Overview

Organizers:

Center for Society Orientation (COD) and Serbian Society of Autism.

Purpose of the Training Workshop:

To educate approximately 30 DPO representatives from region, the representatives of DPOs from: Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia and Montenegro, in the field of  human rights monitoring of persons with disabilities by introducing the DPO. methodology of holistic monitoring.

Outcomes:

30 DPO representatives from Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia and Montenegro were trained how to conduct monitoring of their human rights in their own countries. The participants included:

• Becoming familiar with DRPI methodology of holistic monitoring (Individual and Systemic monitoring)
• Combining systemic and monitoring of individual experiences
• The basic principles of human rights and UN Convention on Rights of Persons with disabilities

Participants

Serbia

• Radovan Radulović – Will for Life (with personal assistant)
• Dimitrije Gligorijević – CIL Jagodina
• Marijana Atanacković – Čovekoljublje Belgrade
• Dragiša Drobnjak – NOOIS Belgrade
• Nikola Grujić – BG Centre for Human Rights
• Slavica Zorić – MS Association Novi Kneževac (with personal assistant)
• Robert Bičkei – Association “With you for them”
• Imre Majoroši, Mihajlo Gordić – Belgrade Association of Deaf (with two sign language interpreters)
• Vesna Nestorović – Association “White Cane”

Croatia

• Mirjana Dobranović – Association for Promotion of Human Rights
• Andreja Veljača – Croatian Association of Blind (with personal assistant)
• Gordana Mišković – Association of Dystrophy (with personal assistant)

Bosnia and Herzegovina

• Tifa Tučić – Association of students with special needs and volunteers Tuzla (with personal assistant)
• Adisa Pamuk – The association for support of persons with intellectual disabilities at the area of Sarajevo canton “Oaza”

Macedonia

• Biljana Manevska – “Open the Windows” (with personal assistant)
• Elena Kocoska – Polio Plus Skopje, Čedomir Šopkić – National Association of Blind

Montenegro

• Milenko Vojičić – Association of Plegia Nikšić (with personal assistant)
• Miroslava Ivanović – Association of Youth with Handicap (with personal assistant)
• Samir Guberinić – Association for help for people with disabilities (with personal assistant)

Organizing the Regional Training

Choosing the Five Countries

Five countries in Southeast Europe (Serbia, Croatia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro) were selected for participation in Regional Training for monitoring the rights of persons with disabilities using the criteria of those countries that have signed and/or ratified the Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities. Also considered in this criteria was if selected governments of countries lent support to the inclusion of persons with disabilities.  Since the languages are similar in this region this was also a criterion used for selection. Some of the Disabled People’s Organizations have experience in previous cooperation in joint actions with COD. Considering all these facts, the countries were selected by partners on the project including, staff of DRPI, COD and Serbian Society of Autism.

People Involved in the Organization and Supporting Staff

Trainers, organizers and staff

• Marcia Rioux – DRPI/York University
• Chris Lytle – DRPI
• Paula Pinto – DRPI Researcher, Portugal
• Zoltan Mihok – COD
• Goran Lončar – COD
• Miloš Banjalić – COD
• Gorjana Gordić – COD
• Goran Brajović – COD
• Marina Mitrović – COD

Accommodation

The participants were accommodated in three hotels within the same complex of hotels, located next to each other and linked with passages to each other so the conference room was accessible without need to go outside and leave the hotel and all offered accessible rooms and facilities.

• Hotel Aqua Marin in Kanjiža spa
• Hotel Aqua Panon
• Hotel Lupus

Food

The price of accommodation in hotels in Kanjiža included food (breakfast, lunch and dinner) which was provided in Hotel Aqua Marin in Kanjiža.

Disability-Related Adaptations

The accommodation in Kanjiza spa is fully adapted for persons with disabilities. Hotel Aqua Marin has an adapted entrance, conference rooms, elevators and rooms for people using wheelchairs (wide bathroom doors). The conference room where training was held is on the 1st floor with elevator access.
Two sign language interpreters were hired since one hard-hearing person attended the workshop. Sign language interpreters were present during whole training, each of 8 days. One copy of training materials was printed in Braille since one person with visual impairment expressed the need for it.

