FIMITIC

 Â“TOWNS FOR ALL”
THE FIRST NATIONAL PUBLIC CAMPAIGN ON ACCESSIBILITY
developed with the financial support of the  
 EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
PUBLIC AFFAIRS SECTION, BUCHAREST, ROMANIA

The Manifesto of Accessibility

CREATING ACCESSIBILITIES
A REAL APPLYING  OF SOCIAL INTEGRATION OF DIFFERENCES, OF EQUALIZATION OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

Creating accessibilities within all the aspects of our lives – professional, social and cultural – constitutes the basic condition for the integration of persons with disabilities.

We think that the time has come to develop a culture of accessibility in Romania which includes the problems of persons with difficulties of access to information, of space and time representation, of interrelation and understanding, of being independent and of moving.

Accessibility starts with legislation meaning that all the normative deeds regarding education, social integration and culture have to mention that persons with disabilities have free access to all the component parts of life as well as to mention that every enclosures represent a contravention which is punished, and the State starts a law suit against the institution that breaks the legal provisions.

Accessibility means adapted information through: audio-visual, newspapers, magazines, books – for persons with disabilities with low capacity of understanding. As well as different symbols displayed in public locations constantly looked up, locations that persons with disabilities and not only could learn about starting with the early schooling period within the “education for all” program.

Accessibility means basic education in order to form the capacity to become „one’s own advocate” for „success”.

Accessibility means adapted means for feeding, hygiene, household, transportation, entrances to public institutions, shops and stores, stadiums, swimming pools, platforms, etc. – it means to want to go out from „home”, to want and to be able to set up social relationships.

Accessibility means to „engage in dialogues with decision makers”, representation through vote within local bodies that make decisions, that means a socialized exercise if it is proclaimed.

Accessibility means to elaborate guides, maps, and brochures to provide information for all domains including oversimplified prospects of medicine for a large understanding and their dissemination across the whole country.

Accessibility means an integral change of the mentality of the public officer, of the „organizational culture” in order to have a „respectful dialogue” speaking simple adequate language – using images or schemes if necessary, with a body position that inspires trust, with friendly intonation, inside the office and not on the corridors or halls. etc.

„The local actors” have to be convinced to also include needs of persons with disabilities in their local and community policy regarding education, employment, housings, transportation, medical care and social services, taking into consideration all types of disabilities.

Thus, accessibility needs to put in practice a set of indicators regarding a real social integration of the differences as a strategy to change attitudes which is the responsibility of the national and local public authorities and of the civil society as well.

The European Year of People with Disabilities –2003 should be a start in the agenda of all those who deal with disability issues in Romanian and this suppose an active support through a large collaboration of all involved bodies.

Bucharest, July 11, 2003

This Manifesto was adopted by the member associations of the Association of Persons with Neuromotor Disability from Romania (AHNR) and the Association of the National Network of Information and Collaboration for the Integration in the Community of Children with Special Educative Needs from Romania (A-RENINCO-R) – partners within the project  “Towns for all” and it was agreed by the International Federation of Persons with Physical Disability (FIMITIC), by all nongovernmental organization of persons with disabilities, specialists and experts participating in the seminar.