The use of such notions as “invalid”, “deaf”, “mute” or “handicapped person” in journalistic activity is discriminatory and unacceptable, the Center for Independent Journalism (CIJ) stated in the section “Jurist of the Press”. The law on the ensuring of equality provides that any form of discrimination is banned and the pursuing of a policy or performance of actions that violate the equality of rights of persons should be removed by the responsible public authorities and penalized in accordance with the law, IPN reports.

According to the CIJ, to correctly relate facts about persons with special needs, instead of “invalid”, “sick”, “deaf”, mute” or “handicapped person”, it is recommended using “persons with special needs” or “persons with disabilities”, including with “severe/accentuated/average disability”  instead of “invalidity of the first-third degree”.

It is recommended avoiding presenting journalistic materials in a form that can affect the honor and dignity of the persons with special needs. It is recommended adopting a balanced and equidistant approach so as not to allow creating stereotypes.

After Moldova ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the national legal framework suffered a series of changes, including with the adoption of the law on the social inclusion of persons with disabilities in 2012. Under this law, the disability of a person can be manifested by physical, mental, intellectual or sensor conditions that, in interaction with different obstacles, can hamper the person’s full and efficient participation in social life, in conditions of equality with the other persons.