Government Implementation of the Standard Rules
As Seen By Member Organizations of
Inclusion International - ILSMH

Estonia

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© Dimitris Michailakis 1997

Estonian Mentally Retarded Persons Support Organization, Estonia
Compare with the following Country Report(s): the Estonian Government, WBU

General policy

The officially recognized disability policy in Estonia is expressed in law, in guidelines adopted by the government, in guidelines adopted by a national disability council and in policy adopted by NGOs. The emphasis in this national policy - in descending scale - is on rehabilitation, accessibility measures, individual support, anti-discrimination law, prevention.

Since the adoption of the Rules, the government has not done anything to initiate or support information campaigns conveying the message of full participation. The government states having since the adoption of the Rules, initiated and supported a campaign about the social integration of disabled persons, lasting from June 1996 to May 1997.

Legislation

The rights of persons with disabilities are protected by a combination of special legislation and general legislation. The judicial mechanism adopted to protect the rights of persons with disabilities is due process (legal remedy though courts), while the non-judicial available is a governmental body (administrative).

General legislation applies to persons with different disabilities with respect to education, employment, the right to marriage, the right to parenthood/family, political rights, access to court-of-law, the right to privacy and to property rights. The following benefits are guaranteed by law to persons with disabilities: health and medical care, training, rehabilitation and counselling, financial security, employment, independent living, participation in decisions affecting themselves. The organization, adds however, that the Estonian laws in this field are hard to fulfil. The following laws have been enacted since the adoption of the Rules:

• Law of Social protection of the Unemployed, 1995
  
• Social Welfare Law, 1995
  
• Income Tax Law, 1995
  
• Child Benefit Law, 1994
  
• Working Time and Vacations Law, 1994

Accessibility

There is legislation and other forms of legislation to ensure accessibility of the built environment which establish national design standards requiring that public places, the outdoor environment, land, sea, air transportation and housing are made accessible. However, the legislation only serves concerning the new buildings. Accessibility in the built environment is observed by local governments and by the constructor. The following measures have been promoted by the government to facilitate accessibility in the built environment: levelling off pavements, marking parking areas, installing automatic doors, lifts and accessible toilets, ensuring access to public places, improving accessibility in housing, providing financial support for accessibility measures in housing and using contrast colours for visually impaired. The organization explains that "we can find only very few examples of these facilities". Special lighting for visually impaired is also promoted, according to the Government. Special transport arrangements include compensation of gasoline for private transport, free public transport and special taxi in some municipalities. Special transport is available for medical treatment, education, work and for recreational purpose. The most difficult obstacles, when planning to build accessible environments, are attitudinal factors, economic/budgetary factors, lack of planning and design-capacity, lack of knowledge, research and information, lack of user participation, lack of co-operation from other organisations/institutions and lack of enforcement mechanism. There is a disability awareness component incorporated in the training of planners, architects and construction engineers.

Sign language for deaf people has no officially recognized status but is used as the first language in education of deaf people. There are no government measures to encourage media to make their services accessible for persons with disabilities but there are measures to make other forms of public information services accessible to persons with disabilities. These include literature in Braille and on tape form. The following services are provided to facilitate information and communication between persons with disabilities and others: literature in Braille/tape, news magazines on tape/Braille and sign language interpretation, being available for major events.

Organizations of persons with disabilities

There is a national umbrella organization in which ten organizations out of 23 are represented. There are legal provisions mandating the representatives of persons with disabilities to participate in policy making and to work with governmental institutions. Disability organisations are sometimes consulted, when laws and regulations with a disability aspect are being prepared. Consultations occur at the national, regional and local levels. The government gives financial and organizational/logistic support to organizations of persons with disabilities. Persons with disabilities participate to a very limited extent in government, legislatures, to some extent in judicial authorities and political parties and to a great extent in NGOs. The role of disabled persons organizations is to advocate rights and improved services, mobilize persons with disabilities, identify needs and priorities, participate in the planning, implementation and evaluation of services and measures concerning the lives of persons with disabilities and contribute to public awareness. According to the Government, organizations also provide services.

Co-ordination of work

The national co-ordinating committee is reporting to the Prime Minister's office and to the government. The committee includes representatives of the Ministries of Finance, Health and Social Affairs, Employment, Education, of organizations of persons with disabilities, of other NGOs and of a Diaconal organization. The government expects the co-ordinating committee to participate in policy development and to perform other tasks. The establishment of the co-ordinating committee has had the following effects: improved co-ordination of measures/programmes, improved legislation, improved integration of responsibility, a better dialogue in the disability field, more effective use of resources and improved promotion of public awareness.

The organization cannot tell whether the adoption of the Rules has led to a rethinking of the approach to disability policy because no disability policy existed before.

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