EUROPEAN NEURODIVERGENT AND DISABILITY RIGHTS ACT Version 2
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Debate begins NOW and will last until 07:30 GMT on November 22nd, 2020.
Well, I'm glad to have a fresh slate with this piece of legislation. This bill has undergone many necessary improvements, and I'm keen to see what more improvements might still need to be made. This time, let's not worry about collecting all the amendments into a single amendment, and let's instead simply vote upon the amendments individually at the end of the discussion.
I would point particular attention to Section IV(I), which garnered substantial feedback in the last discussion. I think the new wording is better, and it does not stipulate that boards or committees have to necessarily have quotas for neurodivergent or disabled members, but could instead allow for boards or commitees to hire neurodivergent and disabled consultants or panelists instead as advisors. In any case, I think this is a compromise that allows for neurodivergent and disabled voices to be heard and included, but also allow for greater freedom and flexibility on behalf of the organizations themselves.
Edward Firoux
Council Speaker and Councillor for Inquista -
I definitely agree more with this version. I observe that some of my amendments actually made its way into Version 2, which I appreciate, although there are a few exceptions, such as this amendment, which I will propose again:
SECTION I - BAN ON HARMFUL THERAPIES
III. Member states shall ban aversive conditioning therapy on neurodivergent or disabled children.
Mentally capable adults of sound mindPeople who are mentally capable to consent and over the age of majority in the member state which they live in may voluntarily choose to undergo conditioning therapy, as long as consent is provided by all parties involved, and provisions are made with those of sensory needs as required.I find the term "mentally capable adults of sound mind" to be a bit vague. I propose this amendment for the sake of clarification and the prevention of future ECoJ cases.
I would like to propose another amendment here, along with a grammar correction:
SECTION I - BAN ON HARMFUL THERAPIES
VIII. This Act does not ban treatments or therapies which aim to address the negative side effects of disabilities that could risk life and/or heavy injuries, as long as they protect human rights of the individual.
I would like to add heavy injuries there, again, for clarification, as not all heavy injuries are lethal, though some may affect people for the rest of their lives.
The third amendment is for simplification:
SECTION II - EQUALITY OF ACCESS
III. Reasonable adaptations shall be made in public and private commercial zones, travelling, leisure venues, and public facilities for neurodivergent and disabled visitors.
AllPublic facilities,and private businessescommercial areas, offices, and residential areas, public or private, shall be required to be accessible by wheelchair unless there is a valid reason not to do so, such as unreasonable cost, or threats to the heritage of buildings, their structural integrity, or their character."Commercial areas, offices and residential areas, public or private" is an inclusive term that already includes private businesses.
The fourth amendment is for clarification, as months are not actually a universal division of time.
SECTION III - QUALITY CARE
I. Member states shall ensure that their citizens shall have the right to undergo a free independent assessment for neurodivergent conditions, or an assessment of their neurodivergent needs, within a six-month or a 180-day period upon the recommendation of a doctor, general practitioner or psychologist.
I won't propose an amendment to Section IV(I) as I did last time. It covers out most of my concerns.
And the last amendment I will give for the same reason as the fourth one:
SECTION V - IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT
I. All member states of the European Union are required to adjust their national law(s) with this Act within 1 year or 365 days from its approval by the European Council.
Councillor Aylin Gökçen of Alkharya
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I still think this needs amendments, and primarily on some parts of the act where I'm expecting to see an explanation after I give my explanation to amend them.
On Section II, I'm partially against to allow all neurodivergent and disabled people on the democratic process or public consultations, as we all know here, and this might sound shocking, that there's some people which sadly are unable to decide by theirselves or they can't even talk and move their hands to communicate. How would governments guarantee their parents or whoever in charge of them have voted what they wanted to vote? The Spanish law is pretty strict on that, to avoid cases like those I mentioned before. Disabled people that are capable of understanding the meaning of voting are allowed to vote in Spain, but those who aren't capable, are not.
