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Mostly in bigger cities, parallel with the democratic changes in the Republic of Serbia at the beginning of 2000, the accessibility of human environment, especially for persons with disabilities, started to be dealt with. However, the focus of all these actions was exclusively on persons with disabilities (special design) rather than on all potential beneficiaries (design for all). Such access to the planning of our environment has not delivered feasible results and it has lead to specialized solutions for only certain group of people. The paper represents another attempt to point to the importance of accessibility as a characteristic of the environment important for all people, regardless of their physical, sensory, intellectual characteristics and/or their age. The concept "design for all" is presented as a model of planning and creating a person's environment that can contribute to the creation of "inclusive society", of special importance to persons with disabilities, and at the same time also to all other beneficiaries of public spaces, products, information and/or services. The new concept and actions was also supported by current changes in legislation of the Republic of Serbia which adopted very affirmative measures for increase in accessibility of the public environment.
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In the first part of text the author critically examines the officially accepted term persons with disabilities suggesting that it is not compatible with Serbian languages spirit. He points to the negative effects of too often repeated terminological revolutions: He concludes that there is need for a more cautious stance in accepting linguistically-based solutions for meta-language problems. The adequate conceptualization of disabled people's organizations goes far beyond the terminological level. The author has identified two possible meanings of the term: 1) organizations dealing with issues related to disability, particularly with promoting the entire social status of persons with disabilities; 2) Organizations whose members are exclusively disabled persons themselves or their legal representatives. The author has pointed that there is no correspondence between the two senses: there are organizations with no disabled members that successfully contribute in making the disability issues an integral and inevitable part of policy and public opinion-makers' agenda. The disabled people's organizations have no monopoly over disability issues. On the other hand, the organizations whose members are exclusively disabled persons need not to be confined in their activities within a disability horizon. The third part concerns with relationship between disabled people's organizations and entire NGO-sector.
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A social status and legal status of persons with disabilities should be exa-mined from a social model of interpreting disability. Persons with disabilities do not need pity but concrete support, primarily the one that refers to the realization of their basic human rights and freedoms. A precondition for the realization of human rights and the achievement of full equality of persons with disabilities is the existence of anti-discrimination legislation by which the mechanisms of protection in cases of discrimination based on disability are regulated in a precise manner. In addition to the adequate legal framework and anti-discrimination regulations, it is also necessary to adopt the Strategy on undertaking and affirmation of actions and measures for creating equal opportunities based on equality. Formulating and re a li zing this strategy is possible exclusively with the full participation of persons with disabilities. Such actualization of the rights of persons with disabilities and articulation of their interests at a state level can result in their better status in our society after a number of years. The anti-discrimination set of laws that have been adopted in Serbia in the last several years represents a solid legal framework for the realization of rights and equality of persons with disabilities. However, there is a discrepancy between a normative and actual status of persons with disabilities in Serbia. There will be no better living conditions and rights of persons with disabilities without the systematic education of our citizens and relevant social and political factors. The education of only those people who deal with this issue is not enough. Therefore, the normative illusions according to which the new legal regulation would automatically provide persons with disabilities with better conditions should be avoided. New legal regulation in this field is necessary but not sufficient. One should always have in mind that no person is a disturbance in terminology or in reality. A person is not limitation but opportunity and the difference between people should not be made, regardless of whether they have more or less prominent (dis)abilities.
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The lecture presents the results of a research in the social position of people with disabilities in Serbia from the theoretical framework of the so-called social constructivism. This theoretical approach advocates the view that disability is a phenomenon that cannot be separated from the historical, legal and social context, and that it is a problem that cannot be reduced to the primary health damage of individuals, but it discusses whether and to what extent the social environment is adjusted to different abilities of individuals. The participation in social life is therefore viewed as an indicator of the willingness of social environment to engage the available capacities of persons with disabilities. The commitment to this kind of interpretation of disability meant that the attitude of society towards people with disabilities in Serbia should be examined in several key areas, and the lecture presents the results of studying the life histories of thirty people with disabilities through the most important aspects of their interaction with the narrower and wider social environment. The analysis of these life histories has sown that the prejudices that are deeply rooted in the culture represent a key fact in the interpretation of the overall relationship of society to the studied population. Incompetence attributed by the environment is attached to disability as the primary damage. As a result, the generalization of the primary damage to the entire personality occurs. The outcome of the persistent preservation of prejudice is an environment which is unavailable, the exclusion from social life and the establishment of a social distance by the population majority. Moreover, it was found that the personal identity of people with disabilities is inextricably linked to their social identity. Thus, within the culturally and socially defined circumstances, a framework is created that (does not) allow individuals to develop their abilities and needs.
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Constitution of Republic of Serbia explicitly prohibits discrimination on basis of physical and intellectual disability. Law on Prevention of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities from 2006 and the general Law on Prohibition of Discrimination from 2009 provide the legislative framework for combating discrimination. Law on the Prevention of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities prescribes the general regime of the prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of disability, particular acts of prohibited discrimination, the procedure for legal protection of persons that have been subjected to illegal acts of discrimination, sanctions for perpetrators of particular acts of discrimination, and measures the state takes in order to promote the social integration of persons with disabilities. Serbia's general laws such as Labor Law, Law on University Education, Law on System of Education, Law on Professional Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities, and Law on Health Care also prohibit discrimination on grounds of disability. The laws on the prevention of discrimination against persons with disabilities are a necessary precondition for full social inclusion of those persons, but aren't the sole condition. States have to adopt legislation providing for measures for the equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities. When analyzing the legislation and policies which Serbia adopted over the past decade, one may reach a conclusion that a progress in equalization of opportunities provided to persons with disabilities has been made but much more has yet to be done to enable those persons to participate in all areas of social life on basis of equality with other citizens of Serbia.
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Maja Lukic, Damjan Tatic Summer school about the prevention of discrimination of persons with disabilities ................. 227 Ivana Krstic The protection of the rights of persons with disabilities (Damjan Tatic, The protection of the rights of persons with disabilities) ..................... 231 Svenka Savic The home for children and young people with disabilities (Milica Mirna Ruzicic, My picture, my story) .................. 235
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The status of persons with disabilities in the Serbian and Yugoslavian society have been shaped by contempt, the absence of moral relation between society and people in the condition of social needs, state policy and prejudice. A mixture and set of social prejudice towards persons with disabilities have been expressed through the disability language which has shaped the disconnection of persons with disabilities by labeling. Many of expressions have progressed from the description of a medical condition of a person with disability in the assortment of a language of obscenity and insults. Other terms do not leave the basic field of meaning but they describe disability as an integral part of a person. The disability language have been shaped by various ideologies which have been created based on religious, medical, language, even ethical preconceptions, that have indirectly influenced the prolongation of implementing the moral social policy towards per sons with disabilities.
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Even though persons with disabilities have all the rights set forth in the universal human rights instruments adopted under the auspices of the United Nations, they faced various barriers such as prejudice and discrimination in the attempts to exercise the above- mentioned rights. United Nations adopted a series of specific documents aimed at prescribing measures for the implementation of the rights of persons with disabilities. UN General Assembly unanimously adopted Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It was open for signature and ratification on March 30th 2007. The Convention that entered in force on May 3rd 2008. Republic of Serbia signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabllities and the Optional Protocol to it on December 17th 2007. After harmonizing the national legislation with the provisions of the Convention, Parliament of Serbia ratified the Convention and Optional Protocol to it on May 29th 2009. After depositing the instruments of ratification at the UN, Convention and Optional Protocol to it became legally binding international treaties between Serbia and other state parties on July 31st 2009. The purpose of this instrument of international public law is to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons with disabilities.
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