The deaf and mute persons do not have access to the televised public debates because the TV channels do not ensure their interpretation in sign language. The right to vote of the persons with mental disabilities is violated, while the persons with visual impairments cannot be sure that their vote went to the contender they prefer. The persons with locomotor disabilities also face problems when they go to the polling place because there are no ramps or the ramps are not wide enough for a wheelchair to pass, representatives of civil society said in a news conference at IPN.
Executive director of the Legal Assistance Center for Persons with Disabilities Vitalie Mester said civil society put forward a bill that guarantees the legal and electoral rights of the persons with disabilities by making sure that they are represented in decision making.
Igor Meriacre, chairman of the Association “Motivatie”, stated the authorities must ensure the accessibility of the persons with disabilities not only at polling places, but also at public institutions, at education and health institutions. The disabled persons lose their parents’ support and, if they do not have studies, they are unable to get a job and to have thus a source of livelihood.
Natalia Cojocaru, project coordinator at Keystone Human Services International Moldova, said that civil society, in concert with the Central Election Commission, drafted regulations for ensuring the right to vote of persons with disabilities, but these regulations weren’t approved for the reason that there are not enough financial and human resources. Civil society calls on the electoral authority to return to these regulations so that they start to be applied at least before the local elections of next year.