And on Section 4, I think clauses I, II and III aren't needed, because everyone is free to choose the best worker for their enterprise. And also, the European Union itself guarantees equality, so I don't think that we should force ourselves to include them in every comittee. That means, if a comittee of Defence is ever created, we need to have someone who represents neurodivergent people even if he doesn't know a thing about it, or doesn't care. We shall not force anybody to do anything, because that will just turn on the process of the end of the European Union.
Amendment I
SECTION II - EQUALITY OF ACCESS
I. Neurodivergent and disabled people shall be provided equal access to services, employment,
the democratic process, public consultation andcomplaints system, the immigration and refugee process of that member state and/or the European Union and shall not face discrimination based on their neurodiversity and/or disabled status.
II. The member state shall make adaptations to ease the process for neurodivergent and/or disabled people to access services, employment,the democratic process, public consultation andcomplaints system, the immigration and refugee process of the member state and/or the European Union.
Amendment II
SECTION IV - POLICY INCLUSION, REPRESENTATION AND FUNDING
I. All boards or committees accredited to the European Union shall require the consultation of at least one neurodivergent and/or disabled person in their decision-making process, who shall also be allowed to provide their input or feedback to the board or committee. This shall also apply to any enterprise, division, non-profit, or public sector organization with more than 250 employees that operates within the European Union.
II. Member state government departments shall include committees for neurodivergent and disabled people to provide input on the quality and access of service delivery.
III. Member state governments shall include the input of neurodivergent and disabled into different aspects of government policy.
IV.I. Member state governments must publish a Neurodiversity and Disability Strategy and Report at least once every 4 years or 1460 days. These reports shall demonstrate how member state governments have adapted and improved upon services, the quality of care, and the accessibility of services available to neurodivergent and disabled people in their country within that time period.
V.II. Member states shall provide monetary funds in appropriate amounts to assist small and medium sized enterprises, as well as small organisations, to adapt to the needs of neurodivergent and disabled people.
Donald D. Tusk
Councillor for Spain -
I thank all nations for their support in this act so far . Section III doesn't necessarily mean allowing others to vote for them but it just means all reasonable means should be made that those of sound mind and mentally capable should have access to the democratic process and those with physical accessibility needs. You law would pass on that front as long as you enable those who can understand to vote, as the ballot must be done by the person.
On section 4 clause 3 we removed the need for businesses to have members on the boards instead only to consult neurodivergent. It is vital that all the representation and consultation occurs, otherwise a policy or standard could be implemented that actively harms neurodivergents or disabled people or both. If we don't have this requirement people could still be disadvantaged on neurodivergence or disability. I know requiring a person on every board is hard which is why we suggest a comittee in each organisation that can be consulted as per the clause. The government policy input would be in regards to impact on disability or neurodivergent rights and accessibility to ensure that a policy is not unnecessarily exclusionary or has a unintended impact. That is why representation and consultation is vital.Reducing the role in the democratic or consultation process would allow states to exclude all neurodivergent and disabled from those processes causing possibly big issues or allowing them to ignore disabled and neurodivergent peoples needs. This is why representation goes hand in hand with access.We could potentially change these sections:
SECTION II - EQUALITY OF ACCESS
I. Neurodivergent and disabled people shall be provided equal access to services, employment, the democratic process, public consultation and complaints system, the immigration and refugee process of that member state and/or the European Union and shall not face discrimination based on their neurodiversity and/or disabled status.
II. The member state shall make adaptations to ease the process for neurodivergent and/or disabled people to access services, employment,the democratic process,public consultation and complaints system, the immigration and refugee process of the member state and/or the European Union.
III.The member state shall make adaptations to ease the democratic process for neurodivergent and/or disabled people that are capable of the process of voting.
IV. Reasonable adaptations shall be made in public and private commercial zones, travelling, leisure venues, and public facilities for neurodivergent and disabled visitors. All Public facilities, andprivate businessescommercial areas, offices, and residential areas, public or private, shall be required to be accessible by wheelchair unless there is a valid reason not to do so, such as unreasonable cost, or threats to the heritage of buildings, their structural integrity, or their character.
