Conclusions from a roundtable on defending the rights of people with special needs in the Chernivtsi region
The roundtable was organized by the Chernivtsi civic organizations “Prava Ludyny” [“Human Rights]” as part of the project “Human rights Consolidation Program “East – West” for Women with Special Needs”, in cooperation with the “Human Rights Foundation”.
After presenting the results of six months monitoring of the press with regard to their coverage of problems experienced by people with special needs, a discussion was held on the problems arising from the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers “On the Rules of procedure for providing certain categories of the population with technical and other means of rehabilitation and the formation of the relevant State orders”. These include the following:
- disabled people having to collect and provide the same documents to different bodies;
- elderly people are unable to receive free of charge crutches or other means for moving about without registered disability status.
In addition changes in legislation prevent families of disabled people who have died keeping cars for disabled people, wheelchairs, this worsening their already difficult material position.
The roundtable identified the following problems for disabled people in Bukovyna:
- people with special needs encounter insults when they try to exercise their right to free travel of the buses of the region;
- the bad state of the roads means that farmsteads where most of the residents are disabled or elderly are cut off;
- in Chernivtsi the pavements are being narrowed to allow for the construction of stairs to commercial buildings in the centre, this making it impossible to get past in a wheelchair or with a pram;
- when endeavouring to defend their rights people with special needs run up against attempts by the authorities to put them in the wrong, to set their neighbours or the village community against a disabled person making a complaint. Such treatment causes distress to people who only asserted their rights.
The work of the roundtable received coverage in the television broadcast “Chernivtsi reporter” on 25 April.
A protocol was drafted on the results of the gathering which will be passed to the regional authorities.
The Chernivtsi region civic organizations “Prava Ludyny”, together with the Chernivtsi Regional Assembly of People with Disabilities, headed by Mariya Kyrylyuk, are planning to run a training seminar in May – June 2007 for people with special needs on making use of the Code of Administrative Justice in defending their needs.
Hyulnar Nazarova, Head of “Prava Ludyny”