International Year of Disabled Persons
Item
- Title
-
International Year
of Disabled Persons - extracted text
-
COMMUNITY HEALTH CELL
Ba^z^ra
cELl_
India 'C'5e°034
Document from the
Vatican (Holy See) for the
International Year
of Disabled Persons
CBCI
CENTRE
NEW DELHI
1981
Document of the Holy See for the
International Year of Disabled
Persons
To all who work for the disabled
From the very beginning the Holy See received favourably
the United Nations' initiative of proclaiming 1981 "The Interna
tional Year of Disabled Persons". These persons deserve the
practical concern of the world community, both by reason of their
numbers (it is calculated that they exceed four hundred million)
and especially for their particular human and social condition.
Therefore, in this noble enterprise, the Church could not fail to
show her caring and watchful solicitude, for by her very nature,
vocation and mission she has particularly at heart the lives of the
weakest and most sorely tried brothers and sisters.
For this reason, the Church has followed with close attention
everything that has been done up to the present time on behalf
of the disabled on the legislative level, both national and inter
national. Worthy of note in this regard are the United Nations
Declaration of the Rights of the Disabled, and the Declaration
concerning the Rights of the Mentally Retarded, as also the
progress and future prospects of scientific and social research,
plus the new proposals and initiatives of various sorts now being
developed in this area. These initiatives show a renewed aware
ness of the duty of solidarity in this specific field of human
suffering; also to be borne in mind is the fact that in the Third
World countries the lot of the disabled is even more grave, and
calls for closer attention and more careful consideration.
Published on behalf of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India,
CBCI Centre, Ashok Place, New Delhi, 110001
Printed by Devarsons Printers {Stylish Printing Press)
The Church fully associates herself with the initiatives and
praiseworthy efforts being made in order to improve the situa
tion of the disabled, and she intends to make her own specific
contribution thereto. She does so, in the first place, through
fidelity to the example and teaching of her Founder. For Jesus
Christ showed special care for the suffering, in all the wide
spectrum of human pain. During his ministry he embraced them
with his merciful love, and he showed forth in them the saving
power of the Redemption that embraces man in his individuality
and totality The neglected, the disadvantaged, the poor, the suf
fering and the sick were the ones to whom he specially brought,
in words and actions, the proclamation of the Good News of
God's Kingdom breaking into human history.
The community of Christ’s disciples, following his example,
has down the centuries caused to flourish works of extraordinary
generosity, works that bear witness not only to faith and hope
in God but also unshakable love and faith in the dignity of man,
in the unrepeatable value of each individual human life, and in
the transcendent dignity of those who are called into existence.
In their view of faith and in their concept of man, Christians
know that in the disabled person there is reflected, in a mysterious
way, the image and likeness which God himself impressed upon
the lives of his sons and daughters. And as they remember that
Christ himself mystically identified himself with the suffering
neighbour and took as done to himself everything done for the
least of his brethren (cf. Mt 25:31-46), Christians feel a call to
serve, in him, those whom physical accidents have affected and
disabled; and they are resolved not to omit any of the things that
must be done, even at the cost of personal sacrifice, in order to
alleviate their disadvantaged condition.
At this moment, one cannot fail to think, with lively grati
tude, of all the communities and associations, all the men and
women Religious and all the lay volunteers who spend themsel
ves in work for the disabled, thus manifesting the perennial
vitality of that love that knows no barriers.
It is in this spirit that the Holy See, while expressing its
gratitude and encouragement for what has been done by those
responsible for the common good, by the international Organiza
tions and by all those who work for the handicapped, considers
it useful to recall briefly a few principles that may be useful
guides in dealing with the disabled, and also to suggest some
practical points.
4
I
Basic principles
1. The first principle, which is one that must be stated
clearly and firmly, is that the disabled person (whether the dis
ability be the result of a congenital handicap, chronic illness or
accident, or from mental or physical deficiency, and whatever
the severity of the disability) is a fully human subject, with the
corresponding innate, sacred and inviolable rights. This state
ment is based upon the firm recognition of the fact that a human
being possesses a unique dignity and an independent value,
from the moment of conception and in every stage of develop
ment, whatever his or her physical condition. This principle,
which stems from the upright conscience of humanity, must be
made the inviolable basis of legislation and society.
