There have been positive changes of late in dealing with the problems of the disabled and in ensuring the conditions for them to lead an active life. The public organizations and NGOs that are helping people with disabilities have woken up from a decade-long slumber.
Valdaiclub.com
interview with Ella Pamfilova, Russian politician, former Chair, Civil Society Institution and Human Rights Council under the President of the Russian Federation (2002-2010).
What is the government doing to help people with special needs?
The early 1990s was a difficult period, but it was then that the Presidential Council for People with Disabilities was established and active work in this sphere began. At that time, many Russians with special needs were veterans of the Afghan and other wars. Physically and morally strong and socially active, they created organizations that helped people with special needs and worked together with the authorities. Thanks to their efforts a number of government resolutions and laws were adopted to ensure people with disabilities a better environment for an active life, and to create a rehabilitation system for them.
Unfortunately, that project was curtailed after the adoption of a law that stipulated a transition from benefits in kind to cash payments, which actually tore Russia’s social environment apart. Many achievements and promises to create a barrier-free environment faded away. The policy of helping people with special needs ended in a fiasco.
There have been positive changes of late in dealing with the problems of the disabled and in ensuring the conditions for them to lead an active life. One possible explanation is the success of our Paralympians in London, which bolstered social and government efforts to help people with special needs. Considerable funds have been allocated to create a barrier free environment, inclusive education and distance learning. This change was promoted by increased Internet accessibility and the appearance of social networks, which simplified communication for people with special needs. The quality of technological and information standards has grown in Russia, and cooperation with foreign colleagues helps to accumulate the necessary experience in order to improve the situation. The public organizations and NGOs that are helping people with disabilities have woken up from a decade-long slumber.
What can you say about the achievements of our Paralympians in the past few years? The Russian team’s total scores over the past 12 years rose from 16th to 2nd place. What is the reason behind this incredible achievement?
I respect and admire Russian Paralympians, who work persistently towards their goals despite an everyday struggle and other difficulties. Such achievements at the Paralympic Games were due not to “the daily concern of the state,” as they used to say in the Soviet era – rather, they were in spite of everything. Our Paralympians won 2nd place in the team classification thanks solely to their hard work. They are incredibly courageous people with a will of iron. The government has only recently begun helping them, and it is thanks to their achievements that the government is doing this, rather than the other way around.
Are society and individual citizens contributing anything?
There have been achievements in this sphere, though not on the part of society as a whole, but rather from individual public organizations and the friends and relatives of people with special needs, who initiate actions to improve their situation. Things are being done only where they receive support from local authorities. As it is, it would be presumptuous to say that Russian society has achieved a lot, because it is passive, inert and indifferent.
What is your assessment of the government’s Accessible Environment program?
A few years ago I chaired a group of active members of society who were trying to help people with disabilities. In particular, wheelchair users met with high-ranking Moscow officials to sign an agreement under which people with disabilities are to check all new projects for creating a barrier free environment. This was done after many discrepancies between plans and reality had been exposed. For example, disabled access ramps that are available are impossible to use. Cooperation with authorities produced the desired effect: developers are working to ensure that their structures are accessible for people with disabilities. All future designs must not be abstract plans but should be created in cooperation with those who will use their buildings.
