SPRING 2013
Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
Issue 10
Topic of the issue: Elections
EDITORIAL Dear readers, We decided to dedicate this issue of the newsletter to elections. Since elections for the European Parliament are behind us, and local elections are coming up, it will be good to get information on elections. Some self-advocates voted for the first time so they shared their experiences with us. Kind regards!
TOPIC OF THE ISSUE: ELECTIONS Elections are a just and fair way to choose persons who will be in power and who will make decisions which concern us and our country. Those persons are called politicians.
Editor Senada Halilčević Journalists Hrvoje Forner Snježana Kanjir Fadil Špuren Nera Bajzec Assistants Ivana Bašić Sanja Hotko Damjan Janjušević Ivana Poslon Hrvoj This newsletter was supported by a grant from the Open Society Fundations.
Every Croatian citizen gets voting rights when he or she turns 18. Voting rights mean that voters have the right and freedom: • to choose politicians who will govern in their name • or to stand for election themselves. We choose politicians for a certain period of time. This period of time is called a mandate. In the presidential election we choose a president of the Republic of Croatia for a period of 5 years. We also choose Croatian representatives to European Parliament for a period of 5 years. In the parliamentary election we choose representatives to Croatian Parliament for a period of 4 years.
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Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
Every 4 years there are local elections and elections for local self-government. Local elections will be this year in May. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities says that persons with disabilities have the right to participate in elections. Participating in elections must be easy so that persons with disabilities could participate in elections. Persons with disabilities have the right to vote how they want. No one can force them to vote for a candidate or political party if they do not want to. Persons with disabilities who participate in elections have the right to help and adaptation during voting. For example: if you cannot read, you can take someone with you to help you circle the person you want to vote for. The fight is not over yet Now it is time for relevant institutions like State Electoral Commission and Ministry of Administration to ensure conditions for persons with intellectual disabilities to vote when they come to the polling station. Written by Senada HalilÄ?ević and Sanja Hotko
SITUATION IN THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA A year and a half ago in the Voice of Self Advocates we wrote that persons deprived of legal capacity cannot vote because they do not have the right to vote.
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This year it is different because self-advocates together with association GONG fought for the right to vote for all persons deprived of legal capacity. Voting list is the collection of all information on all voters. A voter can realize his or her right to vote after he or she is registered on the voting list. The law says that from now on persons deprived of legal capacity are also voters and they will be registered on the voting list. Every voter can check if he or she is registered on the voting list and what his voting rights are. You can check at the website of the Ministry of Administration: https://biraci.uprava.hr/ Written by Senada HalilÄ?ević
GOOD EXAMPLES FROM EUROPE In Europe many persons still do not have the right to vote because they were deprived of legal capacity. However, in some countries, like in Croatia, persons deprived of legal capacity have the right to vote. Those countries are: Austria, Italy, Ireland, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Finland. To allow persons with intellectual disabilities to vote equally to other citizens, they need support and adapted information. Information needs to be written in a simple way and give different examples from everyday life.
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Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
In 15 European countries there is easy to read information on voting and elections. In 2009 Inclusion Europe wrote an easy to read brochure on elections which was translated into 13 European languages. The brochure explains: • why voting is important • what kinds of elections there are • how to vote • how to find the results of voting. Self-advocates from Great Britain made an easy to read website on voting. They put short videos which show how to vote and what kinds of elections there are on the website. Self-advocates from Scotland had several workshops on voting. Workshops were for persons with intellectual disabilities who participated in elections for the first time. In several European countries there were campaigns and advocacy activities for accessible elections. In France and Scotland guidelines were made for politicians to make their campaigns more accessible for persons with intellectual disabilities. In Great Britain 3 main political parties wrote their programs in easy to read form. Written by Ivana Poslon Hrvoj
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Elections of Croatian representatives to the European Parliament The first election of Croatian representatives to the European Parliament was in April. In this election Croatian citizens chose their representatives to the European Union Parliament for the first time. This is an important election because persons deprived of legal capacity could realize their right to vote for the first time. Election was held because Croatia will join the European Union on 1 July 2013. European Union is a community which assembles European countriesto develop economy, increase employment and better protect the rights and interests of citizens. European Parliament is an important European Union body. It is often said that the European Parliament is the voice of the people. That means that the European Parliament protects the interests of citizens of European Union countries. For example, citizens can write a petition to ask the Parliament to investigate if the other European Union bodies are working properly and if some citizens' right was violated. European Parliament has important duties: • it adopts European laws • it monitors the work of the European Commission • it decides on the budget of the European Union. Each country elects a number of representatives to European Parliament which corresponds to the number of inhabitants of that country. So countries with less inhabitants have less representatives, and countries with more inhabitants have more representatives. There are 766 members in the European Parliament. Croatia elected 12 members to the European Parliament.
