“For me it is very important to vote at the European elections” – ETR

We want to tell other people that people with intellectual disabilities are like everyone else. And they should have the right to vote.

“For me it is very important to vote at the European elections”

Click on a word which is in bold to read what it means.

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european elections

The European Elections will be in May 2019.

This year Inclusion Europe
will talk about how to make
voting accessible for
people with intellectual disabilities.

We will also talk about
why it is important to vote.

Every month we talk with one of our “Voting Champions”.
Voting champions are people who
talk about the right to vote.

They also want governments to make voting accessible
for people with intellectual disabilities.

Our voting champion in January is László Bercse.

He is a member of Inclusion Europe and of EPSA.
László works with our Hungarian member ÉFOÉSZ.

He wants accessible elections
for people with intellectual disabilities.

We asked László some questions.

You have the right to vote.
But you know many people who cannot vote.
Can you tell me more about it?

In Hungary, when you are
under guardianship
a judge can take away
your right to vote.

I know many people under guardianship
who do not have the right to vote.

I know self-advocates who are sad
because they cannot vote.

I met a self-advocate at a conference.
He said that he feels like he is less important
than other people, because he cannot vote.

Another self-advocate said
that he really wants to vote
because his vote can make a difference
for people with intellectual disabilities.

When you go to vote,
what are the things that work well?
 
When we have elections in Hungary,
we can ask to the government
to send us an easy-to-read letter
on how to vote.

This is a good thing.

When you go to vote,
what are the problems that you find?
 
We need easy-to-read information
on the different political parties.

With easy-to-read information
people with intellectual disabilities
can decide who they want to vote for.

We also need easy-to-read voting papers.

ÉFOÉSZ wrote an easy-to-read document
about European elections.
What does this document talk about?
 
I think it is a very good document!

It explains many things
in easy-to-read:

We want all people with intellectual disabilities
to be able to vote.

We want to be supported when we go to vote.

With our self-advocacy group
we talk a lot about the right to vote
for people with intellectual disabilities.

I gave my opinion on this topic.

Ilona Sallai added my opinion on this topic
to the document we wrote.
She is a self-advocate too.

On that document she also wrote
the opinions of other self-advocates, too.

You can read the booklet in Hungarian language here.

ÉFOÉSZ is doing a campaign
on the right to vote
for people with intellectual disabilities.
 

Why are you doing it?

What do you do for this campaign?

We started the campaign at the end of 2018.

With this campaign
we want to ask politicians
to give the right to vote
to people with intellectual disabilities.

We want to tell other people
that people with intellectual disabilities
are like everyone else.

And they should have the right to vote.

We use social media to talk about this topic.
We organise conferences on the right to vote
and we talk to politicians about it.

We talk to the media
and we organise events and trainings
for self-advocates.

Why is it important for you
to vote at the European elections?
 
For me it is important
to vote at the European elections
because I care about
who represents me in the European Parliament.

I want the European Parliament
to make decisions which are good for me
and for other people with disabilities.

Our Voting Champion in February was Andreas Zehetner. Read more

Our Voting Champions in March were Lucette and Dani Blanquart. Read more

Our work brings the voice of people with intellectual disabilities and their families where decisions about their future are made.

This has always been incredibly important. It is even more so with the Covid pandemic drastic impact on their rights and lives.

Being visible and vocal on issues directly affecting millions of people requires your support. 

Become Inclusion Europe supporter and help us keep doing our work.

 

 

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