Conference on Solving Our Life Problems

We are being led to believe that the most important problems Slovakia faces are the presidential elections, the privacy of TV entertainers, politicians, or gay rights. Slovakia has manufactured artificial internal enemies that the other side usually hates. The media are so effective that people can even unite against themselves and protect the real perpetrators of the violation of their human rights. The list of manufactured enemies is extensive. They are all the unemployed who receive generous social benefits for free; they are the Roma, who live at our expense; they are the old people who are still working; they are our parents, who are doing well while I am doing badly; they are our children, whom we would rather not have; they are other regions that prosper at my expense; it is Bratislava, because life is better there; it is the rest of non-Bratislava Slovakia, which takes our hard-earned money, but if they felt like working they would be well off, etc. Moreover, those who know this is the case are unwilling to unite and thus help create the illusion of a false democracy. Democracy here has only one task: to elect a different exploiter in free elections.

We have become accustomed to receiving manipulated information. The most expensive propaganda campaigns were related to the adoption of the Chilean model of old-age social insecurity (stolen old age), and the second most expensive was related to the referendum on joining the European Union. The pension reform remained profitable for its architects. It was never successful anywhere. Because of it, people have attempted suicide and it has been labelled as the criminal act of fraud. Entry into the Union was to be ensured by a government resolution that the referendum would be successful. It was supposed to be legally correct, but instructing officials to ensure a positive outcome is unlawful. To this day, our politicians do not know how to make use of membership. We are unable to utilise the funds, we return aid, and they have no idea how decisions are made in the European Union and do not protect their voters. Slovakia's future presidency of the European Union will certainly be a farce. No one cares that we have received warnings from the European Commission about the poor quality of our public administration, so what can come of it? Only shame. It is not true that those cronies and godchildren will learn everything by then.

The International Council for Social Welfare (ICSW) is the oldest global non-governmental organisation, representing tens of thousands of voluntary organisations from 70 countries around the world, actively engaged in promoting social development, social security and social justice. ICSW serves as an umbrella organisation primarily for ordinary citizens who want to decide their own fate. Only the most representative nationwide organisations can become members. Only one per country. Since 2012, Slovakia has been represented by the Standing Conference of Third Sector Organisations (SKTS). The French member (Committee for Social Development) and the Hungarian member (Association of Social Professionals) of this organisation approached SKTS with an offer to meet and assess issues of the social situation, poverty, the elimination of unjustified disparities, and the possibilities of sustainable development. The European President of the Council for Social Development (ICSW), Mr. Christian Rollet, also expressed interest. The event will also be supported by the Austrian member of ICSW (Committee for Social Work).

In Slovakia, a social policy is being implemented with impunity that is prohibited by international commitments, and which has been rejected by precedents of the United Nations and the Council of Europe. In a situation where standard social policy is not being pursued in Slovakia, where books on social development have been burned in Slovakia, where there is a lack of interest in people, where not even information from the European Commission is provided, where we live in lies and hypocrisy, international comparison will be necessary. The solution is not to create a small circle of friends around oneself, not to watch/listen to the news, and to tune out of this life.

After 24 years since the revolution, we have an overpriced, inflexible public administration lacking citizen trust, and a society in crisis. The public administration reform that was carried out was not appropriate. Compared to the EU, we allocate a disproportionately large share of the state budget to public administration and the police. What are we afraid of? Who do we need most? Yet there is no money for education and people's health. Europe says that we need to invest in social development, that it is not a loss. In Slovakia, money is artificially unavailable. Once again, miraculous solutions of returning to the previous territorial arrangement are appearing. For whose benefit? IT companies? Certainly not the citizen's.

According to Eurostat, Slovakia is a country with a higher per capita income than the Czech Republic, Poland, or Hungary. We have now overtaken Greece and Portugal in GDP per capita. We are among the wealthy states of the world. Have you noticed that we have wealthy municipalities and satisfied citizens? Slovakia has an economic strength of more than 76% of the EU average, but wages are less than a third of the EU average. Where are the remaining funds? We get back from abroad essentially alms in the form of European funds, but the real money goes to tax havens.

The Bratislava Self-Governing Region ranks 7th in economic strength in the EU (measured by GDP per capita). We lack balanced regional development and solidarity. The Bratislava Self-Governing Region has overtaken Vienna and Paris. Does this mean that Bratislava is more impressive than Vienna or Paris?

We have high unemployment. A fact that is essentially artificial. There is, however, enough work. Healthcare, food safety, services, etc. have been neglected. People's purchasing power is weak, and it does not create a need to produce. Unemployment is accompanied by the breakdown of families, crime, and suicide. People are afraid of being unemployed, so they work even for a ridiculous wage. We have a minimum wage that conflicts with Slovakia's international commitments. Even a doubling of salaries would not eliminate discrimination. However, it would increase demand for services, goods, and new workers. Finally, it would be worth working, something former governments falsely called for. The World Bank confirmed to them that it is not possible to reduce the so-called "generous" social benefits. Real wages need to be increased!

We have no new generation. Children are not being born. The birth rate is the same as during World War II. Pro-family policy? Slovakia is beginning to die out. Who will take care of you when you retire? What good will your savings be if there is no one to bake bread? When we were born, our mother changed our diapers, and when we die, who will change them for us if no one is here? 30–40% of school graduates are not working. Do we care about them? What will become of them? It is said that employment is the best protection against social problems and criminal behaviour ("against the bullet").

