The observance of human rights is the nucleus of a state and the state is obliged to intervene when these are violated, Minister of Justice Sergiu Litvinenco stated in the opening of the 2022 Human Rights Forum that is taking place in Chisinau on December 6-7, IPN reports.
“The human rights are not an abstract notion. We benefit from them at each step and eventually get used to this and can ultimately stop appreciating them. Russia’s war against Ukraine, which directly affects us too, obliges us to ponder over the human rights,” said Sergiu Litvinenco.
The minister noted that concrete steps have been taken in Moldova the past year to strengthen the normative framework concerning the respect for the human rights. “We managed to advance and to promote a number of initiatives concerning human rights, which have been awaited and are important. I refer to the projects concerning the punishment of hate crime and hate speech, bills regarding domestic violence and sexual harassment, the law on the ombudsperson and the law to strengthen the normative framework concerning the improvement of the regulations on equality and nondiscrimination,” stated Sergiu Litvinenco.
Ombudsman Cheslav Panico said the Nation Development Strategy – Moldova 2030 is an important document that was adopted recently by Parliament. The Ombudsperson’s Office formulated a number of recommendations and 60% of them were taken into account before the final vote.
MP Ana Racu, deputy head of the Parliament’s commission on national security, said that in times of crisis, the way in which the human rights are observed and in which those who reached an impasse are helped is seen best. “We are experiencing a number of crises that I would call resistance crisis. I refer to the crisis of Ukrainian refugees who found shelter in the Republic of Moldova. We showed that we are a small but benevolent country. I want to warn the Ombudsperson’s Office to be more critical and vocal even if the authorities may not like it. A social balance under the rule of law can be maintained only this way,” stated Ana Racu.
The Head of the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau William Massolin reiterated their commitment to the agenda of reforms in the field of human rights in Moldova, especially after the country was granted the EU candidate status.
“On this day, we all think about those who have suffered over the past ten months, about the women, children and men of Ukraine. The EU candidate status gives an additional stimulus to the Republic of Moldova’s agenda concerning the observance of human rights. When the country joined the Council of Europe, it committed itself and signed treaties to solve systemic human rights problems and to put the CE recommendations and the action plan into practice. We offer extended support,” stated William Massolin.
Simon Springett, UN Resident Coordinator in Moldova, expressed his confidence that the Moldovan authorities will make effort to ensure safe mechanisms that can protect the human rights. “The human rights, if they are respected, are like a guardian between the authorities and the citizens, which ensures a coherent social balance. We hope to further agree with the authorities of the Republic of Moldova on the observance of human rights, which would be a priority for the state and would strengthen this certainty,” stated Simon Springett.
