2024-07-21 12:14:53
Last Thursday, 59 members of the Seimas voted for this document prepared by the working group formed by the Seimas Board after its submission, 1 MP abstained. The draft law will be considered by the Social Affairs and Labor, Education and Science Committees. After receiving the Government’s conclusion, the Seimas plans to return to consideration of this issue in the autumn session.
Silva Lengvinienė, a member of the “Vardan Lietuvos” faction of the Seimas Democrats, who headed the working group, asserts that it is necessary to have one legal act in Lithuania that covers the entire policy of the elderly. When preparing the document, the parliamentarians relied, according to her, on the successfully operating Youth Policy Framework Law.
“The goal is to have a functioning long-term and sustainable law on the foundations of the policy of the elderly, which would become an enabling law, not one that rots in a drawer,” said S. Lengvinienė, presenting the project from the podium of the Seimas.
According to her, the purpose of the document is to encourage the coordination of the institutions’ actions.
“When we talk about aging policy, we have to understand that it is a horizontal policy that covers all the areas that are important for an older person. The draft law is not perfect, very intensive work awaits before the final result. Its purpose is to determine the general policies of the country’s elderly people, the competence of state institutions, the institutions representing this population group, and the principles of working with elderly people. The aim was not to regulate all possible areas in which almost all ministries of the country operate in more detail and detail, the goal is to enable coordination between the regional and national levels, between institutions, this is now sorely lacking,” said S. Lengvinienė.
Once the law is passed, the position of coordinator for the affairs of older people would be established in each municipality.
“Elderly people cannot continue to be applicants or patrons when fulfilling their needs. It is especially important to coordinate the aging policy, the responsibility of the institutions and to have at least one person in each municipality whose main and only job would be responsibility for these issues. This will allow coordinated and consistent work with older people and will allow them to clearly know where to go to get the answers, advice and help they want,” said the head of the working group.
According to her, the establishment of such coordinator positions in municipalities would cost approximately 2-2.5 million per year. euros.
According to Seimas member S. Lengvinienė, at the beginning of January this year, almost 600 thousand The population of Lithuania was over 65 years old, which is slightly more than 20%. our societies and this number is increasing every year.
Members of the Seimas have doubts about the concept of aging
The new law declares the desire to create conditions for dignified, active and healthy aging. This goal of the draft law was criticized by Seimas member Viktoras Pranckietis.
“The word ‘aging’ is useless with such rhetoric. Could use “aging” or something similar. Therefore, my proposal will be: “to create conditions for a dignified, active and healthy life for the elderly.” I would suggest not to discriminate against one group, because I belong to that group,” said V. Pranckietis at the Seimas session.
Parliamentarian Stasys Tumėnas also spoke “about political correctness”, talking about aging.
“Aren’t you afraid of those political correctness observers, guardians, that you sort people into such groups?” I remember when I recently said here in the Seimas, “a young politician,” I was brought up to discriminate against people based on their age,” said S. Tumėnas.
An elderly person, according to the proposed project, would be a person over the age of 60 (countable). According to S. Lengvinienė, the working group had a long discussion about such a chosen age.
“It is about the pre-retirement inclusion of these people. I might just put it bluntly – preparing for retirement. The working group chose this concept by consensus,” she said.
A. Sysas: the law will not change anything
Member of the Seimas, social democrat Algirdas Sys was skeptical about the document intended for seniors, which, in his opinion, is segregationist.
“Why do we need another law, if dozens and hundreds of laws already regulate the lives of seniors, so to speak?” (…) The life of the elderly will not be decided by this law. If there is income, it will be higher benefits, higher pensions, easier access to health. Such laws do not address the problems of either the elderly or the young. Here is a typically segregationist law designed to put the ‘bird’s eye’ on the fact that we passed a law that will now regulate the lives of the elderly. He won’t regulate anything, nothing will fundamentally change, because money is behind everything. “Let’s not play with the legislation,” urged the MP.
In order to solve the coordination problem, according to A. Sys, it would be faster and more logical to include in the Employment Law that there must be a senior coordinator in every municipality.
According to its drafters, the draft law on the foundations of the policy of older people is based on the experience of the European Union states and the proposals of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for Lithuania. This document reflects a clear trend in OECD countries that echoes the United Nations’ Madrid Plan, where clear political commitments aim to “mainstream ageing” across all policy areas across all government mechanisms.
In the study of the situation of older people carried out by the OECD, it is pointed out that in Lithuania over 40% seniors live alone, most have a particularly small circle of relatives, and there is poor communication between the elderly and state institutions. OECD experts call for increasing the participation of this public group in the public life of the country, clearly informing seniors about the services that are created and available to them, and appointing responsible employees in municipalities who will be their main contact persons, closely assessing the current situation and expectations.
2024-07-21 12:14:53