Healthy Attitude Toward Special Needs
May 26 saw the signing of a memorandum between Ukraine’s Ministry for Labor and Social Policy and the United Nations Children’s Fund Office in Ukraine, On Mutual Understanding and Partnership to Assists Disabled Children.
In Ukraine, like in the rest of the world, there are more and more people with special needs. In Ukraine alone there are 153,000 disabled children. The government faces a challenge of ensuring conditions for the normal development of this category of children and their self-realization in the future. Jeremy HARTLEY, director of the UNICEF Office in Ukraine, kindly agreed to answer The Day’s questions.
“What do you think about the signing of the memorandum?”
“This event is a culmination of years of close cooperation between UNICEF and Ukraine’s Ministry for Labor and Social Policy. It happened on the eve of a major event, that is, the signing of a program document for 2003-2005 between UNICEF and the Ukrainian government. It is significant not only in terms of further deepening our cooperation and contacts, but it will also promote the creation of new rehabilitation centers for children with disabilities and improve the operational structure of these centers. We must identify the root cause of disabilities and develop preventive measures. In particular, we will work to detect disabilities developing during childbirth and study the causes of defects in the human body. We will raise the issue of the early rehabilitation of children. In our work we will be guided by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, in particular its Article 23 addressing the issues of disabilities in children. Physically or mentally impaired children deserve to be involved in all spheres of life. Their dignity must be protected, and they must get special care. From early childhood these children should be able to develop mentally and physically. We should confine our efforts to issues of the early social rehabilitation of children with disabilities through creating both governmental and non-governmental rehabilitation centers, their professional orientation and early professional training, along with developing a system of the integrated education and upbringing of children with special needs.
“It pleases me that the Ministry for Labor and Social Policy will soon create a special department to oversee issues of the early rehabilitation of disabled children, and all issues relating to disabled children will be the province of this department. UNICEF will assist the ministry and NGOs in their efforts to solve the mentioned problems.”
“What is the obstacle to the rehabilitation of handicapped children in Ukraine?”
“The issue of rehabilitating a disabled child is quite complex in itself. We are not talking merely of the social stigma attached to them, but about how a certain governmental or non-governmental organization can provide for adequate rehabilitation. We are talking about the efforts of governmental and non-governmental structures addressing this issue. We must not disregard the attitude of the healthy part of society toward the handicapped. This is a problem in itself. I believe that healthy Ukrainians are rather prejudiced against people suffering serious health problems. This attitude must be changed. Next week famous specialists in the sphere of addressing the attendant problems of disability will visit Ukraine. They will get to know Ukraine’s system of rehabilitating handicapped adults and children, then offer their recommendations, drawing on the positive experience of solving similar problems elsewhere. However, it is up to Ukrainians to decide which models of rehabilitation they want to introduce, considering the local conditions and mentality.”
“How big is the UNICEF aid package for Ukraine?”
“I cannot provide the exact amount of funds we will use for this purpose, but I would like to say this: if the funds prove insufficient, we will turn to sponsors. Aid will be increasing both for the projects already underway and for future ones. For disabled persons to be able to find jobs when they become adults, they must acquire job skills while they are still children. They should receive quality education.”
“Specifically for what purposes is UNICEF going to provide funding?”
“The money will be used to implement governmental and non-governmental projects to provide various kinds of assistance to make life easier for the handicapped. However, we are not talking about allocating money for privileges for this category of population. Only the projects will be funded. To introduce privileges and allocate money for them is the responsibility of the government.”
