Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the "Proposal for a Council Decision on the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003"
Date: 2001-10-17
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: European symbol, disabled person, discrimination based on disability, equal treatment, public awareness campaign, social integration

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Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a Council Decision on the
European Year of People with Disabilities 2003’

(2002/C 36/15)

On 28 June 2001, the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Article 262
of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned proposal.

The Section for Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship, which was responsible for preparing the
Committee’s work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 3 October 2001. The rapporteur was Mr Cabra
de Luna.

At its 385th plenary session of 17 and 18 October 2001 (meeting of 17 October) the Economic and
Social Committee adopted the following opinion unanimously.

1.

Introduction

There are currently 37 million disabled people in the
1.1.
European Union (1) who continue to face environmental,
social, economic and cultural barriers in their daily lives. In
addition, the pressure to promote a barrier free Europe will
intensify with an ageing population; in 2020 over one in five
of the population of the EU will be over sixty years of age.

The European Year of People with Disabilities 2003
1.2.
will provide an important opportunity to raise awareness of
disability issues and of the diversity of the disability movement.
It is an opportunity to make disabled people and the barriers
they face more visible in society (2). It will draw the attention
the general public to the significant and wide-spread
of
environmental, procedural and attitudinal barriers disabled
people face in their daily lives. The European Year can lead to
the improvement of attitudes by society and reinforce political
commitment for concrete measures to promote the equalis-
ation of opportunities for people with disabilities in the EU.

To make integration of disabled people in society a
1.3.
reality requires the involvement of all European actors,
especially the social partners who have a major role to play in
improving attitudes held by society, particularly vis-à-vis the
labour market and other related fields such as education and
vocational training.

Education is the key to ensuring a person’s success in social
integration, including the labour market. Disabled children
and young people face discrimination in access to education
and training systems at all levels, and as a result receive a

substandard education. This problem must be overcome, and
more effort must be made by policy makers and education
professionals to promote the integration of disabled children
and young people into mainstream education. An integrated
approach benefits both non-disabled and disabled children
alike and provides an important means to break down
attitudinal barriers towards disabled people in society.

1.4.
The year 2003 marks an important milestone for
disabled people as the 10th anniversary of the United Nations
Standard Rules on the Equalisation of Opportunities for
disabled people (3) which led to political recognition and
advocacy for the human rights and social model of disability
as opposed to the medical model which presented people with
disabilities as passive recipients of aid.

1.4.1.
The human rights and social model of disability
is reaffirmed by the Council Resolution (4) and European
Commission communication on the equality of opportunity
for people with disabilities of 1996 (5) and is supported by the
Committee’s Report of November 1996 (6).

1.4.2.
The UN Standard Rules and the supporting EU
positions make explicit the essential need to promote the full
involvement of representatives of people with disabilities and
their families in all decisions that concern them. No decisions
or actions concerning disabled people should be undertaken
without the full involvement and consultation of them and
their families via their representative organisations both of the
local, regional, national and European non-governmental
organisations, without prejudice to the relevant role of other
representative entities.

(1) European Commission communication ‘Towards a Barrier Free

Europe for People with Disabilities’ COM(2000) 284 final.

(2) A report presented at the European Day of Disabled People in
1995 defined the status of disabled people in the European Union
as that of invisible citizens.

(3) UN Resolution 48/96, 20 December 1993.
(4) OJ C 12, 13.1.1997.
(5) COM(96) 0406.
(6) OJ C 66, 3.3.1997.

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1.5.
The European Commission recently published the Euro
barometer Survey (April 2001) (1) which identifies that six
Europeans in ten know someone with a disability and 97 % of
respondents think that something more should be done to
ensure better integration of disabled people into society.

1.6.
The aims and objectives for the proposal for the
European Year of People with Disabilities 2003 are also
consistent with those of the European employment and social
inclusion strategies which seek to promote measures which
will accelerate full and equal integration of disabled people
into the labour market and into society.

1.7.
Article 13 of the EC Treaty on non-discrimination
provides the clear legal base for the proposal for a European
Year of People with Disabilities in 2003. Article 13 of the TEC
states that ‘the Council, acting unanimously on a proposal
from the Commission and after consulting the European
Parliament, may take appropriate action to combat discrimi-
nation based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief,
disability, age or sexual orientation’.

