Informal Discussion with Human Rights Activists: The State Should Take the Responsibility for Supporting the Social Services

The situation of human rights in 2016 and the achievements of the winners of the UN Gala awards were the subjects of an informal discussion conducted by the Independent Journalism Centre and UN Moldova on Friday, 9^th of December. The event was attended by journalists who cover the human rights issues, UN representatives and representatives of the Independent Journalism Centre.

Olesea Perean, National Human Rights Officer at the UN Human Rights Office, pointed out the importance of this annual event, appreciating the endeavours undertaken in the field of human rights by the civil society that often provides services that the State should provide. According to Olesea Perean, the acknowledgement of such efforts is essential for the continuity of the projects implemented by NGO-s.

The winners invited to the event told about their projects and achievements, as well as about the challenges they face every day. One of the most serious difficulties is the communication with State authorities, whose representatives often refuse to support the civil society initiatives. The very limited budget allocated by the State to social services is another problem.

In this context, Nata Vozian, coordinator of DARE2Change initiative, said that she had managed to overcome such kind of problems only due to the support of donors and of the business sector.

Natalia Cojocaru, Keystone Moldova representative, mentioned that the social entrepreneurship activities with the involvement of beneficiaries proved to be a solution for covering a part of the expenditures. However, other problems still need to be solved, such as the lack of knowledge and of skills for working with disabled people or the intense staff turnover. Because the professionals leave the public administration system, the institution has to permanently invest in training activities.

“We should urge the authorities to take the responsibility for supporting the social services”, stated Hans B. Bahhenteig, representative of Low Vision organisation. In his view, the State should be prepared to provide to the civil society all the required support, if the foreign donors stop supporting its activities.

The participants in the event impelled the journalists to pay more consideration to human rights and to broadly cover the problems faced by different social groups.

The event was held with the support of the United Nations Office in Moldova.