Ageing in the Twenty-First Century: - HelpAge International

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Chapter 2: A fresh look at evidence – Age-friendly environments “When asked about their rights, older people seemed not to understand them. The only right they mentioned was to be respected by the youth.” Tanzania “We do not know what our human rights are, or what the Constitution is.” Paraguay “We do not even know what our rights are!” Bosnia and Herzegovina “All of us are members of some older people’s clubs, but we have never heard about the 2002 Madrid Plan.” Chile “So many times, my rights were violated – in the bus, drugstores, hospitals, groceries. I was not able to enjoy a discount just because I forgot my senior citizens’ ID card.” Philippines “There are particular policies and laws for women and children, and even rights for disabled people, but the Government never thinks about older persons. There are no laws or policies in our country to protect our rights.” Bangladesh “The case for rights of older people is not accepted yet and therefore we need to rethink our approach – that older people need rights.” Ireland “There needs to be an older people’s representative in the administration to address the rights of older people.” Kenya Towards human rights of older persons in Latin America and the Caribbean The San José Charter on the Rights of Older Persons, the final outcome of the 2012 Regional Intergovernmental Conference on Ageing in Latin America and the Caribbean, reaffirms the commitment to spare no effort to promote and protect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all older people, to work to eradicate all forms of discrimination and violence and to create networks for the protection of older people with a view to the effective exercise of their rights. Governments supported “the work of the Open-ended Working Group on Ageing and urge it to consider the feasibility of an international convention on the rights of older persons, and support the Working Group on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons of the Organization of American States so that it can make progress in developing an inter-American convention”. Source: San José Charter on the rights of older persons in Latin America and the Caribbean, May 2012. Available from www.eclac.cl/celade/noticias/ paginas/9/44929/CR_Carta_ENG.pdf Ageing in the media “Images of older persons as attractive, diverse and creative individuals making vital contributions should compete for the public’s attention.” (Madrid Plan, para. 112) Population ageing is a significant success story, yet “a pervasive negative portrayal of ageing is contributing a slow and inadequate response to the challenges and a lack of understanding of opportunities”. 303 A positive image of ageing and older persons is a central element of the Madrid Plan. 304 The successful achievement of its objectives depends in large part on each society’s attitudes towards ageing and older persons – the more positive these attitudes, the easier the task will be. Policymakers are more likely to frame policies and vote resources for older persons if they themselves view older persons in a positive light. Studies of the representation of older people in the media suggest that they are under-represented, and often portrayed inaccurately or stereotypically. For example, an article in the journal Ageing and Society in 2004 found that: “Older people were heavily underrepresented, especially women and those of advanced old age. Older women and men were portrayed in traditional gender roles.” 305 A more recent study of perceptions of people of different ages in the United Kingdom, commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corporation as chair of the Creative Diversity Network, 306 shows that negative images of older people are felt to revolve around their perceived physical, social and mental incapacity, a reluctance to move with the times, and a tendency to complain. Their portrayal can also be seen as mocking in tone, occasionally insulting, and sometimes reliant upon outdated stereotypes. However, it was acknowledged that there are some positive images, which stress older people’s wisdom, expertise and experience, making them effective role models. The limited representation of middle-aged and older women on television was a key concern across all age groups. A notable category of media coverage of old age is the type of story in which a particular older individual is presented as a praiseworthy deviation from the norm. Examples can be found in the archives of Global Action on Aging, a non-profit organization that collects media coverage of ageing issues. They include a story from China headlined, “An 82-year-old man volunteered to pave a road,” 307 and a story from the United States entitled, “At 89, she steps lively in the name of volunteering.” 308 While appearing to be positive images of ageing, these stories rely on an assumption that the majority of older people are the opposite of the individuals featured. 102 Ageing in the Twenty-First Century: A Celebration and A Challenge
News, television, film and advertising commonly feature stereotypes that show ageing only through a lens of decline and diminished value, emphasizing the “burdens” of growing old. Use of such stereotypes – and negative language about ageing – shapes, reinforces and reflects society’s attitudes and responses to growing older and, by extension, to population ageing. The result, in many cases, is a low expectation of ageing that has an impact on all areas of life. Realistic images in Germany In response to demographic change in Germany and the need for a new assessment of ageing, the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth has launched an initiative, “New images of ageing”, which aims to promote active ageing and to develop realistic and diverse images of old age and ageing. The Ministry’s central concern is to help older people to live independently, to remain active and open to new experiences. Most older citizens do not want to withdraw from economic and social life. They want to remain active, and continue to share their experience and knowledge with other generations. The Federal Government is supporting initiatives that focus on “Experience is the future” and “The economic potential of ageing”, as well as “Education in the second half of life”. Emphasizing the importance of sport and exercise for older people, it is also backing the movement “Network 50-plus”. Source: Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, www.bmfsfj.de/BMFSFJ/Aeltere-Menschen/neue-bilder-vom-alter.html Voices of older persons Most of the older people who were consulted for this report stated that they are not well represented in the media, and that both old age and older people are often shown negatively. “The television always shows older people in very difficult situations.” Mozambique “The older people are shown in bright lights in the media; I do not feel I’m being discriminated against.” Brazil “Older people are presented as helpless and useless.” Moldova “In general, images of ageing are not so good. Everyone thinks that older people are stupid or have dementia – but not all of us are suffering from this.” Austria “The image and language used by the mass media in connection with older