1.7.1.
The Committee recognises that the European Year
for People with Disabilities in 2003 will facilitate effective
implementation of the general framework Directive for equal
treatment in employment and occupation non-discrimination
2000/78/EC (2) and complements the activities supported by
the Community programme to support legislative measures at
Community and Member State level set up by the Council
Decision 2000/750/EC (3).

The European Year of People with Disabilities 2003
1.7.2.
would promote the principles set down in the Charter of
Fundamental Rights (4). Article 21 of the Charter of Fundamen-
tal Rights of the European Union prohibits discrimination
based on grounds of disability, among others, and Article 26
provides explicit recognition of the rights of persons with
disabilities and the need to ensure their independence, social
and occupational integration and participation in the life of
the community.

The

European

1.7.3.
communication
‘Towards a barrier free Europe for people with disabilities’ (5)
presents commitments to developing and supporting a com-
prehensive and integrated strategy to tackle social, architectural

Commission

(1) Euro barometer Report 54.2 (April 2001).
(2) OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 16.
(3) OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 23.
(4) OJ C 364, 18.12.2000, pp. 1-22.
(5) COM(2000) 284 final.

and design barriers which restrict access for disabled people to
social and economic opportunities. The European Parliament
Resolution (6) on this European Commission communication
pressed for a strengthening of
its commitments towards
disabled people in relation to areas such as freedom of
movement legislation, access to the built environment and
goods and services. The European Year of People with
Disabilities 2003 will provide an important means to launch
commitments made by the European Commission in this
communication.

2. Summary of the Commission proposal

2.1.
The European Commission proposal for the European
Year of People with Disabilities 2003 states that the aim of
this European Year is to raise awareness and reinforce political
commitment towards measures to promote equal oppor-
tunities for people with disabilities across Europe.

2.1.1.
Disabilities 2003 are the following:

The Objectives of the European Year of People with

— to raise awareness of the rights of disabled people to
protection from discrimination and equality of oppor-
tunities as laid down in the Charter of Fundamental
Rights;

— to encourage ideas and initiatives to promote equal

opportunities for disabled people in Europe;

— to reinforce the cooperation between all parties con-
cerned, namely government, private sector, community,
voluntary sector, people with disabilities and their fam-
ilies;

— to promote exchange of experience and good practice
and effective strategies at local, national and European
level to promote full and equal integration of disabled
people in society;

— to highlight the positive contribution that people with

disabilities make to society; and

— to raise awareness about the heterogeneous nature of
disability and issues relating to multiple discrimination
faced by people with disabilities.

(6) Resolution on Towards a Barrier Free Europe for People with

Disabilities A5-0084/2001.

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2.2. Member States will be responsible for the coordination
and implementation at national level of the activities of the
European Year of People with Disabilities 2003 and shall
coordinating body to undertake
designate
implementation activities at national
level. This national
coordination body will ensure that it is representative of a
range of organisations representing people with disabilities
and other relevant stakeholders.

a national

2.3.
The work of the European Commission in managing
the European Year of People with Disabilities 2003 shall be
assisted by an Advisory Committee composed of representa-
tives from the Member States and Chaired by the Commission.
This Advisory Committee will receive regular information
from the Commission services on the operation of activities
and will evaluate its progress.

The European Year of People with Disabilities 2003
2.4.
will be open to the participation of the EFTA/EEA countries
and the candidate countries in accordance with the respective
EEA Agreement and the Europe Agreements.

2.5.
The European Year will be subject to a final evaluation
the results of which to be submitted by 31 December 2004;
the evaluation being performed by external evaluators whose
work will begin from early 2003.

3. General comments

3.1.
The Committee welcomes this proposal for a European
Year of People with Disabilities 2003 as an important idea
which would take place at an appropriate time in the history
and development of work for disabled people at European
level.

3.2.
The European Year events should secure the full
involvement of people with disabilities and parents of disabled
people unable to represent themselves and ensure that their
representative NGOs are involved in the decision making
processes of the European Year events.

ment. The European Year needs to sensitise the public to this
and also to raise awareness about multiple discrimination
faced by disabled people from ethnic minorities, for example,
or disabled women which is also ignored.

