The courts of law do not make use of protection orders in case of domestic violence and the victims remain unprotected, Angelina Zaporojan-Pargari, consultant at the OSCE Mission in Moldova, said during a roundtable meeting on December 10, Info-Prim Neo reports. The protection order is a civil order for victims of domestic violence who have been assaulted, threatened, or stalked and are afraid of being hurt again. It orders an abuser to stop harming or stop having contact with the abused person. “The Government of Moldova in 2007 adopted the law on the prevention and combating of domestic violence, which came into force in 2008. But the law does not have the expected effects. Only one protection order was implemented after the coming of the law into force. But there are many cases of domestic violence that we know,” Angelina Zaporojan-Pargari said. According to the expert, changes are now made to the procedure for implementing the protection order. Emphasis is laid on the submission of application to the competent bodies by the victim as the victims are often afraid to do it. A number of laws, including the law on the prevention and combating of domestic violence, the Penal Code and the Civil Code, will be amended.. “Violence against women, first of all in the family, is one of the most serious forms of discrimination against women and can be compared with women's exclusion from the public and private life,” Angelina Zaporojan-Pargari said.