, to find a job and to take care of the child, to give him warmth and all the necessary things, together with us, the specialists,” stated Rodica Terehovski.
In a roundtable meeting to increase awareness of the importance of the family in child development, Rodica Terehovski said the family is the most important thing on earth. In accordance with the national child protection strategy for 2014-2020, the Division is taking measures to prevent the separation of the child from the family and to reintegrate the abandoned children into the biological or extended family.
Asked why there are yet situations of abandonment when there are services designed to help mothers in difficulty, the specialist said more work should be done in this regard. “We do not know all the cases and cannot reach every home and know where there is a pregnant minor or a vulnerable family. We want everyone to know that they can go to specialized divisions at the district head’s office and seek help,” stated Rodica Terehovski.
Four cases of abandonment were recorded last year. This is almost four times less than in 2015, when 15 children were abandoned by the family.
