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Inclusive Communities = Stronger Communities
GLOBAL REPORT ON ARTICLE 19: THE RIGHT TO LIVE AND BE INCLUDED IN THE COMMUNITY
NICARAGUA Most sector
organizations work with people with
physical and sensory disability,
although there are initiatives from
small local organizations that develop
specific activities with small groups of
young people with intellectual
disabilities. It is noteworthy that these
actions, while remaining positive, have
in most cases a special focus, as they
become special centers only for people
with intellectual disabilities that provide
a free service for a period of 3-5 hours.
BOLIVIA Many parents are
demanding the creation of institutions
for placing their children with severe
intellectual disabilities, because they
have limited access to rehabilitation
services and information that provide
adequate support within the family
and community. Rehabilitation
institutions are located in intermediate
cities, so there is a need to do
boarding to children out of town, but
their capacity was exceeded largely
because of high demand.
work on projects to raise money to support their
organization. With no residential institutions to speak
of and with strong family networks, these families all
wanted their sons and daughters to have something
meaningful to do during the day other than to just be
at home. The families that we spoke to could not
conceive of adults who are not married living away
from their families. This was an entirely foreign concept
for them. For people with intellectual disabilities and
families day supports serve two purposes; providing
activities and socialization for the adult with intellectual
disabilities and giving the family the ability to work and
to take care of other people in the household.
However, creating day programmes takes the emphasis
away from working and contributing to society through
labour or through entrepreneurship. As with
institutions we have learned that day centres and
sheltered workshops are best avoided. They may
provide respite for families but actually interfere with
including people in their communities. In economies
where many people cannot find work, extraordinary
efforts are needed to support people with intellectual
disabilities in securing and maintaining productive
work. While it is tempting to develop day centres,
experience shows that people stay in them for a
lifetime and they do not lead to inclusion in the
community. In fact, quite to the contrary, they are
isolating and stigmatizing.
From the MENA region we heard, “Since the political
problems started in the region (and this goes back to
right after the Second World War), we have witnessed
more and more violations to the human rights
understanding. In Palestine for instance, children were
denied education and the only way they could access
education was through United Nations Relief and
Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
(UNRWA). The agency's main focus was not only
education but health and social assistance as well.