Indeed, on reflection one may say that a disabled person,
with the limitations and sufferings that he or she suffers in body
and faculties, emphasizes the mystery of the human being,
with all its dignity and nobility. When we are faced with a
disabled person, we are shown the hidden frontiers of human
existence, and we are impelled to approach this mystery with
respect and love.
2. Since the person suffering from handicaps is a subject
with full rights, he or she must be helped to take his or her place
in society in all aspects and at all levels, as far as is compatible
with his or her capabilities. The recognition of these rightsand
the duty of human solidarity, are a commitment and task to be
carried out, and they will create psychological, social, family,
educational and legislative conditions and structures that will
favour the proper acceptance and complete development of the
disabled individual.
The Declaration of the Rights of the Disabled states, in
Section 3, that "disabled persons have the right to respect for
their human dignity. Disabled persons, whatever the origin,
nature and seriousness of their handicaps and disabilities, have
the same fundamental rights as their fellow-citizens of the same
age, which implies first and foremost the right to enjoy a decent
life, as normal and full as possible".
5
3. The quality of of a society and a civilization are measured
by the respect shown to the weakest of the members. A perfect
technological society which only allowed fully functional mem
bers and which neglected, institutionalized or, what is worse,
eliminated those who did not measure up to this standard or
who were unable to carry out a useful role, would have to be
considered as radically unworthy of man, however economically
successful it might be. Such a society would in fact be tainted
by a sort of discrimination no less worthy of condemnation than
racial discrimination; it would be discrimination by the strong
and "healthy" against the weak and the sick. It must be clearly
affirmed that a disabled person is one of us, a sharer in the same
humanity. By recognizing and promoting that person's dignity
and rights, we are recognizing and promoting our own dignity
and our own rights.
4. The fundamental approach to the problems connected
with the sharing by the disabled in the life of society must be
inspired by the principles of integration, normalization and
personalization. The principle of integration opposes the tend
ency to isolate, segregate and neglect the disabled, but it also
goes further than an attitude of mere tolerance. It includes a
commitment to make the disabled person a subject in the fullest
sense, in accordance with his or her capacities, in the spheres of
family life, the school, employment, and, more generally, in the
social, political and religious communities.
As a natural consequence there derives from this principle
that of normalization, which signifies and involves an effort to
ensure the complete rehabilitation of the disabled person, using
all means and techniques now available, and, in cases where
this proves impossible, the achievement of a living and working
environment that resembles the normal one as much as possible.
Thirdly, the principle of personalization emphasizes the fact
that in the various forms of treatment, as also in the various
educational and social means employed to eliminate handicaps,
it is always the dignity, welfare and total development of the
handicapped person, in all his or her dimensions and physical,
moral and spiritual faculties, that must be primarily considered,
protected and promoted. This Principle also signifies and
involves the elimination of collectivized and anonymous institu
tions to which the disabled are sometimes relegated.
II
Operative Lines
1. One cannot but hope that such statements as those of
the Declaration cited will be given full recognition in the inter
national and national communities, avoiding limiting interpreta
tions and arbitrary exceptions and perhaps even unethical
applications which end by emptying the statements of meaning
and import.
Developments in science and medicine have enabled us
today to discover in the foetus some defects which can give rise
to future malformations and deficiencies. The impossibility at
present of providing a remedy for them by medical means has
led some to propose and even to practice the suppression of the
foetus. This conduct springs from an attitude of pseudo
humanism, which compromises the ethical order of objective
values and must be rejected by upright consciences. It is a
form of behaviour which, if it were applied at a different age,
would be considered gravely anti-human.
Furthermore, the
deliberate failure to provide assistance, or any act which leads
to the suppression of the new-born disabled person, represents a
breach not only of medical ethics but also of the fundamental
and inalienable right to life. One cannot, at whim, dispose of
human life, by claiming an arbitrary power over it. Medicine
loses its title of nobility when, instead of attacking disease, it
attacks life; in fact prevention should be against the illness, not
against life. One can never claim that one wishes to bring
comfort to a family, by suppressing one of its members. The
respect, the dedication, the time and means required for the care
of handicapped persons, even of those whose mental faculties
are gravely affected, is the price that a society should generously
pay in order to remain truly human.
