Today I spoke during a EESC hearing about challenges of the transition from institutional to community-based support for persons with disabilities and the role of families as their carers. I talked about priorities in deinstitutionalisation, one of which must be making the changes work for people with complex support needs too. They are often left…
Forum for human rights, Validity launch of report on institutionalisation of old people, September 2021. My remarks: Massive institutionalisation of older people demonstrates the failure of policy when it comes to securing support and care. It stems from lack of understanding how support and care should and can be provided. And it is based…
Written for Inclusion Europe 13 September 2021. When the news is filled with clawing away of people’s rights, and chipping away on the rule of law, what does a democratic-minded person do to keep hopeful and level-headed? We look up to the institutions charged with protecting them, of course. But what does one do when…
I don’t know about you but I don’t find project reporting particularly enjoyable. It doesn’t help when it is all about a year which itself was incredibly hard. But there is one element to it which is quite gratifying: seeing all of the year’s work collected and summarised together. It gives you a perspective on…
Inclusion Europe has published a new report on how the coronavirus and the measures implemented in response to the pandemic have impacted on the rights and lives of people with intellectual disabilities. It makes for grim reading, finding that the discrimination and neglect faced by those with intellectual disabilities worsened during the pandemic. Politico.eu The Inclusion Europe…
Even thought the report itself is very grim and infuriating, it made me very happy to see it being recommended by the widely-read Politico Brussels Playbook morning newsletter. The report is about covid-measures impact on the rights and lives of people with intellectual disabilities and their families. The newsletter is almost a required reading for…
Today (1 July 2020) Inclusion Europe contributed to a consultation on the next European Disability Strategy, organised by Helena Dalli, EU Commissioner for Equality. Alongside other EU disability organisations Inclusion Europe recognises the significance of the strategy to date. And we know very well what we want from the next one. Clear direction matters. (Of course we are not the only ones to have high expectations.)…
This week (25 August 2020), it has been 4 years since I joined Inclusion Europe. Eventful, that’s what we could call them. It makes me feel really proud being allowed to follow up on the great work and legacy created by my predecessors. Working on so many important issues alongside great, dedicated colleagues across the organisation,…
First published on Inclusion Europe website 3 May 2019. On 11 April I went to Romania to speak at a seminar about deinstitutionalisation and people with intellectual disabilities. The seminar was organised by the European Commission and the Romanian authorities. I was there as a co-chair of the European Expert Group on the Transition from Institutional…
First published on Inclusion Europe website 19 March 2019. I spent 2 days in Croatia last week learning about the situation of children and of adults with intellectual disabilities being segregated in institutions. I listened to Croatian experts and activists at a seminar organised by the Association for Self Advocacy (a member of Inclusion Europe) and ENIL. The…