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Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
Since we are not a European Union member yet, only Croatian citizens elected their representatives to the European Parliament. Usually elections are held every 5 years at the same time in all countries which are members of the European Union. Those are regular elections. The next regular elections will be in 2014. Members of the European Parliaments sit in 7 political groups. Some of those groups are Eurooptimistic, which means that they support European Union policies. Some groups are Eurosceptic, which means that they are against decisions made in the European Union. Meetings of all members of the European Parliament are held in Strasbourg in France. Written by Sanja Hotko Experiences of self-advocates from the first elections where they could realize their right to vote For me this was the first election where I could vote. When I gave my identity card, I was happy that the member of electoral board found me on the list of voters. There were many candidates in the ballot, so I took my assistant with me to help me circle the list and candidate I decided to vote for. Nenad Sekušak I went to the election, but I did not go alone. I had support because it was my first time voting. I made the decision who I wanted to vote for earlier and I was happy when I circled my candidate. Ivo Pala
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Elections were organized before in our center for rehabilitation, but this was the first election where I could vote. electoral board explained what I had to do. I would like the letters in the ballot to be bigger in the next election so it would be easier for me to read them. Tamara Kolak I went to vote right after I had my morning coffee. I was proud that my vote also counts now. Monika Mihelec Local elections Only a month after elections for Croatian representatives to European Parliament, we have a new opportunity to vote. It is time for local elections. Local elections will be on 19 May 2013. In the local elections we have the opportunity to choose politicians who will represent our interests in the area where we live. The area where we live can be a municipality, town or county. That is why in local elections you only have the right to vote in the municipality, town or county where your address is. A municipality is an area smaller than a town. A town is a place which has more than 10 thousand inhabitants. A county is an area which includes several districts and towns. In Croatia there are 20 counties and the City of Zagreb which has the status of a county.
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Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
Municipalities are governed by municipal council and municipal prefect, and towns by town council and the mayor. Counties are governed by county council and county prefect. In local elections we will choose representatives to municipal council, city council and county assembly, as well as municipal prefect, mayor and county prefect. Citizens of the City of Zagreb will choose their representatives to City Assembly because Zagreb has the status of a county. We choose all of them for a period of 4 years. Municipal council, town council and county assembly decide on budget of a district, town and county, and on other issues important for districts, towns and counties, like: • social care • health care • education • physical planning • public transportation • cleaning • culture • sports. Municipal chief, mayor and county prefect are in charge of implementing decisions made by municipal council, town council and county assembly. Written by Snježana Kanjir and Sanja Hotko How to decide who to vote for You have the right to vote for any candidate or political party that stands for election. However, you should be informed before you go to elections.
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That way you can give your vote to the candidate or political party that advocate things which are especially important to you. There are several ways to find information on what candidates advocate. One of them is to follow election campaign on television, radio, election rallies, election leaflets and newspapers. During the election campaign candidates present their programs and try to get as many votes as they can. However, you need to be careful. During the election campaign candidates and political parties often make big promises to get more votes. That is why you should get information in other ways as well. For example, you can talk to persons close to you and ask their opinion on candidates and political parties. You can talk to family members, relatives, friends and other people you trust. Written by Snje탑ana Kanjir and Sanja Hotko
NEWS Public performance Welcome into my shoes On 30 January 2013, Coalition for Community Living held a public performance called Welcome into my shoes. Coalition for Community Living assembles 7 associations which work on protecting the rights of persons with disabilities. Association for Self Advocacy is also a member of this Coalition.
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Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
The Coalition had a public performance in Zagreb to warn about the prejudice towards persons with disabilities. Celebrity guests participated in the event to support the Coalition. Guests had the roles of persons with disabilities. Some of the guests were actors Nikša Marinović and Luka Vidović and singer Jelena Radan. In this way, Coalition sent the message that persons with disabilities in Croatia unfortunately do not have the same opportunities like other people. Written by Ivana Poslon Hrvoj Conference on easy to read materials On 22 February 2013, Association for Self Advocacy organized a national conference on easy to read materials and involving persons with intellectual disabilities in lifelong learning programs. It was one of the activities in the project Pathways 2. Association for Self Advocacy is a partner in this project together with Inclusion Europe. At the conference, self-advocates and assistants from the Association presented brochure in Croatian created in this project. Titles of the brochures are: • Information for all • Do not write for us without us • Training lifelong learning staff • Teaching can be easy. You can find the brochures on our website in the section Our materials.