V. Reasonable adjustments and accommodations shall be made for neurodivergent or disabled people to move freely and easily in areas of construction or renovations of public buildings or public developments.
VI. Businesses, organisations and government departments shall allow for means of non-verbal communication for neurodivergent and disabled people.SECTION IV - POLICY INCLUSION, REPRESENTATION AND FUNDING
I. All boards or committees accredited to the European Union shall require the consultation of at least one neurodivergent and/or disabled person in their decision-making process, who shall also be allowed to provide their input or feedback to the board or committee. This shall also apply to any enterprise, division, non-profit, or public sector organization with more than 250 employees that operates within the European Union.
II. Member state government departments shall include committees or meaningful consultation processes for neurodivergent and disabled people to provide input on the quality and access of service delivery.
III. Member state governments shall include the input of neurodivergent and disabled into different aspects of government policy regarding the impacts of policy on the neurodvergent and disabled people
IV. Member state governments must publish a Neurodiversity and Disability Strategy and Report at least once every 4 years or 1460 days. These reports shall demonstrate how member state governments have adapted and improved upon services, the quality of care, and the accessibility of services available to neurodivergent and disabled people in their country within that time period.
V. Member states shall provide monetary funds in appropriate amounts to assist small and medium sized enterprises, as well as small organisations, to adapt to the needs of neurodivergent and disabled people.Tobias Johnson Farage
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Well, folks, here we are again. And this bill still says you can't try and cure a disability, and that's ridiculous. If you can treat a disability, you have to be able to do that. You have some people now, and they're deaf, but they can make these things that allow them to hear, and it's so great, and science is so wonderful, it's amazing. But that's not allowed any more, under this bill, OK? It says that's torture. Unless the disability is going to kill you. And that's so wrong. And after this bill passes, I'm not even allowed to say what I just said.
This bill still says, to the member states, what criteria you can and cannot use when you're deciding who to let into the country, as an immigrant, or a refugee, and again, that is so wrong. We decide who can and cannot come into our country, OK? We have people paying taxes to our healthcare, and it's a great system, but we can't protect that if we can't decide in our immigration system whether this person is going to use that system, perhaps, more than most. In fact, it says we actually have to make the process especially easy if you're disabled, or neurodivergent.
And Tusk, OK, is so right, because he says that actually, some people are so disabled that they can't be capable of taking part in the democratic process; and that's really sad, but it's true, folks. It's true. If someone's severely disabled, mentally disabled, whatever, then people can exploit them, get them to vote a certain way, steal their postal vote, and that kind of fraud can swing elections. My lawyer, Rudi Dzhulyanov, can tell you all about that, and how some very bad people tried to do that in Pravoslaviya a few years ago.
But then you also look at the bill, and it's saying, if you have a private residence, you have to make your house wheelchair accessible, even if you're not in a wheelchair! You can't do that, it's ridiculous! And the EU is telling us, the member states, that we, our taxpayers, have to pay the bill! They're telling us we have to create a fund, we have to do this, do that, do everything. Folks, we can't go on like this.
The bill tells us we have to abide by a target for assessments - free assessments, even if you're really rich, like me - and if you miss that target, or break the bill in any other way, it tells us how we must punish that. The right to a carer as well, still not qualified in this new bill, folks. Lots of money the EU wants us to spend here.
The idea of quotas has been dropped, but still, every idea has to get run past a disabled or neurodivergent person, and you have mandatory committees of these people for governments, which is ridiculous, OK? Because it starts with that, and then people say the same thing for ethnic minorities, and the trans, and the gays, and eventually, of course, migrants - and I love all those people, but this is crazy, OK, because at the end of the day the only people not being consulted is the mainstream, the majority. And this is so divisive. That's what it is. It's divisive, you're dividing people in special interest groups, and giving them unrepresentative, unelected leaders who we're supposed to believe speak for them. That is so wrong.
