In December 2014, the European Network for Independent Living, issued one wonderful and very useful book called Mythbuster. In it are busted all myths associated with the independent living and the disability, which persist in Europe and here as well. Center for Independent Living assessed the value and the usefulness of the book, as well as the need for such accurate reading nowadays in Bulgaria. In the occasion of the International Day of Disabled Persons (Dec ,3^rd), we offer to the attention of our readers the Mythbuster translated into Bulgarian. We wish you a pleasant time with the interesting and beautifully illustrated edition of ENIL and CIL.

Today, at 11:00 a.m.  we had a meeting with the new Ombudsman of the Republic of Bulgaria – Mrs. Maya Manolova. At the meeting we provided her with the bill for personal assistance, which has been made by our team of experts more than five years ago and presented in 2009 without any result  to the then Chairman of the Parliament – Mrs. Tsetska Tsacheva. Mrs. Manolova received the bill and pledged to give most of her energy to discuss it in the Parliament. We left the meeting with moderate expectations, since unfortunately, we know very well Bulgarian politicians.

Today, at 1:00 p.m. at the office of the CIL was held a meeting with one of the candidates for mayor of Sofia, Mr. Kadiev. We discussed the problems with the accessibility of the environment, with transport – urban, specialized and metro, with Personal Assistant’s regulation and with the mechanism for the election of the deputy mayors.

On September 23, 2013, for the second time, the Center for Independent Animals organizes a protest drive of disabled people which is against the corruption and non-working policies in the field of disabilities in Bulgaria, which for the past twenty or more years have lead the Bulgarians with disabilities to the first place in poverty in Europe. We will insist on a quality new government, fully in line with the UN Convention on Human Rights of Disabled People. You will have more than one hundred disabled people and their friends from all over the country.

The INDEPENDENCE DRIVE, how we named it, will start on the Sveta Nedelya Square at about 12 o’clock and will follow the following route – Sveta Nedelya Square (starting point – 11 o’clock), Saborna Street, Lege Street, Atanas Burov Square , Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., Independence Square (end point – 13-14 hours), where we expect to meet the Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria – Mr. Plamen Oresharski and the Minister of Labor and Social Policy – Mr. Hasan Ademov .

Everyone, whether or not disabled, is welcome to support us. We thank you in advance.

The Center for Independent Living invited all major political forces to a meeting to present the expectations of disabled citizens from the participants in the 2013 parliamentary elections.

The leaders of the BULGARIA OF THE CITIZENS movement responded first to our invitation. Mrs. Meglena Kuneva came to the CIL office at the meeting on April 10, Ludmila Elkova – Deputy chairperson of the party and Mr. Georgi Kiryakov, who is responsible for BC’s social policy.

At the beginning of the meeting, Kapa Panayotova emphasized the need for new disability policies, given the alarming situation in our country, where, against the background of general impoverishment, the problems of people with disabilities appear to be not important enough for the political class. Eurostat’s worrying statistics make it clear that people with disabilities in Bulgaria are at the forefront of EU unemployment, lack of education and segregation. Kapa Panayotova stressed that the mechanisms by which money is given in Bulgaria for the disabled people not only do not help their social inclusion, but even deepen their isolation.

Meglena Kuneva and the Movement team emphasized that they came to hear the views of people with disabilities about social policies in Bulgaria and their ideas for change.

A common understanding emerged on the following several key issues:

The need for a completely new disability law, which guarantees a transition from the medical to the social model of disability, as well as the transition from social benefits to a deficit compensation policy;

To open broadly the dialogue in society about the people with disabilities and to move out of the narrow and vicious circle of coordination only with nationally represented NGOs, which through the state subsidy for their activity are really connected with the government and do not consult, but agree with it;

Change the model of the non-governmental sector involvement in the social policies. Instead of quantifying the principle of national representation / with the whole devaluation of this concept / – to rely on the qualitative one. To provide social services on a project basis, guaranteeing transparency in accountability and the competitiveness and effectiveness of ideas.

Accessibility is a huge problem in the overall environment and this understanding has been underlined by both parties.

Work on controlling the construction and infrastructure and achieving full rather than “partial” accessibility. The team of Bulgaria of the citizens received written proposals from CIL which they promised to read carefully and consider as an expression of quality expertise from proven specialists in the field of disability, such as the people at the Center for Independent Living.