Action Plan 2007/20

DPI Europe

DPI-Europe is a human rights organisation to promote human rights approach to building and empower inclusive societies for all persons. The 45 millions of people with disabilities in the European Union and 25 millions in other European countries are the poorest of the poor, they live in conditions of exclusion, violation of human rights, barrier and obstacles to freedom and participation as full citizens. The 56% of children with disabilities (more then 1.300.000 students) in EU are segregated in a special schools, more then 80% of adults with disabilities are unemployed, more then 95% of services are inaccessible, about 2.500 large institutes segregated in EU about 500.000 persons with disabilities.

Human Rights strategy is based on inclusive actions and policies and inclusive culture and languages. To promote respect and empower human rights we need affirm the essential diversity of humankind, promote a bioethics approach on disability based on human rights respect, non discrimination, equal opportunities and full participation, develop universal design, guarantee independent living and social inclusion.

Antidiscrimination and equal opportunities

The non discrimination is a way which offers to us to discuss with the society not on a medical basis as disabled person, but as citizens who are discriminated because we can not get public transportations or areas, because we don’t have the same opportunities to be educate, to get a job, to create a family, to choice a place to live … etc, because we are what we are: Human being with specific abilities. There is discrimination when someone who rolls with a wheelchair can’t use public transportations, when someone who read with his fingers can’t find brail books at school, when someone who speaks with his hands can’t use TV because there is not sub title or when an adult with learning difficulties is rejected from the job market.

To prevent all kind of discriminations against peoples with a disability, the members of the European DPI Region decide to:

1. Build a coalition with the other discriminated groups like women, gays and lesbians, immigrated workers …

2. Develop an action on the issue of the political representation of disabled peoples, discuss and adopt some proposal for the building and the financial support of independent representations of disabled peoples as consumers of services.

3. Initiate communications and trainings for a better access for all to all.

4. Organize a network of trainers who are living with a disability and enforce their participation as trainers in a maximum of training courses of professionals, in priority in the education and the builder of the material environment.

5. Give a special attention to the discrimination of children, in particular in education.

6. Prevent all kinds of discriminations between people’s who are recognised as disabled.

7. Identify legislations which introduce discriminations and lobby to change them.

8. Lobby the European Council to enforce financial supports to the non EU countries

9. Organize public demonstrations against all kinds of discriminations of peoples with different abilities, and show some understandable examples of discriminations that non disabled people can experiment.

10. Disseminate information on the rights of all citizens to be none discriminate and on the legal tools and procedures which can be used.

11. After the success of the introduction of a non discrimination article in the European treaty of Amsterdam, each DPI/E member is encouraged to study the national constitution of his country with the objective to identify if and how disabled people’s are taking in account in it.

Bioethics

Bioethics activity include all kind of field involving approach on disability, concerning cultural vision, respect of human rights and quality of life of persons with disabilities. Bioethics issue are so not only related to traditional field (biomedicine as genetics, euthanasia, etc.) but all professional and technical activities concerning person with disabilities (rehabilitation, social support, employment, education, etc.).

The activities are at two level:

Independent living

1. DPI should keep focus on Independent living approach as a human right and advocate for policies that would create condition for it.

2. DPI should continue to work on the attitudes and perception changes, and encourage national assembles to work on awareness raising on independent living approach

3. Flow of information should be provided to enable disabled people to better understand and clarify the concept and principles of Independent Living Philosophy, particularly in the countries where this concept is just emerging.

4. All participants agreed about differences that exist between western and eastern European countries, and urged DPI to support countries that are less developed (like Albania where even enabling aids do not exist in appropriate level) to work towards creation of preconditions (like accessible environment, transport or PA service) for achievement of Independent living

5. DPI should encourage different pilot project at national or local level (like pilot PA services programme) to enable disabled people to get experience in exercising independent living and empower them to advocate for it

6. For that purpose we need to organise more capacity building seminars and exchange visits where disabled people will learn about independent living skills and peer consultancy

7. All participants realized that each individual needs are different as well as their level of dependence or independence, but agreed that action should be directed towards satisfying the needs of the most vulnerable and most severely disabled people in all areas, as then the needs of all others will be possible to satisfy

8. DPI should support the national organizations to teach our society that differences exist and to advocate for the societies to develop systems of support that would enable us to stay different and function in the given society on equal bases.

9. Participants also agreed to support ENIL’s campaign in European Parliament for development of Europe wide policy on independent living and personal assistants.

Women, youth and immigrants.

1. Spread a correct vision of double discrimination condition of disabled women

2. develop mechanisms in the movement to fight discrimination against disabled women including this principles:

       - Realise gender balance

       - Empower women

       - Organise capacity training

       - Make disabled women visible in mainstreaming

        - Include issues of disabled women in all programmes and documents

        - Fight for human rights of disabled women

3. make contacts with women’s movements and make them understand and support issues of disabled women.

4. strengthen networking of disabled women.

5. support the Manifesto of the fourth European Women’s Conference as a Manifesto of DPI Europe as framework of national assemblies work.

6. make issues of disabled women visible in UN Convention.

7. make single mothers and families of disabled children visible in our work

8. look more closely at the situation of refugees, displaced persons and immigrants, fight for their human rights and make them visible in relevant documents.

Inclusive education

1. Asking inclusive setting in education for children with disabilities in all countries.

2. Defend Inclusive education in the UN Convention and in the session of Ad Hoc Committee, lobbying governments in all countries

3. Collecting report of violation of human rights and violence suffered by children with disabilities in special schools

4. In the countries where only special schools exist, asking for the freedom for parents to choose an inclusive education for children with disabilities, supported by adequate services and tools.

5. Asking to change the DPI position paper on inclusive education, discussing in the world Council of DPI the inclusion of deaf, blind and deaf/blind students in the regular schools

6. Collect and disseminate testimonies of students with disabilities, parents and teachers on inclusive education

7. Spreading exemplary cases of good and appropriate practice on inclusive education with the contribution of universities, research institutes, publishing companies

8. Promote the debate on the Bologna Treaty and its implications on inclusive educations.

9. During the monitoring of Convention of Rights of Children, UN Standard rules and other Human Rights instruments, to prepare in all countries a report of the conditions in education of children with disabilities

10. Elaborate a demanding campaign addressed to the governments focused on: requirement of great and better investment in inclusive education system, basic and permanent training with quality for teachers and assistants, accessible schools

Universal Design

1. introduce universal design in all social, economical, cultural plan and services.

2. promote consortium on Universal design, including disabled people organisations, universities, institutions, technicians and other stakeholder.

3. prepare and spread an information set on Universal design.

4. produce a training course for all stakeholder.

5. support projects and programme at local level.

6. collect and spread good practices.

Networking

1. Develop a continue networking with National Assemblies, promoting periodical national report on the national assembly activities and disabled people condition.

2. Elaborate a new DPI-Europe constitution based on human rights and participation of national assemblies in the European activities.

3. Support the offices in Lamezia Terme, Budapest and Albacete, as networking offices with different task; support the job of the chair with adequate secretariat.

4. Recommend that in each national assembly one person should be appointed to be responsible for collating and disseminating information, ensuring efficient communication and networking within DPI Europe and to send electronic information to local NGO’s and individuals.

5. Define a periodical electronic newsletter collecting information of the national assembly activities and disabled people condition in Europe.

6. Developing and managing a website of regional information within the format of DPI world site