The first workshop on monitoring and implementation CRPD in Serbia was held on 16 June 2010 in Novi Sad. All workshops are planned within the EIDHR project  „Capacity building of DPOS for monitoring the implementation of CRPD in Serbia“.There were 13 very active participants that were introduced with

1. The importance of CROD for disability movement
2. The status of civil society in Serbia with the special review on DPOs
3. The situation in Serbia since CRPD ratification and monitoring mechanisms
4. The role of DPOs in writing the alternative report on CRPD implementation in Serbia
5. Other NGOs experiences in monitoring the international documents.

Once you see this, you will be blown away.If you have never seen this before, you are in for a treat.

Autistic STEPHEN WILTSHIRE IS KNOWN AS THE HUMAN CAMERA! 

http://video.stumbleupon.com/#p=0k4lsi1dql

Budapest (Hungary) and Strasbourg (France), 20 May 2010. Persons with disabilities placed under guardianship are one of the most vulnerable groups of Hungarian society. One reason for their exclusion is that they are automatically deprived of their basic right to participate in political decision-making. Today, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that this blanket disenfranchisement is contrary to the European Convention of Human Rights.

According to the Hungarian Constitution persons under plenary or partial guardianship are deprived of their right to vote. The provision excludes an estimated 80,000 adults from political participation, representation and decision-making.

The Mental Disability Advocacy Center has for a long time emphasized that such a practice not only reinforces the social isolation of persons with disabilities. A legal prohibition is also contrary to Hungary’s international obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), and the Council of Europe Recommendation No. R(99)4 on ‘incapable adults’.

Today’s judgment in the case K.A. v. Hungary by the European Court of Human Rights has the potential to trigger radical changes in the protection of political rights of persons with disabilities. MDAC and Mr K.A.’s legal representative Jan Fiala introduced an application with the Court in 2006 on behalf of the client. Under partial guardianship since 2005, Mr K.A was prevented to exercise his right to vote in the 2006 general elections. The judicial decision placing him under guardianship did not in any way assess his actual capacity to make decisions about political issues, and as such did not serve a legitimate aim. Deprivation of his right to vote was an automatic consequence of the fact that he was placed under guardianship by the virtue of the Constitution.

MDAC welcomes the Court’s willingness to recognize the far-reaching discriminatory consequences such a restriction has on a particularly vulnerable group which faces immense societal prejudices.

MDAC urges the Hungarian authorities to give effect to the Court’s ruling and end the curtailment of voting rights of persons with disabilities in accordance of international law, including the CRPD, which is legally binding on Hungary.The Court’s judgment means that the legal regulation on the rights of persons with disabilities needs to be reconsidered, including amending the Hungarian Constitution.  

“Being there from the start” is the motto of this year’s European protest day for the equality of people with disabilities on 05 May. The Federal Initiative “At Home instead of in a Home” supports European protest day for the equality of disabled people.

The Federal Initiative “At Home instead of in a Home” is organizing the human chain for the protest day together with the Sozialverband Deutschland and the Berliner Behindertenverband and is  supported by numerous initiatives. Other supporters include “Aktion Mensch”, the Lebenshilfe Berlin and the Evangelische Johanneswerk.

Since 1998, the protest day on the 05 May has been a fixed event in Germany. The goal is to realize the Constitutional bill of 1994 that states “no one … be discriminated against because of his or her disability”. Although the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was in effect in Germany this last year, we are still far away from the equal participation of all. In order to raise public awareness of this issue, there will be a human chain from the Brandenburg Gate to the German Bundestag on 05 May and a series of similar actions in Germany.

The key demands are to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities quickly, thoroughly and with a comprehensive prohibition of discrimination. Goals include learning together, living independently, achieving accessibility, eradicating disadvantage, equal participation, the “useful-for-all (design for all)” principle.

The Federal Initiative has been working for years towards these goals. It sees itself as a representative and advocate for the elderly, the disabled and people in need of care and fights for the right to live independently in one’s own home.

