In a video investigation for investigatii.md, journalists Elena Moldoveanu and Vitalie Gutu present the situation of runaway children in Moldova. Hundreds of children run away from home or placement centres and come into the street, where they create their own life. Everything happens under the eyes of authorities, which appear powerless in front of this phenomenon - runaway children. They have already lost count. Some children were returned tenfold from where they left, but in a few hours they were back to their nest, where a rag serves as a bed, on a cement floor in a deserted building. There are children that already to 2-3 years are living like stragglers, mostly in the abandoned building of the National Hotel in Chisinau, which is just a few blocks away from the government and parliament buildings. Authorities still do not have a solution, but they think a specialized centre would solve the problem. On the other hand, child rights experts say that the practice of creating centres where children found on the streets are placed, did not work in any country
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The investigation was carried out within the project "Advocacy for Child Rights” implemented by the Center for Investigative Journalism (CIJM) with the support of UNICEF Moldova. The opinions are of the authors and editors and do not necessarily reflect the policies or views of UNICEF.