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Massimo D’Alema, Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs stands up for disability rights
by backing the “1million4disability” campaign


“We need now to unite our forces to overcome the barriers that currently interfere to define an efficient common framework for the recognition and protection of the rights of disabled people”, says D’Alema, Vice-President of the Italian Council of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Prodi’s government. 


Brussels, 30 July 2007 – “It is a great satisfaction for me to support the “1million4disability” campaign promoted by the European Disability Forum, which aim is to facilitate the adoption of comprehensive and efficient European legislation for the protection of disabled people’s rights. I am convinced that this is a particularly praiseworthy initiative that will constitute a fundamental step forward towards the full integration and social inclusion of people with disabilities.

I believe that despite the notorious achievements reached so far, a lot remains still to be done. Important initiatives, both at EU and international level, such as the European Action Plan on Disability and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, represent a clear signal of the growing commitment  to promote equality and non discrimination of disabled people.

We need now to unite our forces to fill the gaps that refrain us in defining an efficient common framework for the recognition and protection of the rights of disabled people”,  has expressed the Italian Minister in a letter addressed to the European Disability Forum.
 
The “1million4disability campaign” is a campaign lead by the European Disability Forum, the platform representing the interests and defending the rights of 50 million people with disabilities in the European Union. Launched in January this year, the aim of the campaign is to collect one million signatures across the EU in favour of strong and comprehensive legislation that will protect disabled people from discrimination in all fields of life.

At the present stage, more than 300 000 European citizens have signed the petition both manually and electronically. The representatives of the disability movement from the 29 Member States are also preparing a wide mobilization that will take place in Brussels on 4th October. The aim of this unique gathering will be to give visibility to the European disability movement and most important, to call the EU to take a stand for disability rights in an efficient and harmonized way. 
 


For more information on the EDF campaign “1million4disability”: www.1million4disability.eu 

For more information, please contact: Helena González-Sancho Bodero, EDF Communication and Press Officer; Tel: (+32 2) 282 46 04; Mobile phone: (+ 32 ) 485 64 39 93; E-mail: communication@edf-feph.org 

The European Disability Forum (EDF) is the European umbrella organisation representing the interests of 50 million disabled citizens in Europe. EDF membership includes national umbrella organisations of disabled people from all EU/EEA countries, as well as European NGOs representing the different types of disabilities, organisations and individuals committed to disability issues. The mission of the European Disability Forum is to ensure disabled people full access to fundamental and human rights through their active involvement in policy development and implementation in Europe.

 

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