List of the speakers at the opening ceremony:

• Radovan Radulović – Association of People with Diabilities “Will for life”
• Vesna Petrović – Executive Director of Belgrade Center for Human Rights
• Nevena Petrušić – Commissioner for Equal Opportunities
• Njilaš Mihali – Mayor of the Kanjiža Municipality
• Marija Rauš – Special Advisor on Human Rights
• Marcia Rioux – DRPI Co-Director
• Zoltan Mihok – Executive Director of COD

List of the guests and observers:

• Radoš Keravica – South-Backa district Association of Dystrophy
• Dalma Biro – KOKUS Association of People with Diabilities, Hungary
• Ann Marit Saebones – Assistant of UN Special Reporter on disability issues, Norway
• Ljiljana Igrić – University of Zagreb, Croatia
• Frederick Stockhaus – SHIA, Sweden
• Sonja Vasić – independent representative of Montenegro

Sight Seeing Activities

A short trip was organized for Sunday 1st May to Novi Knezevac during the free afternoon. Novi Knezevac is a town across the river Tisa, 15km away from Kanjiza. It was planned for participants to visit the MS (Multiple Sclerosis) Society, the local DPO run by one of the participants. Within the MS Society is the MSHouse serving as a household for community based living for persons with MS. A barbecue and dinner in a local restaurant called “Lovac” was organized for after the trip and this  included a performance of local traditional musicians.

Summary of Evaluation Report

In general, according to evaluations, the Regional training was organized at very high level. The needs of the participants were very well met in all aspects starting from accommodation, to accessibility, technical and logistic support, work of organizers and staff. The topic of training was relevant and interesting and trainers were very qualified and competent. The trainers were successful in conveying knowledge to the participants and empowering them to apply the DRPI methodology of monitoring in their countries.

Evaluation Report

What is the overall evaluation of the workshop?

The overall evaluation of the workshop by participants was the workshop was very useful. It provided knowledge about UNCRPD, monitoring and was a good way for networking, meeting people from region and exchanging the experiences. General evaluation is that the training was organized at high level. The training sessions were exhausting and dynamic but according to evaluation of the participants, extremely useful with thorough information. Technical and logistical aspects of organisation were very satisfying. In general only complaint was that the training was very demanding with long and exhausting sessions.

What parts of the workshop they find most useful?

The participants emphasized following aspects of training that they had found as the most useful:

• methodology of individual monitoring,
• getting familiar with the situation of people with disabilities and legislation in other countries
• practical examples
• simulations of interviews
• information exchange between participants from different countries
• establishing contacts with other DPOs and CSOs
•  interactive lectures
•  report drafting and data use
•  principles of respecting the human rights
•  exploring the differences and similarities among the countries,
• conversations with the guests from abroad.

Were there any parts of the workshop that they did not find useful or that should be improved

• Some of the participants stated in their evaluations that organization could have been better regarding to schedule of lectures, free time activities, task defining. Also there were some complains on lack of specific examples by trainers during training sessions. Some participants expressed opinion that more attention should have been paid to systemic monitoring.
• According to other evaluations, the agenda should have been respected considering the predicted time for lectures and pauses. The schedule was exhausting and there should have been more flexibility for blind and deaf.

The participants ranking of the training

Table 1: Participants Ranking Aspects of the Training on a 5-point likert scale

	Unacceptable	Weak	Satisfactory	Good	Very good	Average Scores
Training in general:						3.90
Organization	0	1	6	7	7	3.95
Transport	0	1	1	5	11	4.44
Hotel	0	3	5	8	4	3.65
Food	1	7	7	4	2	2.95
Assistance	0	1	0	7	12	4.50

What did the participants learn in this workshop?

• The majority of the participants answers shows that participants learned new methodology and approach of monitoring the human rights of persons with disabilities, its implementation on the field at the local level, how to conduct the interviews with people with disabilities. Also they learned how important is to be thorough, accurate and correct in the protection of human rights. The part of the training related to monitoring of the individual experiences showed how data personal experiences are important for monitoring to be successful and credible. The participants also listed that they have learned way of using and integrating the data provided by systemic and individual monitoring, but also how to evaluate and analyze the real facts in the life of people with disabilities.
• Participants expressed satisfaction because they are going to be able to use the acquired knowledge in their countries and to transfer that knowledge to other members of their DPOs. According to participants the training was also useful for learning about instruments for individual and systemic monitoring, importance of respecting the principles of human rights, the experiences of other countries as well as the situation of human rights in different countries.
• In general it can be said that participants learned a lot about what monitoring is, and how to apply it in organization and that it should work simultaneously on both the individual and systemic level and should be taken into account all aspects related to the position of the people with disabilities, and that the report must be based on concrete tasks and facts.

