Following the anti-Government demonstration organised by the Gibraltar Disability Society outside the House of Assembly last Friday morning, the Gibraltar Local Disability Movement (GLDM) issued a statement today, in support of the Society.
The GLDM said they “fully support The Disability Society and what it is trying to achieve”.
In their statement, Gordon Nelson, spokesperson for the Disability Movement said that everyone has witnessed, in the past few weeks, the way the Government have dismissed protests from various groups in Gibraltar, labelling these as “unfair, unbalanced and demonstrably incorrect”.
Mr Nelson highlights examples such as Housing Minister Clive Beltran’s “system of allocating housing to the elderly and to applicants who are medically categorized ‘A’ ” along with the dismissal of the survey commissioned by the TGWU Nursing Section, “were government thinks it does not accord with reality”, and the Government’s opposition to the TGWU Branch Officer Charles Sisarello”.
Mr Nelson says the Disability Society “has made many repeated pleas and suggestions from the families of disabled people to the government about there despair on the situation on the services offered at respite services”.
“The GLDM think that to have the government come out and imply that The Disability Society is being unfair, unbalanced and demonstrably incorrect, is a lack of understanding of the lengthy discourse of people and family’s with a disability.
The GLDM think the reasoning or the ability to reason is in spoken language, is longer than the sentence for a disabled and can be made simple.
Government can give justification on many issues, but what it must understand is the reasoning in the behavior of The Disability Society.
If we think clearly and coherently it is clear that things must not be working well in our society.
Ministry of Social and Civic Affairs, if it was, we would have not experience the emotions of the demonstrators outside House of Assembly on Friday morning.”
Mr Nelson adds that “it is important that the system of protecting the quality of life in Gibraltar be given to all sectors in our community and not just the basics”.
“It is important that fundamental law be in place to protect the vulnerable, as a matter of principle.
Any philosophical ideas that government have, must be seen in action and not in the activity of process of thinking.”
The GLDM spokesperson calls for “the establishment of governmental structures” that can offer help and advice to disabled persons, in particular on how to access Social benefits. He says these functions and its recourses must be established, as required under the European Social Charter, 529 UNTS 89, in force since February 1965 and quotes the following articles:
Article 9 - The right to vocational guidance.
Article 14 - The right to benefit from social welfare services
Article 15 - The right of physically or mentally disabled persons to vocational training, rehabilitation and social resettlement
Article 16 - The right of the family to social, legal and economic protection
Mr Nelson says the Government’s disability policies must take account of all successive stages in the integration process and all areas of community life, such as prevention, diagnosis, treatment, education, vocational guidance and training, employment, social integration, information and research.
“Failure to protect the rights of citizens with disabilities and improve their opportunities is a violation of human dignity.”
Mr Nelson added that he hopes the promised statement by Government, concerning the recent discontent expressed by disability groups, will show a commitment from Government to improve its performance on disability issues. However, what he thinks it will say is “that they have been improving its service, with things like:
- New Swimming Pool exclusively for elderly and disabled.
- Gibraltar’s pavements have been made ‘disable friendly[’
- A ’shopmobility’ has been established
- That this government has spent more than the previous government.
- Disability Discrimination Act legislation.
Mr Nelson said they communicated with the Minister for Social Affairs in February about the implementation of the Disability Discrimination Act. The GLDM received a reply this month from Mr D. Hook, Private Secretary to the Chief Minister, informing the GLDM that a “Disability Discrimination Act legislation is being drafted. Mr Hook’s response said:
“We (the Government) hope to have it (Disability Discrimination legislation) on the statute book by December this year.
Mr Hook added that he has asked the Ministry of Social Affairs to “set out in detail the structure of disability rights and benefits as it exists in Gibraltar and we are still awaiting a reply from Ministry of Social Affairs”.
The Gibraltar Local Disability Movement thinks that the government have lost “what all governments must never lose, and that is its people”. Mr Nelson said:
“Government needs to be more accessible and approachable. Government ministers may think that all the unhappiness around us today is due to Opposition, but in the case of The Disability Society it can’t justify this context”.
Mr Nelson said “a special Swimming Pool may be opening this week but what the government should have done is make all Swimming areas accessible”.
“So that persons with a disability can enjoy a better social integration with its family members with the possibility of choice.
Preference is a right that all persons have, but when it comes to people who have a disability, society needs to be more aware.
No one can’t put the blame on our society, it must be a part of government program to endorse the disabled in all public areas, and government should be seen motivating better social integration for the disabled as an obligation and not as an honourable thing.
Recognition and principles to the disabled recognition in the integration in our society acceptance should have a legal status, and we hope that disability should not be class as when it was when in the world had discrimination on grounds of race.
Disability should not be but on any one of the groups into which the world’s population can be divided on the basis of physical characteristics, and should belong to a group of humans who share the same physical features, that of the right of social integration and inclusion.”
From The Gibraltar Local Disability Movement (GLDM) - Press Release - 30 May 2006
Related Articles and Links:
The European Social Charter - 529 UNTS 89,
Disability Awareness in Action (The international disability & human rights network) - UN Convention to Promote & Protect the Rights & Dignity of Persons with Disabilities
27 May 2006 - House Session greeted by Disabled demonstration
26 May 2006 - Social Affairs Ministry to issue statement on Disability issues discontent next week
26 May 2006 - Social Services agency needs a ’shake-up’ says Union
25 May 2006 - Ministry confirms pay will continue tied to absenteeism in Social Services Agency row
25 May 2006 - Del Agua ‘hysterical’ says Opposition
25 May 2006 - New Gibraltar Democracy calls for support for Disability protest
24 May 2006 - Disability Society launches protest over ‘failed’ services
19 May 2006 - Government announces new Swimming facilities for Disabled
17 May 2006 - GGR makes EU Report public
15 March 2006 - Caruana accused of playing politics with disabled
06 March 2006 - Disability Movement present Complaint Petition to EU Parliament
26 January 2006 - EU Commissioners to review Gibraltar’s exclusion from disabled passengers Air travel legislation
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View more images about the Disability Society anti-Government protest in our Gibraltar Pictures Gallery - Images courtesy of the Gibraltar Local Disability Movement - GLDM
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Investigating further, to their amazement, they learned that the owner of the car was none other than GSD MP Yvette Del Agua, currently the Minister for Health and Civil Protection in the Gibraltar Government.
It seems, apparently from what the Disabled child’s parents understand from Hospital sources, that when the Minister’s parking bay is being obstructed by other vehicles, Mrs del Agua sees fit to park her car in a disabled parking bay… as can be seen from the photographic evidence to that effect!
Equal Opportunities Ordinance
