Right to self-determined living instead of institutionalisation

Downsizing homes is not enough - personalised support needed

The responsible UN expert committee made it clear that de-institutionalisation cannot simply be replaced by downsizing existing facilities. Rather, special institutions must be dissolved. New legal regulations are needed that also include legal entitlements," demands Achitz. Among other things, sufficient barrier-free and community-based housing options and the coverage of outpatient support services must be ensured. Targets, deadlines and funding models need to be defined. Personal assistance is crucial for person-centred care. Achitz: "And please don't have nine different regulations again, but a standardised Austria-wide model."

Examples of a lack of de-institutionalisation

The Austrian Ombudsman Board is responsible for preventative human rights monitoring in institutions where people are at risk of having their freedom restricted: Prisons, children's and youth flats, psychiatric institutions, old people's and nursing homes, but also residential facilities for people with disabilities. In the latter, the commissions of the Ombudsman Board repeatedly come across a lack of de-institutionalisation:

• Time and again, the commissions come across young people with disabilities or chronic psychiatric illnesses who are forced to live in old people's homes. This is because there are far too few suitable care structures where they can live independently. Children and young people with disabilities or mental illnesses in particular should not be cared for and accommodated together with adults with disabilities or mental illnesses.
• A commission visited a large facility in Styria, which is gradually endeavouring to reduce the number of approved places. Nevertheless, according to the plan, 144 of the originally authorised 332 places would still remain in the main building in 2045. "The reduction is taking too long and the downsizing is a long way from UN CRPD-compliant de-institutionalisation," says Achitz.
• In a facility for young people with disabilities in Tyrol, a commission criticised the fact that both the school and the residential and leisure facilities are located under one roof. This makes it difficult for young people to participate in society.

Ombudsman Achitz recalls the guidelines on de-institutionalisation of the UN Committee of Experts, which emphasise the obligation to end institutionalisation. Rigidity of routine regardless of personal will, identical activities in the same place for a group under a particular authority, a paternalistic approach to the provision of services, the monitoring of living conditions and the large number of people in the same environment are a form of violence for the Committee of Experts. Achitz: "The aim of de-institutionalisation is to ensure that people with disabilities are not isolated and locked up, but can live self-determined lives in the community."

NGO forum on 19 May: "Human Rights First - despite the austerity package"

De-institutionalisation is a human rights imperative and must not be allowed to fail due to financial constraints. Every year, the Austrian Ombudsman Board discusses a topic of socio-political and human rights relevance with civil society. This year's NGO Forum on 19 May is dedicated to the topic "Human Rights First - despite the austerity package". Despite budget deficits and austerity measures, the promotion and further development of human rights must not be pushed to the margins of the political agenda. How this can be achieved and what the focus should be on - we would like to address these questions in keynote speeches by experts and discussion rounds with MPs from all parliamentary parties. The focus will be on two specific human rights issues: The rights of women and the rights of people with disabilities. Participants will be invited via the organisations represented on the Ombudsman Board's NGO Sounding Board. Media representatives will be invited separately.