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Self-advocate from France Fabrice Vannobel spoke at the conference. He talked about the way easy to read materials are used in France. Other experts in the field of education and disability spoke at the conference. Representative of the Delegation of European Union Paolo Berizzi also spoke at the conference. Together we concluded that unfortunately in Croatia there are no lifelong learning programs for persons with intellectual disabilities. However, we hope that our conference contributed to starting such programs in the future. Written by Ivana Poslon Hrvoj Study visit of self-advocates from Sarajevo In March we had a visit from guests from organization Sumero from Sarajevo. Self-advocates Zlatan, Rasim, Adis and Ismar, ZABAVNIK and their assistants Amila and Vedrana visited us. We presented the work of our association and talked about self-advocacy and self-determination. We presented our brochures, newsletter, website and Facebook page. Guests joined a meeting of our self-advocates. We saw a video about how some persons with intellectual disabilities in Bosnia and Herzegovina live in institutions, and some live in the community. We agreed that we have similar problems. Our guests especially liked that we succeeded in our fight for the right to vote, which they will use as an example of good practice for their fight because in Bosnia and Herzegovina persons deprived of legal capacity still do not have the right to vote. Written by Fadil Ĺ puren
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Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
Trainings on self-determination and self-advocacy From January to March 2013, Association for Self Advocacy held 3 trainings on self-determination and self-advocacy. We held trainings for employees of Centre for rehabilitation Stančić and Centre for rehabilitation Zagreb. We told them why it is important for persons with intellectual disabilities to make decisions about their life as much as possible and about their rights. Trainings were part of the project Providing support in the process of transforming two state institutions for persons with intellectual disabilities. The project is implemented by Association for Promoting Inclusion. Written by Ivana Poslon Hrvoj News on project GONG There was no easy to read information on the right to vote for persons deprived of legal capacity. Many persons deprived of legal capacity did not know that they got the right to vote or did not know how to realize their right to vote. That is why Association for Self Advocacy in cooperation with association GONG, made a brochure on elections in easy to read. We also made a leaflet with instructions on how to vote in elections, and we made a video as well. Written by Senada Halilčević Filming a TV video In the project Achieving the right to vote for persons with intellectual disabilities which we are implementing together with association GONG, self-advocates filmed a TV video My vote, my strength.
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We made the video to inform all persons deprived of legal capacity that they can go to elections and vote now. Filming the video was not as easy as we thought. We made the video for several cold and rainy days. We had to repeat the scenes until every little thing was as the screenwriter imagined it. Although this was not the first time filming a video for some self-advocates, it was a little hard for all of us. But our efforts paid off because the message we conveyed was important for all citizens. Written by SnjeĹžana Kanjir Workshop before elections to European Parliament On Friday before elections we had a workshop to prepare with what would happen on Sunday. Elections to the European Parliament were more difficult because they were the first European elections. There were many lists of candidates and candidates. The workshop had a busy atmosphere. We all listened carefully, participated and asked questions. We said what is the European Union and what is European Parliament. We made a list of all parties and candidates which stood for election. We practiced how to fill out a valid ballot. We emphasized that polls were opened from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and that we had to take an identity card so that electoral board can find our name in the list of voters. Written by Fadil Ĺ puren
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Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
ANNOUNCEMENT Conference Europe in Action Conference Europe in Action will be held from May 29 until June 1 in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Inclusion Europe will organize this conference. Topic of the conference is ageing of persons with intellectual disabilities and their families. Participants will talk about problems which persons with intellectual disabilities and their families face when they grow old. Experts and self-advocates will discuss politics and laws which can help elderly persons with intellectual disabilities and their families. They will also talk about what kind of support persons with intellectual disabilities and their families need. General assembly of EPSA will be held during the conference. Written by Ivana Baťić
KUTAK ZA SAVJETE
FUN PAGES SPORTS Qualifications for World Championship 2014 Qualifications for the football world championship started in September. Croatia played 6 matches. That means that there are 4 matches left.
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Those are Croatia – Scotland 7 June 2013 Serbia – Croatia 6 September 2013 Croatia – Belgium 11 October 2013 Scotland – Croatia 15 October 2013 I hope we will be first in our group. Right now Belgium is in the 1 place, and we are in 2 place with 16 points. Written by Nera Bajzec SEARCH GRAD OPĆINA ŽUPANIJA DRŽAVA
EUROPSKI PARLAMENT ZASTUPNIK GONG
Created by Ivana Bašić
KUTAK ZA SAVJETE QUIZ
Which election was in April? a) presidential
b) to European Parliament
c) to Croatian Parliament
What is on 22 April? a) 1 day of summer
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b) Christmas
c) Earth Day
Newsletter of the Association for Self-Advocacy
ADVICE CORNER QUESTION
I have a big problem. Sometimes I feel like my girlfriends does not care about me. We only see each other when she wants to, we go where she want and we do what she wants. She never wants to do something I suggest. I love my girlfriend, but I do not like her behavior. ANSWER
Did you tell your girlfriend that you do not like that? Why does she want to decide on everything? It is ok that you want to make some decisions on how you spend your time together. Think about what you want to change and talk to her about it. If nothing changes, maybe you should think about whether you want to be with a person who does not care about your opinion.
CONTACT US
Bleiweisova 13, 10 000 Zagreb Phone: 01 555 66 80, Fax: 01 555 66 89 E- mail: kontakt@samozastupanje.hr Visit our web site: www.samozastupanje.hr or visit us on Facebook!