2. A consequence of clear affirmation of this point is the
duty to undertake more extensive and thorough research in
order to overcome the cause of disabilities. Certainly much has
been done in recent years in this field, but much more remains
7
6
to be done. Scientists have the noble task of placing their skill
and their studies at the service of bettering the quality and
defence of human life. Present developments in the fields of
genetics, foetology, perinatology, biochemistry and neurology,
to mention only some disciplines, permit us to foster the hope
of noticeable progress. A unified effort of research will not fail,
it is hoped, to achieve encouraging results in the not too distant
future.
These initiatives of fundamental research and of application
of acquired knowledge deserve therefore more decisive encoura
gement and more concrete support. It is the hope of the Holy
See that International Institutions, the Public Powers in indi
vidual nations, research agencies, non-governmental Organiza
tions and private Foundations will more and more foster research
and allot the necessary funds for it.
3. The priority to be given to the prevention of disabilities
should also make us reflect on the distressing phenomenon of
the many persons that undergo stress and shock that disturb
their psychic and interior life. Preventing these disabilities and
fostering the health of the spirit signifies and implies unified and
creative effort in favour of integral education, and an environ
ment, human relations and means of communication in which
the person is not damaged in his more profound needs and
aspirations — in the first place moral and spiritual ones — and
in which the person is not submitted to violence which can end
by compromising his interior balance and dynamism. Spiritual
ecology is needed as much as natural ecology.
4. When, notwithstanding the responsible and rigorous
application of all the techniques and cures possible today, the
disability cannot be remedied or reversed, it is necessary to seek
and bring about all the remaining possibilities of human growth
and of social integration which remain open for the person
affected. Apart from the right to appropriate medical treatment,
the United Nations Declaration enumerates other rights which
have as their objective the most complete possible integration or
reintegration into society. Such rights have very wide reper
cussions on the whole of the services which exist at present or
8
which must be developed, among which might be mentioned the
organization of an adequate educational system, responsible
professional training, counselling services and appropriate work.
5. One point seem to merit particular attention. The United
Nations Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons affirms :
"Disabled persons have the right to live with their families or
with foster parents" (no. 9). It is extremely important that this
right be put into effect. It is in the home, surrounded by loved
ones, that a handicapped person finds the surroundings which
are most natural and conducive to his development. Taking
account of this primordial importance of the family for the
development of the handicapped person and his integration into
society, those responsible for sociomedical and orthopedagogical
structures should make the family the starting point in planning
their programmes and make it the principal dynamic force in the
process of social care and integration.
6. From this viewpoint it is necessary to take into account
the decisive importance which lies in the help to be offered at
the moment that parents make the painful discovery that one of
their children is handicapped. The trauma which derives from
this can be so profound and can cause such a strong crisis that
it shakes their whole system of values. The lack of early assist
ance or adequate support in this phase can have very unfortunate
consequences for both the parents and the disabled person. For
this reason one should not rest content with only making the
diagnosis and then leaving the parents abandoned. Isolation and
rejection by society could lead them to refuse to accept or, God
forbid, to reject their disabled child. It is necessary therefore
for families to be given great understanding and sympathy by
the community and to receive from associations and public
powers adequate assistance from the beginning of the discovery
of the disability of one of their members.
The Holy See, conscious of the heroic strength of mind
required of those families that have generously and courageously
agreed to take care of, and even adopt, disabled children, wants
to assure them of its appreciation and gratitude. The witness
which these families render to the dignity, value and sacredness
9
of the human person deserves to be openly recognized and sup
ported by the whole community.
7. When particular circumstances and special requirements
for the rehabilitation of the disabled person necessitate a tem
porary stay or even a permanent one away from the family, the
homes and institutions which take the family's place should be
planned and should function in a way as near to the family model
as is possible and should avoid segregation and anonymity. It
must be arranged that during their stay in these centres, the
bonds linking the disabled persons with their families and friends
should be cultivated with frequency and spontaneity. Apart
from professional competence, loving care and dedication of the
parents, relatives and educators have obtained, as many have
testified, results of unexpected effectiveness for the human and
professions! development of disabled persons. Experience has
demonstrated—and this is an important point for reflection—that
in a favourable and human family setting, full of deep respect
and sincere affection, disabled persons can develop in surprising
ways their human, and spiritual qualities and even, in their turn,
bring others peace and joy.
