In spite of the progress made the past few years, particular inequalities and stereotypes persist and they affect the persons, primarily those with disabilities. Approximately 23% of the women and 18% of the men interviewed as part of a project implemented by the Association “Motivație” witnessed a case of violence against their mother in childhood. Approximately 56% of the men and 46% of the women believe the conflict situations in the family should remain a private issue even if they imply the use of violence, shows the Study “Accept Disability, not yet Violence”.
The study was conducted by the Association “Motivație” in the framework of the program “Together Against Gender Stereotypes and Gender-Based Violence” that is financed by the European Union and is implemented by UN Women and UNFPA.
“It should be noted that the pandemic period disproportionately affected the persons, the life and wellbeing of persons, including of those with disabilities. In this connection, the women and girls with disabilities faced a series of obstacles. At the same time, violence against women in general expanded compared with the similar period before the pandemic, according to the requests for aid made to the police,” Viorica Culeac, UN Women Program Coordinator, stated in a news conference hosted by IPN.
Violeta Terguță, UNFPA Program Coordinator, noted that two in three women who took part in the survey said the people deride and laugh at persons with disabilities. Asked why this happened, one in three respondents said it happens because the persons with disabilities cannot work, cannot have a job and are not efficient in terms of work. 60% of those polled said the community members do not know how to communicate with a person with disabilities. They do not know how to provide support or to assist a person with special needs.
At the same time, those interviewed said that they are not allowed to have sex and that the persons with disabilities should not have children. “This perception surprised us a lot as many of those surveyed said this,” stated Violeta Terguță.
Some 68% of those polled said the persons with special needs meet with greater difficulties in accessing services for preventing and combating violence than the victims of abuse who do not have disabilities.
The study was carried out to see the real needs of the community in general and of the persons with disabilities in particular. It was a pilot survey that covered two regions – the districts of Fălești and Strășeni – but shows the situation in the Republic of Moldova in general, the community’s perception of the persons with disabilities. As part of the study, there were interviewed persons from rural areas and from urban areas, of different ages and of both of the sexes.
