Common voice network | Final Conference | Policy paper

The Common Voice Network project was finalized

On 11 Sept 2009 in Budapest, the CVN project final conference was conducted. Agency for Social development Vision was involved as a partner in this project.

The project implementation began in October 2008. The main objective of the project was to develop proposals for the decrease of discrimination measures against people with intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities and autism. As a basis for these proposals we carried out an international research about the anti-discrimination legislation and its implementation in the partner countries- Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Macedonia and Romania.

As a result of the desktop research we found many different problems in the national regulations and we highlighted those parts of the national regulations that are not harmonized with the EU legislation. Specific proposals were formulated in the Policy Paper we compiled and through which the national legislations should develop, in order to enhance the implementation and observation of the rights of persons with disabilities.

The international partnership established during the project implementation includes national networks which actively represent the users and service providers in their country. Therefore the aim of the international partnership, with its common voice as an international network is to be such a lobbying force in Eastern Europe that could successfully contribute, at national and international level, for the recognition of the rights of persons with intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, autism etc.

Amongst the main activities carried out during the lifetime of the project were:

1. Establishment of partnerships
2. Establishment of informal international network
3. Realization of a desktop research on the international anti-discrimination legislation
4. Virtual skype meetings
5. Implemented 2 discussion and exchange of good practices and anti-discrimination lobby methods fora
6. Lobby planning
7. Preparation of Policy Paper which summarizes the results of the desktop research and formulates proposals based on these results

The most important conclusions of the Policy Paper are:

1. The national level anti-discrimination legislation should be examined specifically focusing on the target group in the case of EU-member countries concerning whether they comply with the EU directives or not.
2. The EU-member countries have to put more emphasis on ensuring that the EU directives would appear in all fields of law and that they could be implemented when adapting the EU-level anti-discrimination legislation in their own national legislation.
3. In favour of enforcing the rights of the target group, the concept of disability should be standardized.
4. Regarding the target group it is in crucial importance that the requirement of accessibility and reasonable accommodation would be adapted and implemented in the national legislation. Furthermore, it is also necessary to state and support with the appropriate system of sanctions that the violation of these means is discrimination.

The complete text of the Policy Paper