In a new call, the Press Council urges the Broadcasting Council to reconsider the issue of violating the best interests of the child in the ‘Vorbeste Moldova – Parinte te Iubesc’ Show.

The Press Council (PC) sent a new call to the Broadcasting Council (BC) on 30 July, asking to once again analyse the content of ‘Vorbeste Moldova – Parinte te Iubesc’ show of 15 and 16 April 2019, broadcast by Prime TV, about an adolescent girl sexually abused by her stepfather. The PC members believe that, when reviewing the issue at the meeting of 17 May, the BC members did not pay due consideration to how producers of the show acted, failing to take into account the best interests of the child.

According to the PC, editors committed serious deviations from ethical and legal norms in the two editions of ‘Vorbeste Moldova’ show, entitled ‘Parinte, te Iubesc!’ [‘Parent, I love you!]. We recall that after monitoring the show, during its meeting of 17 May, the BC found no ethical or legal violations and only took note of the call received from the PC.

Previously, PC members made with a similar call to the Ombudsperson for Children’s Rights Maia Banarescu. In her response, the Ombudsperson expressed her concern about the BC position on this case, regarding the BC members’ arguments as contradictory.
‘Against this backdrop, Ombudsperson for Children’s Rights recalls that the phrase best interests of the child is provided for in Article 3 of UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which stipulates that “in all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration”’, Maia Banarescu says.

Note that in December 2018, the National Center for Child Abuse Prevention (NCCAP) notified the Broadcasting Council about severe child rights violations in another episode of ‘Vorbește Moldova – Cine a lăsat-o gravidă pe Mariana?’ [‘Moldova talks - Who got Mariana pregnant?’], broadcast by PRIME TV. Likewise, the BC  took note of this and established that PRIME TV had not violated the broadcasting law in force.

As a result, the PC repeatedly asked BC to review the facts and issue a proper classification of the case. ‘We expect that BC, besides applying sanctions according to the law, will discourage, through public attitude and reaction, the production of such shows (which do not contribute to the development of the society, but to its degradation), both on Prime TV and the other TV stations in the country’, the call of the PC states.

See also: The Ombudsperson disagrees with the Broadcasting Council’s Decision: ‘Vorbeste Moldova – Parinte te Iubesc’ Show violated journalist’s ethical norms and the rules for children’s media coverage’