TheCanary bracht op 16 september jl. een artikel waarin stuitend bewijs wordt geleverd over de BBC, die de Britse regering uit de ‘VN-wind’ houdt.

De VN heeft een rapport uitgebracht, waarin de bezuinigingen op het budget voor minder valide mensen, door de inhumane neoliberale regering May aan de paal wordt genageld. Volgens het rapport zijn deze bezuinigingen levensbedreigend en leiden tot moord, suïcide en euthanasie……*

De regering May insinueert met haar uitlatingen t.a.v. deze groep zwakkere mensen, dat het parasieten en uitnemers van de sociale zekerheid zijn, ze zouden leven op het belastinggeld van anderen………………….

Op 14 september jl. publiceerde de VN een audiobestand van de persconferentie over deze zaak, waarin het ook een volledig BBC interview overnam van 10 minuten, een interview met Theresia Degener, voorzitter van de VN commissie voor mensen met een handicap (UNCRPD).

‘Vreemd genoeg’ zond de BBC maar 20 seconden uit van dit interview…… U had het al begrepen: totaal niet vreemd, daar staatsomroep BBC vooral het regeringsbeleid verdedigt, hoe fout dat beleid ook is

Lees de uitstekende analyse van Steve Topple over deze ongelofelijke zaak (bij mijn noot (*) onder dat artikel nog een kleine aanvulling over het Nederlandse beleid op hetzelfde gebied, dat zoals u wellicht weet, weinig beter is (terwijl de reguliere pers hier, Rutte 2 de hemel in prijst..)……

The BBC didn’t want you to hear the UN’s most damning interview about the UK government in full. So here it is

SEPTEMBER 15TH, 2017

STEVE TOPPLE

A BBC interview, of which only 20 seconds out of more than 10 minutes were broadcast, has come to light. And it has exposed the UN’s most scathing attack on the Conservative government to date.

Published by the UN, it reveals the organisation thinks that austerity is “life threatening” to many disabled people in the UK. And it sees the government’s actions potentially leading to “killings and euthanasia”, because it has helped create a society where a whole group of people are viewed as “parasites”. But it’s an interview the BBC completely dumbed down for its viewers.

A ‘human catastrophe’

In August, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) met in Geneva, Switzerland. It was assessing if the UK government meets its obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People.

And it was publicly unequivocal in its opinion on how disabled people are treated by the Conservative government. Its Chair, Theresia Degener, said in a statement seen by The Canary:

“Evidence before us… reveals that [welfare] cut policies [have] led to human catastrophe in your country, totally neglecting the vulnerable situation people with disabilities find themselves in”.

But on 14 September, the UN published the audio of the committee’s concluding press conference. And it left in a full BBC interview with Degener. John Pring at Disability News Service (DNS) discovered the audio; you can read his full analysis here and listen to the full audio here.

Disabled people: ‘parasites’ who could be ‘killed’

In the BBC interview, one of the UN’s most scathing comments was about public attitudes towards disabled people. Degener said [20.43] that the government and the media “have some responsibility” for society seeing [20.12] disabled people as “parasites, living on social benefits… and [living on] the taxes of other people”. And she said [20.23] these “very, very dangerous” attitudes could [20.52] “lead to violence… and if not, to killings and euthanasia”. And she urged [21.10] the government to “stop” this (audio):

Overarching concerns

You can read The Canary‘s full analysis of the UNCRPD report here. Broadly, it only noted two areas which it considered “positive” in the Tory government’s approach to disabled people. But it highlighted nearly 70 criticisms over the Conservative government’s treatment of disabled people. And it made over 90 recommendations to the government. It was these concerns and recommendations that Degener referenced in her BBC interview.