In Pravoslaviya, we're a democracy, OK, we don't choose our leaders by throwing the old one out a window, or off a balcony, or making them Premier Commissioner. And our representatives, all of us, no matter of disability or gender or race, or whatever, is our elected deputies and our government, OK? Nobody's going to tell us not to do that, and that's why we're against this bill.
Cllr Dragan Trympov
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And once again Mr Trympov lies or either misunderstands about the bill. There is no stopping people getting hearing aids or treatment to help deafness for example and there has been an amendment proposed to solve the issue for those no mentally capable of voting which of course he ignores and you won't have to adapt every private residence but developers will have to adapt their properties to disabled if its possible which is essential to ensure access to good quality housing for the disabled.
On consulting disabled and neurodivergent and minorities this should always be done anyway to ensure discriminatory policies do not get passed accidentally or indeed on purposely.This isn't about dividing people into groups it is however about ensuring people get their needs met and are not discriminated against based on a disability or neurodivergence they are born with or gain, it is often said a society is to be judged by how it helps its downtrodden and those with extra need, I am afraid Pravoslaviya has found itself wanting on this aspect.I suggest Pravoslaviya needs to join the civilised world that treats minorities, lgbtqia+ and women with respect as several times now they've opposed any protections for those groups
Tobia Johnson Farage
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Excuse me. Quiet.
You know what, you are probably the single worst person in this chamber, OK? You're actually worse than the Austrian councillor and Van Halen, and believe me, there's a lot of material there.
Pravoslaviya is the most civilised country in this region, because actually, we treat people all equal, all the same, OK? We love everybody, except maybe globalists, but that's fine. We judge our society on how we treat everybody, not just special interest groups. What Johnson Farage and the globalist elite want is special treatment, protections, for different groups, so we're all separated, and we all have different politics, based on what our groups are. It's migrants and minorities first politics, folks, and it's so wrong, and it's going to tear our regions apart, and our countries apart. We can't have it.
And folks, you look at this bill, OK? Johnson Farage says you can still treat disabilities like deafness. The bill says 'member states shall ban the use of conversion therapy on neurodivergent and disabled people'. What does it say 'conversion therapy' is? It says 'therapy used to purportedly cure neurodivergent and disabled people of their neurological conditions or their disability'.
And then, Johnson Farage says oh, homeowners won't have to make their houses accessible for wheelchairs, just developers. And folks, I'm a property developer, I know how much that costs, and trust me, you don't want to know, and your taxpayers really don't want to know, OK? But what about homeowners? You've got what Johnson Farage says. And then you've got the bill, that says, and this is even after we pass the amendments, 'all public facilities and commercial areas, offices, and residential areas, public or private, shall be required to be accessible by wheelchair'.
If we pass this bill, we can't use Johnson Farage's words to say oh, actually, the bill doesn't mean what it says. It's there in law, the words are written down, and the courts have to decide on that, and doctors and homeowners have to take that into account, OK? Johnson Farage keeps calling me a liar, folks, he's the real liar, you understand? We cannot pass this bill.
Cllr Dragan Trympov
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In regards to the amendment I propose this amendment:
VIII. This Act does not ban treatments or therapies which aim to address negative side effects of disabilities that could risk life,heavy injury or have a lifelong negative impact on functioning as long as they protect human rights of the individual. -
Debate is now over. Voting on amendments will begin NOW, and since this is likely going to be a very confusing endeavour, I will allow extra voting time until 08:30 GMT on November 29th, 2020.
There are a total of TEN amendments. Amendment IX clashes with Amendments III and VI. Amendment VII clashes with Amendment X.
