WRITTEN QUESTION No. 26/98 by Ursula STENZEL to the Commission. Support for the disabled
Date: 1998-01-29
Institutions: European Parliament, STENZEL
Subjects: Austria, EU aid, EU policy, EU programme, Olympic games, disabled person, social integration, sport

C 223/88

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

17. 7. 98

In the case of the Kurdish asylum seekers, the Commission recalls that in 1997, for the first time, it implemented
a budget heading (B5-803) to improve the reception for asylum-seekers and displaced persons on the territory of
the  Member  States.  In  1997,  projects  were  financed  which,  although  they  were  not  specifically  targeted  at
asylum-seekers of any particular nationality, are also relevant in this instance. This budget heading has been
confirmed for 1998.

In the case of Kurds with refugee status, the Commission implemented budget heading B3-4113 aimed at the
integration of refugees for the first time in 1997. Sixty-two projects were co-financed, most of which concerned
all refugees in the Union (European level projects) or a given country or region (pilot projects). The Commission
followed its usual policy of giving priority to projects which (cid:145)pay particular attention to the situation in Member
States who have accepted a proportionally large number of refugees and/or with a proportionally high increase in
the number of refugees.(cid:146) This is the general context in which some of the projects adopted are specifically aimed
at the integration of Kurdish refugees, including a project presented by the Kurdish community in Germany. The
budget heading in question was confirmed for 1998, and the Commission plans to continue to give priority to
projects aimed at integrating refugees in the Member States or regions where there is a significant increase in
their numbers.

(1)  Para. 64.

(98/C 223/110)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0026/98

by Ursula Stenzel (PPE) to the Commission

(29 January 1998)

Subject: Support for the disabled

In 1998 Austria will be host to a unique event to promote the integration of the disabled. The Special Olympics
will  be  held  in  Vienna  from  20  to  26  June.  More  than  a  thousand  disabled  adults  and  young  people  from
14 nations will be taking part in this major sporting occasion.

Will the Commission be using this event as an opportunity to do more for integration of the disabled?

Will it be able to provide financial support for these Special Olympics?

What practical measures are planned to support the disabled in 1998?

Answer given by Mr Oreja on behalf of the Commission

(13 March 1998)

The  Commission  has  not  received  any  application  to  support  a  Special  Olympics  event  in  Austria  for  the
European programme for sports for people with disabilities 1998. Special Olympics are aware that applications
for 1998 should have been submitted to the Commission by 1st September 1997.

The Commission is indeed active in supporting the integration of the disabled and for the 1998 programme more
than 100 applications were received. The European committee on sports for people with disabilities (ECSPD),
which comprises representatives from sports organisations for the disabled from all the Member States, gave
advice on the applications received. The ECSPD has given a positive recommendation on 75 projects which the
Commission intends to support.