Upon the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, 3 December, Peter Svetina recalled that December is also a month of celebration in the field of human rights. “We are celebrating 75 years since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and 30 years since the adoption of the Human Rights Ombudsman Act, which laid the foundations for the operation of the institution of the Human Rights Ombudsman. We are celebrating the idea of the universality of human rights and the results of efforts made for their development and respect throughout decades,” emphasised the Ombudsman.  

The Ombudsman believes that it is the universality of human rights which is the foundation on which, due to various factors, the occasionally stunted idea of solidarity can come to life. Universality means that we all have equal rights, therefore we must also have equal opportunities to realise them. If this is not so, we have to make sure that this is how it will be, as it is determined by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities adopted in 2006 and signed by Slovenia in 2008, he believes.

In Slovenia, there are thought to be 170,000 people with disabilities and persons with physical impairments. With the action plan until 2030, the state has set certain goals, to which the Ombudsman persistently brings attention, such as deinstitutionalisation, the formation of frameworks for the elimination of obstacles for the full participation of people with disabilities, and measures against their discrimination. “However, the implementation of the rights of people with disabilities is a wound we are healing much too slowly,” he believes.

The Ombudsman stands firm in his belief that for the more effective handling of the disability issue and greater inclusion of people with disabilities in the society, it is essential to strengthen the collaboration between individual ministries, government institutions, and disability and other organisations dealing with the issue of disability. “If we want the wound to heal, we need to cooperate, listen to one another, and consider different perspectives. It is only by collaboration that progress can be achieved that is founded on the principles of sustainability and that enables prosperity for all its members,” the Ombudsman stands firm.