A number of parents mounted a protest at the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research, demanding that the authorities should ensure the right to education of the children with special educational needs. The protest involved mothers from din Congaz village of ATU Gagauzia, who said they cannot enroll their children with SENs in the first class at the local auxiliary school because primary classes haven’t been formed there for five years.
After a news conference given at IPN, the parents went to the Government Building to mount a protest. They chanted: “Stop discrimination!”, “All children are equal!”, “First class for everyone”.
Parent Svetlana Bargan said she was recommended to go to the auxiliary school where there are logopedists, defectologists and psychologists who can help her child learn to speak, read and write. But she found out that the school does not accept children to the first class. The is in a difficult situation as she cannot ensure the child’s education at home.
“They told us that they could form the first class if six more children came. These children came, but the class wasn’t formed anyway. September comes and we will again lose a year. Should we lock these children inside the house? Why should we do it when there is a school with teachers and an education program? Why should we isolate these children?” asked the woman.
Valentina Gardeievkaya, the mother of a child with the Down syndrome, said it is not right to keep the child at home as this can obtain appropriate knowledge if he is integrated into the education system, alongside other children.
The protesters also demanded to form the ninth class at auxiliary schools. One day before the protest, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research signed an order to form ninth classes for the 2018-2019 school year. Specialists of the Center of Legal Assistance for Persons with Disabilities, who offer assistance to these parents, said this is a victory of the parents who struggled for this. There is yet concern because the order refers only to the 2018-2019 school year.
The Center’s executive director Vitalie Mester said the right to education is a basic right enshrined in the Constitution, while the violation of the disabled children’s right to mandatory education is a serious form of discrimination against children. “The rights cannot be differentiated from person to person. Each citizen, each child is equal before the law and this means equal rights,” he stated.
Head of the Pre-University Education Division Valentin Crudu has told IPN that the Ministry is collecting information about the case in Congaz. The file of each child should contain a development assessment to show if the child can be integrated into a general school or should be temporarily placed in special education. The Ministry pleads for including the children with SENs into the general education system. About 10,000 children with SENs have been integrated into national general schools so far.
