On April 26, 2013, GLOW/TOBE Moldova Directors Laura Demmel and Matt Rutter met with Mr. Ion Oboroceanu of the Centru de Drept (Causeni Law Center) to discuss strategies for encouraging boys and men to properly care for the women in their lives. Mr. Oboroceanu leads the initiative Bărbați împotriva violenței (Men Against Violence), for which the goal is to encourage an open and constructive dialogue between males regarding their proper role in society and the positive and negative effects of their actions.
Currently serving as the head District Attorney for the Causeni raion, Oboroceanu has been using his legal abilities to serve a wide variety of clients ever since he opened the Centru de Drept in 2005. Oboroceanu’s primary focus of work at the Centru de Drept has been the prosecution of domestic violence or human trafficking offenders. Additionally, Oboroceanu has been a leader in the reform of Moldovan legal policy regarding domestic violence and human trafficking, creating a comprehensive legal guide on the topics in both Romanian and Russian.
This center was the focus of discussion when GLOW/TOBE Moldova Directors Lindsay McDaniel and Laura Demmel as well as Peace Corps Volunteer Lindsey Repshas visited Oboroceanu in February of 2013. From this meeting, connections between GLOW/TOBE and Moldova ATIP were established for future partnerships on seminars and trainings.
When Demmel and Rutter met with Oboroceanu on April 26th, their conversation primarily focused on the year-old Bărbați împotriva violenței (Men Against Violence) initiative. The goal of this initiative is to increase the number of boys and men active in improving their community – first and foremost by speaking out against destructive relationships or violence towards women. The rate of human trafficking and domestic abuse is far too high in Moldova, according to Oboroceanu, and men should be boldly standing alongside women in the fight to end this epidemic.
Oboroceanu believes the foundational problem causing the high level of trafficking and abuse is the mentality for many Moldovan boys and men to believe it is “normal” to physically abuse women, discriminate against them verbally, or harass them sexually. Oboroceanu is convinced there is a better way – the way of honorable manhood. It is his passion to show males this better approach and encourage them to spread the message to others.
In order to encourage this change in mentality of the boys and men of Moldova, Oboroceanu is working with a team of 23 male volunteers (including 7 high school students) to educate and train leaders in the school system, police department, local administration, and partnering working groups such as GLOW/TOBE. For these educational events, Oboroceanu organizes a group of people (males and females) and intricately describes the problem of domestic violence and human trafficking. Then, the conversation is opened up to the room and the discussion is focused on how to practically work toward solving the problem. Oboroceanu noted those in attendance at the event nearly always want to help fight the problem, but are often lost when determining a plan of action. With support from Oboroceanu, the group will then come to a decision about actions they can individually take in order to fight violence and trafficking in their communities. Then, to provide ongoing support and accountability, the group appoints a leader and makes plans to meet to discuss their progress on a regular basis.
During the early years when working on this initiative, Oboroceanu says approximately 30% of males in the community were willing to admit human trafficking and domestic violence are problems in Moldova. Now, Oboroceanu is proud to say over 50% of men in his community are willing to identify these as problems – and this number continues to grow every day. As more men become interested in this topic and choose to volunteer their time to the initiative, these individuals are starting new projects or activities on their own. Excited to see his shift from leader to facilitator, Oboroceanu is confident in this initial group’s ability to educate and inspire males throughout Moldova. In time, he believes all youth will recognize violence and trafficking as a problem and have the energy to do something about it – ultimately creating an environment in which women do not have to live in fear of violence against them.
Moving forward, Oboroceanu encouraged GLOW/TOBE Moldova to partner with his legal center to help facilitate seminars for 15-20 Moldovans interested in learning about the problems of violence and trafficking. The most active young people from these seminars will then be invited to participate in a summer camp, then a full summer school.
When asked what is the overall theme of his work in Moldova, Oboroceanu replied, “Где есть плохо, делать хорошо” (Where there is bad, do good). This phrase accurately sums up the numerous initiatives and projects Oboroceanu has worked on during his professional career and is a sentiment GLOW/TOBE Moldova hopes to pass along to its beneficiaries. There is bad in the world, but it’s our responsibility to identify it as such and choose to do good.