8. The affective life of the disabled will have to receive
particular attention. Above all when their handicap prevents
them from contracting marriage, it is important, not only that
they be adequately protected from promiscuity and exploitation,
but that they also be able to find a community full of human
warmth in which their need for friendship and love may be res
pected and satisfied in conformity with their inalienable moral
dignity.
9. Handicapped children and young people obviously have
the right to instruction. This will be assured them to the extent
possible either through an ordinary school or a specialized school
for people with their handicap. Where home schooling is re
quired, it is hoped that the competent authorities will supply the
family with the necessary means. Access to higher learning and
opportune post-school assistance ought to be made possible and
aid should be given for this purpose.
10. A particularly delicate moment in the life of the disabled
person is the passage from school to placement in society or
10
professional life. In this phase the person needs particular
understanding and encouragement from various sectors of the
community. Public authorities should guarantee and foster
with effective measures the right of disabled persons to profes
sional training and work, so that they can be inserted into a
professional activity for which they are qualified. Much attention
should be focussed on working conditions, conditions, such as
the assignment of jobs in accordance with the handicaps, just
wages, and possibility of promotion. Highly recommended is
advance information for employers regarding the employment,
the situation and the psychology of the disabled. These encoun
ter various hindrances in the professional sector : for example,
a sense of inferiority about their appearance or possible produc
tiveness, worry about having accidents at work, etc.
11. Obviously, the disabled person possesses all the civil
and political rights that other citizens have, and it should, as a
general rule, be made possible for him or her to exercise them.
However, certain forms of disability——for instance, the numeri
cally important category of those who have mental handicaps----constitute an obstacle to the responsible exercise of these rights.
Even in these cases action should be taken not in an arbitrary
manner or by applying repressive measures, but on the basis of
rigorous and objective ethical and juridical criteria.
12. On the other hand, the disabled person must be urged
not to be content with being only the subject of rights,
accustomed to receiving care and solidarity from others, with
a merely passive attitude. He is not only a receiver; he must bo
helped to be a giver to the full extent of his capabilities. An im
portant and decisive moment in his formation will.be reached
when he becomes aware of his dignity and worth and reco
gnizes that something is expected from him and that he too can
and should contribute to the progress and well-being of his family
and community. The idea that he has of himself should of course
be realistic, but also positive; allowing him to see himself as a
person capable of responsibility, able to exercise his own will
and to collaborate with others.
13. Many individuals, associations and institutions are today
dedicated by profession, and often by a genuine humanitarian
11
and .'religious calling, to helping the disabled. In many cases
they have demonstrated a preference for "voluntary'* personnel
and educators, because they see in them a particular sense of
unselfishness and solidarity. This observation makes clear that,
although technical and professional competence is certainly
necessary and ought indeed to be cultivated and improved, by
itself it is not sufficient. A rich human sensitivity must be added
to competence. Those who commendably dedicate themselves
to the service of the disabled should have scientific knowledge of
their disabilities, but they should also comprehend with their
hearts the person’who bears the handicap. They should learn to
become sensitive to the special signs with which the disabled
express themselves and communicate. They should acquire the
art of making the proper gesture and saying the right word. They
should know how to accept with calmness possible reactions of
forms of emotion and learn to dialogue with the parentsand
families of the disabled. This competence will not be fully human
unless it is interiorly sustained by suitable moral and spiritual
dispositions : attentiveness, sensitivity and particular respect for
everything in the human person that is a source of weakness and
dependence. Care and help for disabled persons then becomes a
school also for parents, educators and service personnel: a
school of genuine humanity, a demanding school, a noble,
school, an uplifting school.
14. It is very important and even necessary that profes
sional services receive material and moral support from the public
authorities with a view to being organized in the most adequate
way possible and to having the specialized interventions function
effectively. Many countries have already provided, or are in the
process of providing, exemplary legislation that defines and
protects the legal status of the disabled person. Where such
legislation does not yet exist it is the duty of the government to
provide an effective guarantee and to promote the rights of the
disabled. To this end, it would be advantageous for families and
voluntary organizations to be associated in drawing up juridical
and social norms in this matter.
15. Even the best legislation however risks having no effect
on the social context and not producing full results if it is not
accepted into the personal conscience of the citizens and the
collective consciousness of the community.