Degener said [11.40] that rights for disabled people in the UK were “going backwards”. She said [12.14] that the Tories have implemented:

“a policy of austerity… which discriminates against disabled people by taking away benefits which were supposed to help disabled people to live an independent life… [one] equal to others…”

Human rights breaches

She went on to explain how the UN believed successive Conservative-led governments had breached “human rights laws” (audio):

Degener continued by saying [14.45] that the UN believes that austerity has left disabled people reliant on “voluntary” support; that disabled people cannot “participate in culture and public life”; that schools are excluding disabled children, leaving parents without “any support”. And she said [15.55] the loss of the Independent Living Fund (ILF) had led to disabled people being “homeless”, “desperate”, and suffering mental health issues. But she also noted [16.34] “terrible” reports of people taking their own lives “because of the cuts”.

The UK government: ‘threatening’ disabled people’s lives

The BBC asked [16.46] Degener why the UN gave “the longest list of conclusions and recommendations” it has ever given to a country. She said [17.05] it was because her committee had “set the bar very high”. But she noted [17.10] that, while the UK “claims to be a world leader when it comes to disability rights”, it is actually going backwards; and that this “worries” the UN “a lot”. She then said [18.25] government policies had become “life threatening to many disabled people” (audio):

Overall, the committee condemned the UK’s attempts to misrepresent the impact of policies through “unanswered questions”, “misused statistics”, and a “smoke screen of statements”. It also said the government had introduced policies and legislation which “fail to implement” disabled people’s rights in “reality”.

The BBC response?

The BBC journalist told [14.17] Deneger that she can “edit” the interview. And edit it the BBC did, as the only section broadcast was 20 seconds, containing some of Degener’s least contentious comments. So The Canary asked the BBC why it chose to edit the interview so heavily; only including a tiny section of Degener’s responses.

A BBC spokesperson told The Canary:

“This is misleading. We make editorial decisions about what is newsworthy for inclusion in our coverage every day which often means using only key parts of interviews. On the News at Six and Ten and radio bulletins we very clearly reported on the UN report and its criticisms of the UK’s record on protecting the rights of disabled people, its concerns about the number of disabled living in poverty and the effects of cuts to benefits – including relevant sections of an interview with Theresa Degener”.

The government’s response?

A government spokesperson told DNS:

“We’re disappointed that this report does not accurately reflect the evidence we gave to the UN, and fails to recognise all the progress we’ve made to empower disabled people in all aspects of their lives. We spend over £50bn a year to support disabled people and those with health conditions – more than ever before, and the second highest in the G7. We’re committed to furthering rights and opportunities for all disabled people, which is why it is encouraging that almost 600,000 disabled people have moved into work in the UK over the last four years.”

“We’re also a recognised world leader in disability rights and equality, which is why we supported the development of the UN convention”.

The UK government and the media must take responsibility

The UN has now reported four times in the space of a year on human rights violations by the Conservative-led government. As one disabled activist told The Canary:

“If this was happening in a Middle Eastern country, the US would probably have invaded by now, under the guise of ‘humanitarian’ grounds”.

But the government’s response to all these reports? To simply shrug their shoulders and say they didn’t believe them. And now, we see the BBC cherry-picking the most palatable parts of an interview with the UN to broadcast. There is no discernible reason why the BBC could not have published the interview in full on its website. But as the UN implied, the BBC and the rest of the media must take some responsibility for disabled people’s appalling situation. The full responsibility, however, lies directly at the Conservative government’s door.

This article was updated at 5.10pm on Friday 15 September to reflect a statement from the BBC.

Hier de link naar het originele artikel.
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* Nu nog een VN rapport, waarin de Nederlandse bezuinigingen op het budget voor invaliden, chronisch zieken, ouderen en de GGZ zorg aan de kaak worden gesteld……… Intussen kan hier als bewezen worden geacht, dat deze bezuinigingen al tot een fiks aantal suïcides hebben geleid…… Met dank aan hare VVD kwaadaardigheid Schippers en PvdA opperschoft Martin ‘die vrouw’ van Rijn……. (en ja, de zorg over de schutting van de lokale politiek gooien, is een hele smerige manier van bezuinigen, die zoals gezegd veel mensen in diepe ellende heeft gestort……..

Regering May bezuinigt gehandicapten de dood in……. De BBC verzwijgt e.e.a. willens en wetens…….