By Cecilia Wikström MEP - 7th December 2011
People with disabilities need to be integrated in all parts of society instead of being hidden away in closed off institutions where they live in isolation from the rest of the world
Cecilia Wikström MEP
Cecilia Wikström is calling on Europe to shut down its institutional care centres and provide more freedom for people living with disabilities.
It is time to shut down the thousands of institutions in Europe where people with disabilities are held due to the lack of humane alternatives.
Europe is one of the richest parts of the world, and still a number of member states lack the capabilities to meet the needs of disabled people. Research has shown that no individuals, irrespective of their disability, benefit from living in institutions.
A study on life in the institutions was conducted on behalf of the European commission in 2003. A number of institutions in Europe were closely monitored and the results revealed a life of isolation and inactivity.
The institutions are understaffed and are therefore not able to offer sufficient social activities and rehabilitation. The environment in the institutions lacks the possibilities for privacy and integrity, and contact with family and society outside of the institutions is often limited or non existent.
The institutions tend to become closed societies where everything, such as hairdressers and dentists, are provided for. This is another reason why those living in institutions never need to leave. Persons held in institutions are in the hands of the staff, and we over and over hear stories of unacceptable methods to treat persons with disabilities.
The lack of insight in the institutions and the lack of understanding for persons with disabilities are also problems that we need to eliminate.
Few states offer alternatives to institutional care, which in practice means that the family has to take a great responsibility. For many families an institutional solution is the only option. In many countries the institutions are so full that families are forced to leave their children in institutions far away from home and far away from the safe life that they are used to.
If societies would offer solutions, such as personal assistance and help in everyday life, many children would be able to grow up with their families instead of in an institution. This is a reality in Sweden and Norway, but so far nowhere else.
No-one wants to live like this. Not you. Not me. So why do we accept that the most vulnerable people in our societies do?
The UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities, article 19, calls on states to make sure that a person with disabilities has the same options regarding where and how they should live, and with whom they want to live. The right to individual freedom and non-discrimination of minorities is also stated in the EU treaties and the conventions on human rights.
This is, however, not a reality in Europe today. People with disabilities need to be integrated in all parts of society instead of being hidden away in closed off institutions where they live in isolation from the rest of the world.
To fulfil the fundamental rights of persons with disabilities we still have a long way to go. I therefore call on Europe to shut down these institutions and instead offer personal assistance for a better and freer life for all individuals – irrespective of their disabilities.
Cecilia Wikström is a member of parliament's disability intergroup bureau
