Tiraspol, April, 15. /Novosti Pridnestrovya/. In Tiraspol, there took place Living and Developing Independently in an Inclusive Society Press Club. Opportunities and prospects for solving the problems of people with disabilities in an informal environment were discussed by representatives of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Pridnestrovian journalists and human rights activists, employees of relevant ministries and public organizations of persons with disabilities activists.
According to the participants, last year has been a big step towards building an inclusive society. It should be reminded that, according to the presidential decree, the 2018th in Pridnestrovie was declared the Year of Equal Opportunities.
During this period, the implementation of a set of measures to create a barrier-free environment began. Ramps, call buttons, and sound traffic lights are being built in cities and districts of the republic. There began the reconstruction of the building of the future sports rehabilitation and rehabilitation center in Tiraspol and the construction of a day care center for children with disabilities in Dubossary. A building was allocated for a sports club for the disabled Bendery citizens.
Increased attention was paid to the rehabilitation of persons with disabilities. At the expense of the budget, about a hundred children with disabilities accompanied by their parents or guardians visited Karpaty recreation center located on the coast of the Black Sea. Trips to the renovated Dniester sanatorium were provided for people with disabilities. In 2018, 46 Pridnestrovians underwent a prosthetic procedure - in Russia, Abkhazia, Ukraine and Germany.
Activities to support persons with disabilities will be implemented in the future. For this purpose, the state target program Equal Opportunities has been developed with a funding volume of about 5 million rubles.
As emphasized by activists of the Sustainable Development Platform, who know firsthand about the problems of people with disabilities, the main thing is that we managed to change the attitude of the state and society to this category of citizens.
“We noticed the participation and interest of the officials themselves everywhere. We were called and invited to meetings and discussions of various issues. People with disabilities are accepted in the approval of a building commission. It is very important that the attitude of the whole society has changed: residents treat the problems of people with disabilities with a great understanding,” the secretary of the Platform for Sustainable (Community) Development, Alexander Kovalchuk said.
In the opinion of human rights activists, the mass media had a great influence on the formation of a “healthy” attitude of society towards people with disabilities.
“In 2018, the media released hundreds of materials on the problems of people with disabilities. This includes television appearances, radio materials, newspapers, and news agencies. Today, the media are involved in the education of society,” Ksenia Siminchuk, an expert on human rights, equality and inclusion at OHCHR said.
As part of the press club, they spoke about the problems that are still unresolved. In particular, we are talking about the realization of the right of persons with disabilities to work. Today, out of 24 thousand people with disabilities living in the country, less than 3 thousand are officially employed
“In Pridnestrovie, it is necessary to change the approach to the employment of people with disabilities. It is necessary for the possibility of employing persons with disabilities of the first and second groups who, according to the medical commission, can perform work with restrictions, and also preparation of the system information for each disabled person who wants to find a job indicating his qualifications, education and other data be enshrined in law,” the editor-in-chief of the newspaper Individual and His Rights Nikolai Buchatsky thinks.
International experience was also given in terms of job creation for persons with disabilities and mechanisms designed to stimulate their employment.
Summarizing today's meeting, the members of the Press Club noted that the time had come to change the approach when, in order to realize their legitimate rights, people with disabilities "were forced to perform their personal heroic act."
“Only an inclusive society can be stable and have opportunities for development,” Alexander Stratulat, coordinator of the OHCHR program concluded.