people is degrading and sketchy.” Chile Recording a radio programme in Haiti. Generally, older people are not well represented in the media. Government response A number of countries have national policies on ageing which include the promotion of positive images of older persons, such as Kenya, Mozambique, New Zealand, the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Saudi Arabia. Examples of measures and actions to generate positive images of ageing include the appointment of an Ambassador for Ageing and the Senior Australian of the Year Award in Australia; the Double Ninth Festival and local Senior Citizens’ Day celebrations in China; the Day of the Elderly and the Week of the Elderly in Finland; the Award for the Elderly and the Elderly- Friendly Local Government Award in Hungary; the National Older Persons’ Day and the International Day of Older Persons in Indonesia; the National Day to Honour Grandparents in Lebanon; the award of a national honorary senior fellow and the Brain Bank Volunteer Project in Thailand; and various special programmes on the Vietnamese VTV addressing ageing. Frédéric Dupoux/HelpAge International 103
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Ageing in the Twenty-First Century:
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Ageing in the Twenty-First Century:
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Contents 6 List of abbreviations 7
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Acknowledgements Acknowledgements O
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Preface This is a special year for
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HelpAge International Foreword Fore
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In 1950, there were 205 million per
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The way forward In many parts of th
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Chapter 1 of the report provides an
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Chapter 1: Setting the scene In 195
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Discussions with older people in So
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There are also marked sub-regional
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The difference between current life
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The implications of increasing life
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The challenges of population ageing
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The response: The Madrid Internatio
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When the law was passed we started
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Chapter 2: A fresh look at evidence
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I take care of eight grandchildren
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Older people in the Philippines mar
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Income security in old age The chal
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A major challenge in interpreting p
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social (non-contributory) pensions
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The global financial and economic c
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Table 2: Selection of social pensio
Page 51 and 52: South Africa’s Old Age Pension co
Page 53 and 54: I’m lucky to have a large pension
Page 55 and 56: Antonio Olmos/HelpAge International
Page 57 and 58: Computer training in Ireland. Rapid
Page 59 and 60: Transforming lives through literacy
Page 61 and 62: The rise of non-communicable diseas
Page 63 and 64: Dementia - a global concern Dementi
Page 65 and 66: Risk factors for chronic diseases T
Page 67 and 68: Many of the determinants of poor he
Page 69 and 70: Hospital care in Haiti. Older peopl
Page 71 and 72: Living longer with HIV Among infect
Page 73 and 74: Training of care providers and heal
Page 75 and 76: Age-friendly environments “Whatev
Page 77 and 78: Fixed-rate bus fares for people age
Page 79 and 80: In the UK, 45 per cent of 55-75 yea
Page 81 and 82: Workers in rural informal labour fo
Page 83 and 84: Urban life also has negative aspect
Page 85 and 86: Ageing and environmental change Cli
Page 87 and 88: A refugee in Dadaab, Kenya. A surve
Page 89 and 90: Global response In the past 10 year
Page 91 and 92: In Myanmar, volunteers from older p
Page 93 and 94: I give my mother my love “My moth
Page 95 and 96: Exposing elder abuse and discrimina
Page 97 and 98: Government response Few countries h
Page 99 and 100: Teresa Minja of the Tanzania Social
Page 101: On a different yet equally importan
Page 105 and 106: Chapter 3: A review of progress The
Page 107 and 108: At least 17 countries have approved
Page 109 and 110: Table 2: Examples of surveys and re
Page 111 and 112: In a few countries, including the D
Page 113 and 114: South Africa’s National Archives
Page 115 and 116: Residents and staff of a care home
Page 117 and 118: Regional preparations for the secon
Page 119 and 120: Regional Strategy for Implementatio
Page 121 and 122: Since 2011, Peru’s National Solid
Page 123 and 124: A great-grandmother in Viet Nam, wh
Page 125 and 126: In preparation for an analysis of p
Page 127 and 128: More specific recommendations are:
Page 129 and 130: service policies across sectors and
Page 131 and 132: In some countries, programmes to su
Page 133 and 134: Chapter 4: The voices of older pers
Page 135 and 136: Older persons’ responses to the M
Page 137 and 138: Health in older age Overall, partic
Page 139 and 140: In Kyrgyzstan, older people raised
Page 141 and 142: Some also refer to the shifting rel
Page 143 and 144: “Older people were also invited t
Page 145 and 146: “Older women can do many things.
Page 147 and 148: “Pension fund officers treat olde
Page 149 and 150: “In the past there was only one h
Page 151 and 152: “People with mental disorders are
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In various aspects of daily life, o
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Another barrier to tackling abuse -
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Based on these recommendations, a f
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Chapter 5: The way forward “Older
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concern in developed countries, whi
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Capacity development for an ageing
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Specific actions according to the P
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Percentage of total population aged
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7. Unemployment rate of older perso
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17. Number and proportion of public
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In most countries, it proved feasib
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30. OECD, Pensions at a Glance 2009
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156. UNAIDS, Together We Will End A
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286. US States Government Accountab
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UNFPA, the United Nations Populatio
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