“A person makes 35.000 decisions a day.
That is what it means to live your life. Each one of them belong to you, not to a guardian. Not to a judge. Not to a system. To you.
So stop talking about whether people with intellectual disabilities can decide. Let’s make sure they get to decide.”
Soufiane El Amrani – self-advocate and accessibility expert – spoke on the importance of supported decision-making for people with intellectual disabilities during High Level Conference this week organised by the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU and was about “Inclusion of persons with disabilities: Empowerment and support in a community for all”.
Soufiane El Amrani reminded everyone that asking for support is a normal part of life and spoke about recent changes in law across Europe that show that supported decision-making mechanisms are not abstract ideas but already happening in practice.
Interpretative support
Camille Latimier – Director of Inclusion Czechia and our Board member – spoke at the conference too, and highlighted the often-overlooked situation of people with complex support needs.
For people that are nonverbal alternative forms of communication are key. In regard to decision-making that means that interpretative support needs to be available, accessible, and accepted. Only then we can be sure that no one is left behind.
The conference was folllowed by EDF General Assembly which elected self-advocates to their board for the first time.
Read also: Examples of support in decision-making