The amendments are thus:
Amendment I - Proposed by Cllr. Gökçen
SECTION I - BAN ON HARMFUL THERAPIES
III. Member states shall ban aversive conditioning therapy on neurodivergent or disabled children.Mentally capable adults of sound mindPeople who are mentally capable to consent and over the age of majority in the member state which they live in may voluntarily choose to undergo conditioning therapy, as long as consent is provided by all parties involved, and provisions are made with those of sensory needs as required.Amendment II - Proposed by Cllr. Gökçen
SECTION I - BAN ON HARMFUL THERAPIES
VIII. This Act does not ban treatments or therapies which aim to address the negative side effects of disabilities that could risk life and/or heavy injuries, as long as they protect human rights of the individual.Amendment III - Proposed by Cllr. Gökçen
SECTION II - EQUALITY OF ACCESS
III. Reasonable adaptations shall be made in public and private commercial zones, travelling, leisure venues, and public facilities for neurodivergent and disabled visitors.AllPublic facilities,and private businessescommercial areas, offices, and residential areas, public or private, shall be required to be accessible by wheelchair unless there is a valid reason not to do so, such as unreasonable cost, or threats to the heritage of buildings, their structural integrity, or their character.Amendment IV - Proposed by Cllr. Gökçen
SECTION III - QUALITY CARE
I. Member states shall ensure that their citizens shall have the right to undergo a free independent assessment for neurodivergent conditions, or an assessment of their neurodivergent needs, within a six-month or a 180-day period upon the recommendation of a doctor, general practitioner or psychologist.Amendment V - Proposed by Cllr. Gökçen
SECTION V - IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT
I. All member states of the European Union are required to adjust their national law(s) with this Act within 1 year or 365 days from its approval by the European Council.Amendment VI - Proposed by Cllr. Tusk
SECTION II - EQUALITY OF ACCESS
I. Neurodivergent and disabled people shall be provided equal access to services, employment,the democratic process, public consultation andcomplaints system, the immigration and refugee process of that member state and/or the European Union and shall not face discrimination based on their neurodiversity and/or disabled status.
II. The member state shall make adaptations to ease the process for neurodivergent and/or disabled people to access services, employment,the democratic process, public consultation andcomplaints system, the immigration and refugee process of the member state and/or the European Union.Amendment VII - Proposed by Cllr. Tusk
SECTION IV - POLICY INCLUSION, REPRESENTATION AND FUNDING
I. All boards or committees accredited to the European Union shall require the consultation of at least one neurodivergent and/or disabled person in their decision-making process, who shall also be allowed to provide their input or feedback to the board or committee. This shall also apply to any enterprise, division, non-profit, or public sector organization with more than 250 employees that operates within the European Union.
II. Member state government departments shall include committees for neurodivergent and disabled people to provide input on the quality and access of service delivery.
III. Member state governments shall include the input of neurodivergent and disabled into different aspects of government policy.
IV.I. Member state governments must publish a Neurodiversity and Disability Strategy and Report at least once every 4 years or 1460 days. These reports shall demonstrate how member state governments have adapted and improved upon services, the quality of care, and the accessibility of services available to neurodivergent and disabled people in their country within that time period.
V.II. Member states shall provide monetary funds in appropriate amounts to assist small and medium sized enterprises, as well as small organisations, to adapt to the needs of neurodivergent and disabled people.Amendment VIII - Proposed by Cllr. Johnson Farage
SECTION I - BAN ON HARMFUL THERAPIES
VIII. This Act does not ban treatments or therapies which aim to address negative side effects of disabilities that could risk life,heavy injury or have a lifelong negative impact on functioning as long as they protect human rights of the individual.Amendment IX - Proposed by Cllr. Johnson Farage
SECTION II - EQUALITY OF ACCESS
I. Neurodivergent and disabled people shall be provided equal access to services, employment, the democratic process, public consultation and complaints system, the immigration and refugee process of that member state and/or the European Union and shall not face discrimination based on their neurodiversity and/or disabled status.
II. The member state shall make adaptations to ease the process for neurodivergent and/or disabled people to access services, employment,the democratic process,public consultation and complaints system, the immigration and refugee process of the member state and/or the European Union.
III.The member state shall make adaptations to ease the democratic process for neurodivergent and/or disabled people that are capable of the process of voting.