The Committee recognises that integration of disabled
3.4.
people into mainstream employment
is beneficial to the
dynamism of the labour market as a whole, reduces the level
of demand for social security support and opens up the pool
of recruitment,
tapping into a much under-utilised skills
resource. By increasing employment opportunities it also
increases the spending power of disabled people and the
breadth of capacity on the part of consumers.

There must be full participation of

the accession
3.5.
countries and their respective representative disability organis-
ations in the European Year activities. Given that they are to
accede to the European Union in the near future,
their
involvement is absolutely necessary to promote integration,
capacity building, civil dialogue and political representation of
disabled people in these countries.

3.6.
The Committee strongly supports the European Com-
mission’s emphasis on the building of partnerships which are
absolutely necessary if the results from the European Year
activities are to have a long term effect. The Committee
recognises that there has to be full commitment and partner-
ship of all key actors in society: EU institutions, Member State
governments, regional and local government, social partners
and NGOs in the implementation of Year activities and would
emphasise the particular need to generate involvement of
sectors and actors, including public authorities, not tradition-
ally involved in disability issues.

One of the main challenges of the European Year is to reach
out to all citizens and the role regional and local networks can
play in this is vital.

The Committee considers essential the need to high-
3.3.
light the diverse and heterogeneous nature of disability and
recognise the particular issues around multiple discrimination.
Society often ignores the fact that disability is made up of a
number of different impairment groups and that issues for
persons with sensory impairment are not the same of those
persons with a physical impairment or an intellectual impair-

3.7.
The Committee considers the success of the European
Year and the means to secure the sustainability of positive
developments arising from the European Year will only be
possible with the full involvement of the social partners in the
process. The social partners have an important role to play in
shaping attitudes and facilitating integration of vulnerable
groups, therefore the commitment of the social partners in
activities to promote integration and positive attitudes of
disabled people is absolutely necessary.

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3.8.
The Committee welcomes the support of the EU for
the organisation of a Ministerial Conference organised with
the Council of Europe as part of the European Year activities.
This is an important way to engage countries beyond the EU
in commitments towards the full integration of disabled people
into society.

3.13.
Access for disabled people to the information society
is an important example of how mainstreaming is essential to
the securing of social and economic integration of disabled
people. In this new knowledge and information led society
where social and economic integration depend increasingly
upon use of new information and communication tech-
nologies, disabled people must be fully involved in the
development of this new information age and must not be left
behind.

3.9.
The Committee is aware of the work undertaken by
the UN Human Rights Commission to further the protection
of human rights of disabled people. The Committee supports
a debate and consideration by the EU of a UN Convention on
the rights of disabled people; such a UN Convention could
have an important political and practical impact to the benefit
of disabled people across the globe, in particular in developing
and least developed countries.

3.10.
The Committee supports the need for preparatory
actions in 2002 in the lead up to the European Year and also
supports the proposal from the European Commission for an
evaluation of the results and success of the European Year to
be completed by 2004.

3.11.
The Committee considers that the European Year will
provide an excellent opportunity to develop new, concrete
initiatives to promote non-discrimination and equalisation of
opportunities for persons with disabilities in accordance with
Article 13 of the Treaty of the European Union. The European
Year should signify an important step forward in the develop-
ment of policy, both in terms of disability-specific initiatives
and in terms of an increased mainstreaming of disability in all
general policies. Concrete benefits and outcomes for disabled
people must be achieved from the European Year at both EU
and national level, so that the European Year becomes the start
of a dynamic process which will continue long after the
European Year itself is over. In this context, the Committee
welcomes the proposals in the draft Decision for studies on
free movement and prospects for disability policy and hopes it
will generate important new policy initiatives in this field.

3.12.
The Committee wishes to ensure that the European
Year activities will promote the concerns of disabled people
and parents of disabled people unable to represent themselves
across the mainstreaming of the policy spectrum. The Com-
mittee notes that whereas mainstreaming of disability policy
has been progressing well in some areas, such as in relation to
EU work on the information society and transport, little or no
recognition of the interests of disabled people has been given
in the EU work in the field of human rights and development
cooperation policy.

