Speaking directly to lawmakers
“Change will only happen if we are involved,” Spanish self-advocate Ana Martínez told participants. She described how people organise in Spain and urged them to communicate their demands to lawmakers. Slovakia’s disability commissioner Zuzana Stavrovská also addressed barriers to political participation. [2]
Information people can use
Inclusion Europe reported 41 participants, including 23 disabled people, four family members, three local-authority representatives and 11 support-service staff. Participants identified a shortage of easy-to-read election information and weak opportunities for organised self-advocacy. Discussions with European self-advocates also covered women’s rights and unequal pay.
From national meetings to European organising
The workshop belonged to the EU-funded UNITY project, which connected national work on political participation. The previous day, the European Platform of Self-Advocates’ steering group had met in Bratislava with six Slovak self-advocates to prepare local events for the 2025 Hear our Voices conference. [3][2]