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A fire has killed 8 people in an institution in Czechia.
30 people were injured.
All the people had intellectual disabilities.
We are very sad for the families and friends
of the people who died.
We hope that the people who survived
will get better soon.
We also thank the people who helped during the fire.
We are worried about the situation.
We are sad,
but we are not surprised.
We all know that institutions are bad and dangerous
for people with disabilities.
Last week the Czech Public Defender of Rights talked about institutions.
The Public Defender of Rights is a person who fights for the rights of the people.
She said that institutions are dangerous.
The institution where the fire took place is in Vejprty.
Vejprty is a town in Czechia.
The mayor of Vejprty said that maybe the residents of the institution
set fire to the building.
She said that the residents tried to do this before.
She also said that people who live in institutions have “too many rights”.
She asked the Prime Minister of Czechia to look into the situation.
We do not agree at all with these comments.
People with intellectual disabilities have the same rights
as everyone else.
You cannot blame them until someone proves that they are guilty.
They have the right to get a good support.
They have the right to live their lives as they want.
Also if they want to smoke cigarettes.
A fire can break out
if you do not put out a cigarette and leave it lying somewhere.
But we don’t know if this is what the people in the institution did.
And if they want to smoke
then someone should make sure
that they put the cigarette out.
A Czech politician has said that the institution
should be rebuilt.
But people cannot live in this institution.
The people who lived there should have a normal house
and get support in the community.
We think that some things need to be done now:
- Look into the causes of the fire
that killed and injured many people.
- Support the people who survived
and the families and friends of the people who died.
The people who survived are probably very afraid
because they experienced the fire.
They should get the help they need.
- Give the people who survived a normal house
and support in the community.
They should also get some money
for the shock they went through.
The institution is not safe for people.
It should not be rebuilt.
The money should be used for normal houses
and support in the community.
- Make sure that such fires
do not happen again.
People in institutions have the right
to get a house and support in the community.
This is what Inclusion Europe’s president Jyrki Pinomaa said:
“Institutions are not safe places.
There is abuse in institutions.
The fire and the deaths could have been avoided.”