3.14.
Access to quality education has a fundamental role to
play in the successful integration of disabled people in society.
Successful integration depends upon the breaking down of
cultural and attitudinal barriers as well as promoting access to
the information society, access to the built environment and
transport. The Committee requests that all EU initiatives in the
field of education introduce measures to establish disabled
people as one of the key beneficiaries in such initiatives.

treatment

3.15.
Given the low level of employment of persons with
disabilities, the European Year must work to promote positive
examples of how disabled people contribute to the labour
market, to the European economy and to society as a whole.
The general
in
framework Directive for equal
employment and occupation (1) signifies an important step
forward in combating discrimination towards disabled people
in the labour market. The Committee requests that the terms
of the Directive are fully implemented by the Member States
by 2003. The general framework Directive is complemented
by incentive measures to combat discrimination towards
disabled people promoted through the European Employment
Strategy. The Luxembourg Employment Summit recognised
the importance of such measures, highlighting the need to
give attention to combat discrimination and promote social
inclusion to employment; Guideline 7 of the Employment
Guidelines explicitly mentions disabled people.

3.16.
The Committee recognises that the corporate social
responsibilities of employers is promoted by seriously addres-
sing barriers to the employment of disabled people and their
access to goods and services. The value to society and to
business of such an approach is recognised in the recent
European Commission Green Paper on Corporate Social
Responsibility (2). Models need to be developed and improved

(1) OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 16.
(2) COM(2001) 366 final.

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in close co-operation with employers and national Govern-
ments to make employing disabled people more attractive for
employers.

3.17.
The European Year also provides the incentive for the
Member States of the European Union to ensure that their
National Action Plans for the social inclusion strategy in 2003
give greater attention to the situation faced by disabled people.

4. Specific comments

4.1.
Among the concrete initiatives possible in the Euro-
pean Year, the Committee calls on the European Commission
to submit a proposal for a Directive on equal treatment and
non-discrimination on grounds of disability consistent with
the recent Directive on race and ethnic origin (1).

4.2.
The Committee understands that the primary goal for
the European Year is to secure recognition of disabled people
across all sectors and policy areas and that the European Year
can provide a means to launch a process of data compilation
and continuous monitoring of mechanisms to integrate the
interests of disabled people across all policy and programme
areas. As part of such a process, the European Year could
initiate an open method of coordination of policies and
exchange of best practice across the EU member states; a
process which could receive the financial support of the EU by
means of a specific action programme on disability to follow-
up the work of the European Year as proposed by the European
Parliament Resolution on ‘Towards a Barrier Free Europe for
people with Disabilities’ (2).

The Committee’s role as a body representing the
4.3.
various economic and social components of organised civil

society (3) places it with an important responsibility in securing
the success of the European Year. It would be very important
that the national bodies that play a similar role as the Economic
and Social Committee, where these exist, are involved in the
national Committees.

4.4.
The Committee welcomes proposals for involvement
of the social partners in a broad-based national fora on the
European Year to heighten awareness and mobilise activities
for the Year; also to provide assistance in the national review
of the situation facing disabled people and to build relations
with representative disability organisations in order to develop
long term strategies to promote equalisation of persons with
disabilities.

4.5.
The Committee requests that it may participate directly
in the work of the consultative committee for the European
Year of People with Disabilities 2003.

4.6.
The Committee considers that, as part of its own
commitment to the European Year, it should undertake an
independent audit of its buildings, access to information and
activities and recruitment practices to establish how accessible
they are to disabled people with a view to gradually making
the necessary adaptations where required, with a particular
focus on eliminating the architectonic barriers of the new
building to which the Economic and Social Committee will
move.
the Committee requests that such a
commitment also be taken up by the other EU institutions as
a way of setting a good example vis-à-vis Member States.

In addition,

4.7.
It is proposed that the Committee draw up an own-
initiative opinion on people with disabilities to be produced in
2002 which would evaluate the developments of integration of
disabled people in society and how they may be promoted. It
will represent an important contribution from the Committee
for the European Year. The results from this report should be
widely publicised by an event hosted by the Committee.

(1) OJ L 180, 19.7.2000, p. 13.
(2) A5-0084/2001.

(3) Article 257, Treaty of Nice.

Brussels, 17 October 2001.

The President

of the Economic and Social Committee

Göke FRERICHS