What has impressed the participants in this workshop?

• The participants have given different answers about their strongest impressions. They stated that it was possibility of communication with other participants from region, exchange of experiences and information, but also the most of them liked empowerment song created by groups of participants.
• Participants were very impressed by energy and enthusiasm of trainers and organizers, especially by Dr. Marcia Rioux. Also the participants underlined possibility of establishing the cooperation with organizations from other countries of region and willingness of DPOs for conducting the monitoring in their own countries. Among the strongest impressions is also strength and courage of some participants in comical role plays. In general, the vast majority of participants said that the strongest impression was excellent organization and dedication of staff and trainers.

Do they have any comments about the organization of the workshop?

• In global, the organization was fine, even excellent. Still, at some participants opinion there could be more flexibility for blind and deaf. Comments regarding to staff are that everyone tried to help participants to feel comfortable. The organization was praiseworthy and relevance and actuality of workshop topic is rated at a high level. Also the vast majority of participants said that training was brilliantly organized, professionally, thorough, with no omissions in organization.
• Only objections referred to food and exhausting schedule of training sessions and lack of free time activities. The most of praises and best critiques went to COD team and tireless trainers.

Do they have any comments about the workshop facilitators?

• Regarding the workshop facilitators and staff, the evaluation shows that they were great at lectures, tolerant and persistent considering that they had been working many hours during the day. Another general comment is that they are very competent, communicative, and able to provide a lot of information. The participants agree that facilitators were extremely good and that they have experience acquired through work all across the globe.
• Still, there were some participant who thought that at times there were unnecessary, monotonous and long parts, with too much unnecessary explanations of same topic, but also the poor inclusion of the participants.  General conclusion drawn from evaluations is that every one of the facilitators deserves positive grade since they are qualified, patient and tireless and gave their best to answer all questions and to pass the knowledge to participants. The participants described facilitators as nice, sensible persons, patient, professional, affectionate and attentive.

What will the participants do after this workshop?

The participants will undertake following activities:

• Will consult with their managing structure and will continue to cooperate with organizations and people met at the seminar
• Will pass the acquired knowledge to other members of their DPOs and will actively be included in process of monitoring in their countries
• Will share the information about the training, prepare for fundraising and project writing, start lobbying for the funds for implementation of monitoring.
• Will take part in monitoring of human rights of people with disabilities in their own country.
• Will work on creating a base for conducting the research and data analysis.
• Will investigate possibilities for implementing the monitoring, providing the finances and human resources.
• Will transfer the acquired knowledge to other organizations in their country and will try to organize a coalition of DPOs for monitoring.
• Will work on signing the memorandum of cooperation with other DPOs.
• Will lobby for other DPOs to join and take part in process of monitoring.

Conclusion

The Europe Regional Office is located in Belgrade, Serbia, hosted by its regional partner, the Center for Society Orientation (COD). The mandate of the COD is to work on and promote capacity building of local actors in the Republic of Serbia and Southeast Europe during a transition period were all vulnerable groups could enjoy their Human Rights, Equal Opportunities and Freedoms.

The Europe Regional Office covers and will conduct DRPI projects in following countries of region: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia.

The Serbian Society of Autism  is also a partner of the Europe regional office. Created in 1977, its mission is to continuously work on improvement of systematic solutions for improvement of life and reaching of human rights of persons living with autism.

The Regional training for Eastern Europe for monitoring of human rights of persons with disabilities was organized by mentioned CSOs in Kanjiža, Serbia. At Regional training were present representatives of DPOsfrom Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

As a result of Regional training, 30 representatives of DPOs from region were trained in field of human rights and DRPI methodology of monitoring the human rights of persons with disabilities.

At the training were agreed that each of the participated countries should submit project proposal  for funding the country monitoring projects by DRPI project. Also the persons and DPOs charged for submiting the project proposals were selected for each country.

General impression of participants is that everything went well and that seminars like this should be continued, and the most important thing is to apply new knowledge in practice.