In recent decades Europe has experienced a demographic shift that carries strong anthropological, social and economical implications; we are living longer and fewer children are being born. Longer life expectancy means that societies need a structure to strengthen solidarity between generations on the basis of the inherent dignity of every human being, regardless of age, functionality, your body, or any other factor.

Living longer (including survival from illness and accidents) increases the likelihood of needing support for daily activities. This need is interpreted as a matter of “personal risk” rather than as a common circumstance. It should be seen as a natural part of the human condition and incorporated into the structure of social protection in the same way as the health system, education and pensions have been incorporated. It is more important than ever to see each person as a “unity of dignity” rather than as a “production unit”. The human rights system and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities are the best guides for designing strategies and implementing policies in this area.

It is important to develop social tools that are focused on the person rather than on institutions; on the person’s needs, desires and aspirations rather than on professional diagnoses; on community living rather than on residential segregation in institutions.

In this sense, direct economical benefits that are based on individual budgets are models of success that enable self-management of resources as a route to empowerment, emancipation and independent living. Life in the community creates empathy, human enrichment, strengthening of fundamental values and the use of all talents and experiences to create a more cohesive society in order to take on the challenges of the 21st Century and create opportunities for everyone.

The independent living model enables individuals in need of support for daily activities to exercise their human rights; the independent living model combats gender inequalities and improves the working conditions of those who work as professional personal assistants. The self-management of personal assistance is more efficient and effective from an economic point of view than the residential home system.

ENIL invites you, regardless of your age, to participate actively by sharing your experiences with a vibrant organization.

14 April 2010  

The report examines disabled people’s experiences of accessing goods and services, and examines the extent to which disabled people have been able to enforce their rights through the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA). The report also makes recommendations as to how the new Equality Act (which will replace the DDA) can be implemented to make sure that it works effectively for disabled people.

The report is based on a survey of more than 1000 disabled people conducted for Leonard Cheshire Disability by Ipsos MORI, as well as in-depth interviews with a number of disabled people conducted by LCD. Key messages from the report include:

• 40% of disabled people say that they have experienced difficulties in accessing goods and service in the last year, and nearly a quarter (23%) say they have faced discrimination
• Whilst some businesses have made real improvements, many are still not fully accessible and are actually missing out on income by not making sure that their services are available to all potential customers
• Disabled people aren’t always aware of what their rights are (71% had either never heard of the Disability Discrimination Act, or knew little about it), and when they do challenge discrimination just 9% said that the business involved had actually made improvements to the way in which their services are delivered to disabled people
• Just 1% of those who had experienced discrimination actually attempted to take legal action
• Barriers to taking cases included the potential cost and time implications of taking a case and a lack of information and support

The report makes a number of key recommendations as to how the situation can be improved, including:

• Improving awareness among disabled people of their rights through the new Equality Act
• Making sure that there is enough legal support for people who do face discrimination
• Making sure that businesses are aware of all the evidence that suggests that making reasonable adjustments is not only a legal requirement, it is also good for business
• Making it easier for disabled people and businesses to improve accessibility without having to go to court by setting up an Ombudsman type service to help make judgements on cases, or developing special ‘Equality Tribunals’ to take cases.

Widespread views of being of little economic or social value to society are disabling people with perceived impairments far more than any individual medical issues.  Studies in the UK found that those with mental health issues and learning difficulties are the most disadvantaged in the health system.

Those with learning difficulties were not given aid for easily preventable illnesses and were four times more likely to die earlier than other groups. Those with mental health issues die 9-10 years earlier than other groups because of vast inequalities in the delivery of their health provision (2).  

Deaf people are often illegally denied Sign Language interpreters in life threatening situations (3). Institutionalised disabled people are consistently denied basic medical provision, often wrongly diagnosed by untrained staff or dismissed as ‘making a fuss’ (2).

