On the 9th February 2012 ENIL and the European parliamentary group GUE/NGL (European United Left/Nordic Green Left) held a hearing in the European Parliament. The purpose of this hearing was to show from a number of perspectives how people with disabilities are being negatively affected by the EU current austerity policies. 

This is the first time that ENIL has held a hearing in the European Parliament. ENIL presented its 'Proposal for a European Parliament Resolution' on the effect of the cuts. The hearing was received positively in the European Parliament and three Members of the Parliament participated in the hearing, Kartika Liotard, MEP, Netherlands, Cecilia Wikstrom, MEP, Sweden and Paul Murphy, MEP, Ireland. The hearing was streamed live and there was up to two hundred people watching online throughout the hearing, with approximately eighty people in the Parliament itself.  

Since 2006, 14 year old Giovanni has been in receipt of 70 hours of personal assistance per week and has chosen to have his personal assistance through the JAG cooperative. Just before Christmas the National Swedish Social Assurance Agency decided that he no longer qualifies for personal assistance. 

Giovanni depends on continuity because of his disability and he needs personal assistance to be able to manage his daily life.  With personal assistance, his daily life improved significantly, especially since Giovanni's personal assistants were educated in how to respond to his behaviour to minimize his self-harming when he is not feeling good.

Campaigners have handed the government a letter signed by hundreds of user-led organisations and disabled activists, in an effort to save the Independent Living Fund (ILF).

The letter, written by the campaign group Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC), warns that scrapping ILF would "wreck disabled people's lives" and push them into residential institutions rather than allowing them to live independently in the community.

Bulgaria has finally ratified the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities. After a long and hard battle for the human rights of many disabled people in Bulgaria, Parliament has taken this serious step and ratified the Convention. This historical moment for persons with disabilities in Bulgaria is the first step in finally recognising the rights of disabled people. NGO's in Bulgaria are now facing the long path ahead of enforcing the articles of the Convention as a real instrument for Independent Living and human rights. 

Letter about human rights violations in the Czech Republic in the so-called "Homes for the Elderly"

This letter is based on my personal experiences and findings in the so-called "Home for the Elderly" in Hermanuv Mestec, which is under the direction of the Prague Municipality.

People are placed in these "homes" without knowing what type of institution they are going to. There is no consideration of their age, health condition or their individual needs, which would allow them to continue living, wherever possible, a full life. The leadership of these Homes replaces this with paperwork, in the form of the so-called "individual plans for the clients". By being placed in the Home for the Elderly, the person - client is deprived of their human rights.

In the Home, whether in their own room or in the common areas, the mentally healthy client is often exposed to aggressive behaviour by other clients with mental health problems. Some of them are often under the influence of alcohol, even though they are prescribed various medications.

Any complaints about the services or the overall situation in the Home are dismissed by the leadership of the Home. Well founded criticism of the employees is seen as a personal attack...

"We would like to make you aware of current concerns that disabled people in Hungary are faced with. Recently the Hungarian Government changed the whole disability pension system, which will be a lot worse than the previous system especially for disabled people. The biggest changes are connected to the rights that arise from the pension system. According to the new system the 1st and 2nddisability groups will remain unchanged, but persons belonging to the 3rd group will be reviewed and according to the decision of the reviewing committee some of them will no longer receive the pension as they did according to the old system..."

Last 14th December 2011 in Trieste (Italy) was held a conference on IL, ENIL was represented there, here you have the report written by Danci Maraz from YHD: