On the occasion of Disability Pride Month, UNN interviewed government officials and people with disabilities to understand why the issue of barrier-free accessibility is becoming increasingly relevant.
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According to the Ministry of Social Policy, about 3 million people with disabilities are registered in Ukraine , and the increase in 1.5 years is about 300 thousand.
Ukraine needs more and more rehabilitation specialists, more different centers and departments to help our people restore their functionality. After all, the number of people getting injured is growing
A study by the Center for Social Change and Behavioral Economics foundthat 83% of Ukrainians consider barrier-free accessibility to be an important value for society. According to the survey, the majority (57%) of respondents have an idea of the concept of barrier-free access, although 34% are still unfamiliar with the term.
Olena Shulyak, Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on the Organization of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development and Urban Planning and head of the Servant of the People party, says that for most people, the word "barrier-free" means a single ramp, but this is not the case.
For many people, inclusiveness and barrier-free accessibility means a formal single ramp at the entrance. However, we need to realize that barrier-free accessibility is a much broader phenomenon than a ramp. It is a matter of survival and quality of life at the same time
According to her, in the context of active hostilities, barriers that were previously out of focus have become visible. Especially for those who were injured. Therefore, we need to work on creating accessible and inclusive spaces - even during blackouts or rocket attacks.
She argues that any new construction in the country should be based on the principles of barrier-free access, increased energy efficiency requirements, and enhanced protection of civil, administrative, and industrial buildings.
This is a prerequisite for effective modernization of the country, and new construction standards are already being incorporated into the new legislative framework for urban planning policy and the restoration of Ukraine. The introduction of these three standards in construction planning - enhanced protection, barrier-free accessibility, and energy efficiency - has become especially important since the beginning of the Russian invasion in February 2022
She noted that there are already concrete examples of implementing the principles of inclusivity and accessibility in architecture and construction. New state building standards, which include increased requirements for inclusiveness, have already been put into effect.
She also added that the main planning document for the restoration of Ukraine pays great attention to ensuring barrier-free access. This refers to the comprehensive recovery programs currently being developed by 160 Ukrainian territorial communities.
We already have the first completed program - it was recently presented by the Kyiv region. And this case is quite indicative of what should happen at the community level to ensure maximum inclusiveness
According to her, in accordance with the National Strategy for Creating Barrier-Free Space in Kyiv Oblast for 2023-2024, which is part of the region's comprehensive recovery program, next year the region's localities will be significantly adapted to provide comfortable living conditions for people with disabilities.
Shulyak says that two main areas of barrier-free implementation are planned as part of the restoration of Kyiv region. The first concerns the adaptation of approximately 1,200 social infrastructure facilities, such as office buildings, schools, hospitals, cultural centers, and sports facilities, to the needs of people with disabilities. This includes both external and internal reconstruction work.
The second area focuses on the renovation of amenities, roads and sidewalks. The plan is to improve pedestrian crossings with sound signals and directional markings, work on the accessibility of park areas, entrances to residential complexes, and adaptation of roads and sidewalks for easy movement.
Shulyak says they are already working on methods for monitoring the accessibility of public services.
In this regard, it will be important to create another body in territorial communities that will deal with the implementation of the principles of inclusiveness. We are talking about the Barrier-Free Council. This should give communities a tool for creating real barrier-free access, but the accessibility of public services should be monitored
She notes that, in addition to the systematic work of the state and local governments, support from civil society is needed, as only they understand what issues are more urgent for their community - accessibility of public spaces, support for the employment of professionals with disabilities, social services, barrier-free routes, etc.
The deputy says that in the capital, the statistics on barrier-free accessibility in the transport sector are rather sad, as almost 50% of Kyiv's pedestrian approaches do not even come close to meeting the requirements of inclusiveness .
Yes, today there is a lot of talk about barrier-free access, inclusion, etc. But we see that in practice the statistics are quite sad. That is why we need to review all the rules by which the city should develop. Unfortunately, in Kyiv, this remains only talk at various conferences, but the city itself does nothing
And not just Kyiv. According to the 2023 ranking of barrier-free physical environment and services compiled by the Ministry of Reconstruction, the worst situation is in Chernivtsi, Khmelnytskyi, Poltava, Kherson, and Donetsk regions (although the figure for Donetsk region should probably be taken with caution due to active hostilities). The capital, according to this rating, has an average degree of barrier-free accessibility.
Activist, human rights defender and veteran Oleh Symoroz believes that Kyiv is not an inclusive city at all. He has lived in the capital for all 27 years of his life, and when the full-scale war started, he was wounded and amputated.
In recent years, after my injury, I have been using a wheelchair. I have an amputation of my lower limbs, so I have to move around in a wheelchair a lot. I was really able to check the level of accessibility and barrier-free accessibility in my city for people who have lost their limbs. It's a shame to talk about my hometown, but Kyiv is not inclusive at all, Kyiv is not a friendly city for such people
He says that many "inadequate things" have not yet been addressed. For example: lowering barriers, proper ramps, public transportation, parking spaces, and basic restrooms.
Symoroz says that the city center is even ashamed to show inclusiveness. And the war has been going on for 10 years, the number of people who have been injured is growing, and, accordingly, the need for inclusiveness is increasing.
Even shelters are inaccessible because we cannot go down into them, we cannot use the restroom, because there are no wide doors, and that's it. Or steps - very often they are stupid from an engineering point of view, because they could not be there, but they create different thresholds, which make it impossible to talk about barrier-free accessibility
According to him, all this could have been solved quickly and very cheaply if we approached the problem comprehensively and set a goal to create a barrier-free space.
We don't need to fool ourselves and talk about some high-minded matters, we need to first provide basic needs in public places. I see absolutely no changes, only PR projects that are detached from life and the profanity of people who understand absolutely nothing about it. The people who have failed to work on inclusiveness, and this is no exaggeration, should all be dismissed, because it's just a shame. According to Ms. Olena (Olena Shulyak - ed.), everything is fine. However, they are still accepting new houses where you can't even go to the toilet in a wheelchair because the doors don't fit. Everywhere in the houses there are thresholds and massive doors that cannot be opened. I'm not even talking about the chaos with parking for people with disabilities. But despite all these violations of our rights, the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate accepts such houses, and no developer has been fined for this. If you listen to the head of the ruling party, everything is fine, but this is far from the case. And the most important thing is that there are still no simple, clear rules and penalties for all actors for violations
At the same time, the State Inspectorate of Architecture and Urban Planning (SIAP) assures that the interests of people with disabilities are fully taken into account when shaping public space.
Planning and development of settlements, formation of neighborhoods, design, construction and reconstruction of physical environment objects without adaptation for use by persons with disabilities are not allowed. These activities are carried out taking into account the opinion of public associations of persons with disabilities