Those with physical and sensory impairments find a lack of information in accessible formats and lack of physical access to health centres. Recent cases at the European Court of Human Rights have highlighted high profile deaths in Romanian and Hungarian institutions due to severe malnutrition (4) and eighty per cent of disabled people live in the so-called developing world, the majority of whom endure impairment or death that is easily preventable.

While governments, journalists and health professionals continue to stay focused on our impairments – the social and economic aspects of our lives continue to be neglected–disabled people die needlessly from social neglect and indifference. ENIL calls for an understanding of the social model of disability on world health day to ensure that disabled peoples’ social, informational, financial and equality needs are recognised by health professionals, governments and public health systems.

Notes

(1) Disabled Hit huge Roadblocks in routine health care http://www.huliq.com/17306/disabled-hit-huge-roadblocks-in-routine-health-care  

(2) Equal Treatment: Closing the Gap (2006) Disability Rights Commission Report

(3) Social and Attitudinal Barriers preventing Disabled Peoples’ Access to Equal Health Care (2008) Jolly, D. and Leicester CIL      

(4) Amnesty International        

http://www.amnestyusa.org/annualreport.php? id=ar&yr=2009&c=ROM

On February 4^th, Ukraine became the 79^th country to ratify the Convention. Two weeks later France joined the list. Both countries also ratified the Optional Protocol. Latvia ratified on March 1^st and Canada on the 15^th. 

Because of the new ratifications the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will increase from 12 to 18 members in 2011.

Bob Marshall, a Republican state delegate in Virginia, has said, “The number of children who are born subsequent to a first abortion with handicaps has increased dramatically. Why? Because when you abort the first born of any, nature takes its vengeance on the subsequent children.” 

He went on to say, “In the Old Testament, the first born of every being, animal and man, was dedicated to the Lord. There’s a special punishment Christians would suggest.” Marshall made his comment on February 22nd at a press conference to oppose state funding for planned parenthood. 

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=25&sid=1894168 

Editorial comment : So now you know. We disabled people need not fight  for our human rights, because we represent a punishment for sin. Therefore, we must blame those who campaigned for a woman’s right to choose, we must blame the politicians who supported changing the law and, of course, we must blame our mothers!  

President of CIL Jagodina branch and one of CIL trainers,  Dimitrije Gligorijevic, facilitated the training for users and personal assistants for hosting organisation of persons with disability in Nisksic, in Montenegro on 7 of March 2010. Training was very successful  according to the audience and that way the idea of independent living is spreading throughout the region (similar trainings were already organized in Croatia, Bosnia and Macedonia).

It will be the first time that PA Service will be started in Montenegro fro 15 users and it is planned to continue this kind of support after the end of project funding.

Considering the fact that Niksic (Montenegro) and Jagodina (Serbia) are similar cities in many ways it was agreed that further cooperation should exist and will be organized mutual study visits.

CIL Serbia network is reacher for another organisation.

Center for Independent Living Belgrade was established yesterday on 8 of March. Its president is Gorjana Gordic and CIL Belgrade will realise its activities from the CIL Serbia office for the time being.

03/05/2010 by zavoddistroficara

Today, on March 4, Government of Srpska Republic gave back life to Institute for Dystrophics in Banja Luka. Deputy Prime Minister Mr.  Antun Kasipovic and Minister for Labor and War/Disability Care Mr. Rade Ristovim together with Prime Minister Mr. Milorad Dodik offered permanent solution for Institute for Dystrophics.

They provide reprogramming of debts, continuation of working history, higher volume of working engagement and return of fired workers.We are thankful to Mr, Dodik and Government on all efforts and understanding for our problems.

This is the first big step, made for the future of Institute and persons with muscular dystrophy living and working there. Now it is on us to work and wait the practital results of this agreeement.

We are sorry that we should do the strike to realize our demands but for us that was the only way at the time.

We would like to thanks all of our friends and organizations for their support in these hard days for us and their willingness to be with us.