IV. Reasonable adaptations shall be made in public and private commercial zones, travelling, leisure venues, and public facilities for neurodivergent and disabled visitors. All Public facilities, andprivate businessescommercial areas, offices, and residential areas, public or private, shall be required to be accessible by wheelchair unless there is a valid reason not to do so, such as unreasonable cost, or threats to the heritage of buildings, their structural integrity, or their character.Amendment X - Proposed by Cllr. Johnson Farage
SECTION IV - POLICY INCLUSION, REPRESENTATION AND FUNDING
II. Member state government departments shall include committees or meaningful consultation processes for neurodivergent and disabled people to provide input on the quality and access of service delivery.
III. Member state governments shall include the input of neurodivergent and disabled into different aspects of government policy regarding the impacts of policy on the neurodvergent and disabled people
I vote FOR Amendments I, II, III, IV, V, VIII and X. I vote AGAINST Amendments VI and VII. I abstain on Amendment IX.
Edward Firoux
Council Speaker and Councillor for Inquista -
I vote FOR amendments I, II, III, IV, V, VI and VII and AGAINST VIII, IX and X.
Donald D. Tusk
Councillor for Spain -
On behalf of the Commonwealth of Leagio, I vote FOR amendments I, II, III, IV, V, VI and VII and AGAINST VIII, IX and X.
Francis Plessis
EU Councilor for Leagio -
I vote FOR amendments I, II, III, IV, V, VIII and X. I vote AGAINST amendments VI, VII and IX.
Councillor Aylin Gökçen of Alkharya
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On behalf of the Republic of Nofoaga, I vote AGAINST all amendments.
Mrs. Paul-Gabrielle Muzhare
EU Councilor for the Republic of Nofoaga -
On behalf of the United Kingdoms of Mennrimiak I vote AGANIST all amendments.
Adam Karlssen
Councillor for Mennrimiak -
On behalf of United Duchies I vote for amendments I,III,IV,V,,VIII,IX, X I vote Against amendments VI,VII
Tobias Johnson Farage, Councillour for United Duchies -
On behalf of the Kingdom of Pravoslaviya, I, Dragan Trympov, vote as follows:
FOR amendments I, II, III, VI, VII, VIII
AGAINST amendments IV, V, IX, XCllr Dragan Trympov
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First my very best wishes to now former Cllr. Farage, what an excellent proposal you have put in the table. And may God keep you, sustain you and give you the necessary force in this times.
I vote FOR Amendments I, II, III, IV, V, VIII and X. I vote AGAINST Amendments VI and VII. I abstain on Amendment IX.
Emma Granger
Councillor for Montenbourg -
On behalf of the Kingdom of Reitzmag, I ABSTAIN from voting on Amendments.
Friedrich van Allen
Councilor, Kingdom of Reitzmag:sunglasses:
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The Empire of Inimicus votes FOR Amendments I, II, III, VII, and VIII.
The Empire further votes AGAINST Amendments IV, V, VI, IX, and X.Hetty Tilki
Empire of Inimicus -
Voting on amendments has now concluded. Since Mr. Trympov is not a European Councillor, his votes were not counted.
With 7 votes for and 2 votes against, Amendments I, II and III have PASSED. With 6 votes for and 3 against, Amendments IV and V have PASSED. With 2 votes for and 7 votes against, Amendment VI has FAILED. With 3 votes for and 6 votes against, Amendment VII has FAILED. With 5 votes for and 4 votes against, Amendment VIII has PASSED. With 1 vote for and 7 votes against, Amendment IX has FAILED. With 4 votes for and 5 votes against, Amendment X has FAILED.
The legislation has been updated to reflect the passed amendments. Final voting begins NOW and will last until 01:45 GMT on December 4th, 2020.
On behalf of the Most Blessed State of Inquista, I vote FOR this Act.
Edward Firoux
Council Speaker and Councillor for Inquista
The Most Blessed State of Inquista
Archbishop Mikaela Kligenberg
Chief Bishop Secretary Edward Firoux
Councillor Karinn Lallana
The Kingdom of Spain
