שתיל - שירותי תמיכה וייעוץ לקידום שינוי חברתי

The wheels started turning on August 3rd, as five wheelchair-bound activists left Kiryat Shmona for Jerusalem on a mission to raise public awareness about the plight of the disabled in Israel. Each day, another dozen or so disabled people joined them for the day. The 10-day journey was organized to raise public awareness about the distress of Israel's disabled population - especially those living in the periphery who see themselves as doubly disabled - and to strengthen the disabled protesters who have been camped out in front of the Welfare Ministry for the past two months. These protesters aim to spur the government to acknowledge their situation, hear their demands and give them urgent assistance.

SHATIL guided the campaign with other assistance provided by the Kibbutz Movement, the Hashomer Hatza'ir youth movement and the Association of Polio Victims in Israel. The SHATIL Galil office arranged a rotation by which one of them constantly accompanied the journey.

The Shatil-advised protesters in Jerusalem, which the wheelchair contingent joined when they arrived in Jerusalem August 13, are demanding:

• The provision of caregivers: While a person with 100% disability receives NIS 2,200 ($617) per month from the government for special services, he or she must pay NIS 3850 ($1,080) minimum wage plus benefits to a caregiver. The disabled are demanding that the government halt this allowance and take responsibility for providing the caregivers.

• Updating of mobility allowance: The government allowance to the disabled who need a car in order to leave the house is NIS 2,150 ($535) while the actual cost of maintaining such a car is approximately NIS 3,500 ($982.) As a result, many disabled people are confined to their homes.

• Raising the general disability allowance which is NIS 2,200 ($614.)

• Government help to the disabled in the periphery to obtain medical services in the center of the country which cannot be obtained in their areas.

"We succeeded in traveling in our wheelchairs, 350 kilometers during the hottest days of summer, and attained our goal of reaching Jerusalem," said Albert Maimoni, a 52-year-old father of four from Kiryat Shmona who worked as a chef until eight years ago, when he contracted osteomalacia. "This campaign gave us back our self respect."

Yesterday (August 17) representatives of the disabled who have been striking in the tent encampment for 68 days met with the Minister of Welfare and the director of the Social Security administration, a meeting that resulted in progress in their ongoing negotiations.