In the Republic of Moldova, the rights to education, information and justice of children with hearing and visual impairments are violated, their access to the public space being hampered because there is an insufficient number of sign language interpreters and no modern information and communication technologies. The physical access is limited through the lack of ramps, special barriers and tactile paving for guiding persons with visual impairments. The conclusions are contained in a report on the social inclusion of children with sensory impairments and were presented by the ombudswoman for children’s rights Maia Banarescu, IPN reports.
The ombudswoman said that even if the children with hearing impairments are provided with hearing aids, the costs associated with the repair and maintenance of these devices are covered by the parents. When a child becomes completely deaf, there are not many national specialists who could operate them. The persons with visual impairments do not benefit from tactile paving. The infrastructure of schools is not adjusted for children with sensory impairments.
Dumitru Darea, consultant at the Children’s Rights Division of the Office of the People’s Ombudsperson, said the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities expressed its concern about the cases of discrimination and the inefficient implementation of the legislation and procedures that would meet the objective to fight discrimination against persons with disabilities.
The Committee also pronounced on the method of determining disability, saying this remains centered on the medical approach to disability, not on the type of disability. There was noted the reduced accessibility of persons with disabilities owing to the barriers related to public services, such as transport, information and communication.
Anatolie Munteanu, secretary of state at the Ministry of Justice, said a pro-active society cannot exist if a large part of society remains outside the access to information in a particular area.
Ludmila Lefter, education programs coordinator at UNICEF Moldova, said it is very important to ensure a normative and legal framework that would facilitate the inclusion of persons with hearing and visual impairments.
Maia Banarescu called on the responsible authorities to make sure sufficient sign language interpreters are trained. She recommended creating possibilities for the citizens to be able to file individual complains about violations of the rights of persons with disabilities to the UN Committee and ensuring the disabled children’s effective access to education. Recommendations from the partners from the NGO sector are expected so as to finalize the report.
