Today, is an important and long awaited day for Som – Fundació. After many months, today the Congress of Deputies will finally ratify the reform of civil legislation that eliminates the figure of guardianship and extended parental authority of people with intellectual disabilities and replaces it with a model of support in the taking of decisions, based on respect for the person and their preferences.
This implies a giant step for all Spanish citizens, and especially for our group. It involves replacing a model of legal incapacity and cancellation of their participation in civil society with one based on respect, active listening, support, and the construction of a life project of their own with a support system that allows people with intellectual disabilities to decide on their own lives.
Catalan Civil Code
In Catalonia, this change comes precisely in the midst of the process of reforming our civil legislation, which regulates in its Book Two the issues related to the Person and the Family. Therefore, we hope that the new incoming Catalan government will speed up the adaptation, because we believe it is essential that both civil codes go in the same direction, even though they operate independently.
This goal aligns us with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and, at the same time, poses a great and exciting challenge for our organization, as it involves structural changes in our daily lives and in the model of care of the people we support.
In fact, today the newspaper ‘El Mundo’ collects the testimony of one of the people we care, Raquel Manzano. An inspiring interview that explains how her life changed when she went from a legal incapacity to a decision support system, facilitated by our social, administrative and accounting referents from Som-Fundació.
Today is a day to celebrate!
Una entitat sense ànim de lucre