Handicapped persons, their families and relatives are part of
the whole human family. However large their number may
unfortunately be, they form a minority group within the whole
community. This is enough to entail the danger that they may
not be given sufficient general interest. Add to that the often
spontaneous reaction of a community that rejects and psycholo
gically represses that which does not fit into its habits. People
do not want to be faced with forms of existence which visibly
reflect the negative aspects of life. This gives rise to the
phenomenon of exclusion and discrimination as a kind of mech
anism of defence and rejection. Since however man and society
are truly human when they enter into a conscious and willing
process of accepting even weakness, of solidarity and of sharing
in others' sufferings, the tendency referred to must be countered
by education.
The celebration of the International Year of Disabled Persons
therefore offers a favourable opportunity for a more precise over
all reconsideration of the situation, of the problems and of the
requirements of millions of those who make up the human
family, particularly in the Third World. It is important that this
occasion not be allowed to pass by in vain. With the contribution
of science and of all levels of society, it should lead to a better
understanding of the disabled person and of his dignity and
rights; and above all it should foster sincere and active love for
every human being in his or her uniqueness and concrete
situation.
16. Christians have an irreplaceable mission to carry out in
this regard.
Recalling their responsibility as witnesses to Christ, they
must adopt as their own the Saviour's sentiments towards the
suffering and stimulate an attitude of charity and examples of it in
the world, so that there is never any lack of interest in our
brothers and sisters who are less endowed. The Second Vatican
Council identified in that charitable presence the essential core
of the apostolate of lay people. It recalled that Christ made love
13
12
of one's neighbour his personal commandment "and enriched it
with a new meaning when he identified himself with his brothers
as the object of charity... For, in assuming human nature, he
united ail of humanity to himself as his family, and he made
charity the distinguishing mark of his disciples in the words : ‘By
this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love
for one another' (Jn 13 : 35). In the early days the Church linked
the 'agape' to Eucharistic supper and by so doing showed
herself entirely united around Christ. So too, at all times, she is
recognized by the distinguishing sign of love and, while rejoicing
at initiatives taken elsewhere, she claims charitable works as her
own inalienable duty and right. That is why mercy to the poor
and the sick, and works of charity and mutual aid for the allevia
tion of all kinds of human needs, are held in special honour by
the Church'' (Apostoiicam Actuositatem. 8).
In this International Year of Disabled Persons Christians will
therefore stand side by side with their brothers and sisters of all
organizations in order to foster, support and increase initiatives
suitable for alleviating the situation of the suffering and for
inserting them harmoniously into the context of normal civil life,
to the extent that this is possible. Christians will make their
contribution in personnel and resources, especially through the
deserving institutions that—in the name of Christ and of his love
and with the marvellous example of people wholely consecrated
to the Lord—devote themselves especially to giving education,
professional training and post-school assistance to young
disabled persons and to caring generously for the worst cases.
Parishes and youth groups of various kinds will give special care
to families in which one of these children marked by sorrow is
born and grows to maturity; they will also study, continually
apply and, if necessary, revise suitable methods of catechesis to
the disabled, and they will pay attention to their insertion into
cultural and religious activities, so as to ensure that they will be
full members of their Christian community, in accordance with
their clear right to appropriate spiritual and moral education.
17. Celebrating the Day of Peace at the beginning of this
year, the Holy Father mentioned publicly in the Vatican Basilica
the initiatives of the International Year of Disabled Persons and
14
called for special attention to solving their serious probiems. He
now renews his call to show concern for the let of these brothers
and sisters of ours. He repeats what he said then : "If only a
minimum part of the budget for the arms race were assigned for
this purpose, important successes could be achieved and the fate
of many suffering persons alleviated" (Homily on 1 January
1980). His Holiness applauds the various initiatives that will be
undertaken on the international level and also those that will be
attempted in other fields, and he urges especially the sons and
daughters of the Catholic Church to give an example of total
generosity. Entrusting the dear disabled persons throughout the
world to the motherly protection of the Holy Virgin, as he did on
that occasion, he repeats his hopeful trust that, "under Mary's
maternal gaze, experiences of human and Christian solidarity
will be multiplied, in a renewed brotherhood that will unite the
weak and the strong in the common path of the divine vocation
of the human person" {ibidem).
From the Vatican, 4 March 1981
15
Position: 1213 (7 views)