We have, or rather we do not have, a communal economy — social non-profit enterprise, which in the EU employs 7% of the workforce. What percentage is it in Slovakia? Is it said to distort market competition? Profitability in schools, retirement homes, hospitals, municipal waste collection?

Slovaks do not trust their government. We have the lowest trust in politicians among the club of most developed countries in the OECD. We are unhealthy. Slovak women and men have only 3 years of normal life ahead of them after reaching the age of 65. In the Czech Republic and Europe, it is 9 years. We are unhappy. We ranked 129th in the global happiness index and are last within the OECD. Countries to which Slovakia sends foreign aid have happier populations. Is this not a waste of money? Should we not finally start helping our own people as well?

A minister in Slovakia admits to age-based discrimination, i.e., a violation of commitments to the EU and the UN — is this not incitement to hatred? Young people want to drive the old out of work. Whom? After all, the majority of people aged 57 are no longer working. We have no solidarity between rich and poor people, no solidarity between regions, hatred is cultivated between generations, we are dying out, and families are punished for having children. Where is the future? Where is a sustainable, dignified life? Our society is practically in the same state it was in November 1989. The only addition is high unemployment. If a constitutional amendment is proposed, should we not be thinking of one that would allow the reinstatement of commonly and unjustly plundered (privatised, restituted) property? Especially when it involved proven speculation that led to decline and extinction.

Let us make MPs accountable — let us change the electoral system so that politicians are responsible to the voter and not only to party leaders and the people who own the party. Students ask me whether things were worse in society before 1989. I answered: "Back then we had ideals." We need to start! Start changing this state, this society, working with people and for people. This crisis is not caused by a natural disaster; it is a misfortune caused purely by greed and inhumanity. Let us make life more dignified and society more just. Each of us is responsible for ourselves, for our own family, for the municipality in which we live, for the region, but also for the state, for Europe, and indeed we are responsible to one another for everyone!

MPs must represent their constituents and must be subordinate only to the citizen, they must account only to them, and citizens must also have the right to recall them if they fail to fulfil the promises for which they were chosen to represent the will of their citizens. They will be elected directly from single-member constituencies.

A referendum must be able to be held at all levels of public administration. Every important question proposed by petition must be the subject of a referendum. The result of a referendum shall be valid if it corresponds to the majority will of the participating citizens.

The state is to represent the collective will of its associated citizens. The state may act only in the best interest of its citizens while respecting minority rights. The state must strive with other entities to achieve a state of sustainable dignified life and social justice.

The citizen is to be the real foundation of the state. They may act independently in accordance with generally applicable norms. Above all, they are responsible for their own life, for their social, cultural and economic standing. Only if they are objectively unable to act do they receive assistance from another entity. The citizen will act in cooperation with the family and the community in whose life they participate.

The municipality unites citizens on a territorial principle. The municipality assists citizens and acts in coordination with them in matters where the citizen needs help, or where it is more advantageous and efficient in the public interest. The citizen participates in the life and administration of the municipality directly, or through their elected representatives (councillors). The municipality represents the interests of citizens towards higher bodies of public administration. A municipality may be merged, divided, or its powers changed only by a local referendum.

The region is a regional association of citizens and municipalities to address common matters in an area that it is not purposeful or efficient to handle at a lower level. A region may be merged, divided, or its powers changed only by a regional referendum.

The state is primarily a voluntary association of citizens, municipalities and regions to fulfil tasks and duties that it is not purposeful or appropriate to perform at a lower level. The state may associate with another entity, or terminate such an arrangement, only with the consent expressed in a nationwide referendum. The state represents the interests of its citizens externally. Towards other entities, it acts only in the best interest of its own citizens. The state assumes responsibility for security both externally and within the state.

The conference can offer several recommendations for Slovakia as a homeland for all its citizens, not only the chosen few:

• All citizens have equal rights; social, cultural and economic differences are respected. These differences must not conflict with the interest of the whole.
• Every asset has a legal and morally justifiable origin. Private property is protected but must not harm the interests of the whole.
• Every citizen has the right, after fulfilling their applicable obligations, to an adequate dignified life.
• Every citizen has the right to work and to receive fair remuneration for performing socially necessary work.
• The level of wages is directly linked to the work performed and realistically corresponds to the economic strength of the state.
• Wages are socially just, so that they are socially fair and social benefits do not create a poverty trap.
• The social minimum and minimum living standard are comparable to the average of EU countries.
• Citizens fulfil their life and social needs in Slovakia without needing to leave for other states, even temporarily.
• Adequate health of citizens is ensured at a level customary in the EU.
• The extinction of Slovakia is prevented. Families are supported in their role of raising the new generation. Every child is guaranteed minimum protection.
• Families are not punished for having children. Families that provide their children with adequate care and upbringing are rewarded by society.
• Intergenerational coexistence functions, where grandparents, their children and their children's children take joy in each other's closeness.
• A dignified old age is secured for older citizens. Income in old age reflects the contribution of the elderly to the development of present-day society. Older people are not to be discriminated against and punished for their age.
• Young people and school graduates have meaningful and adequately remunerated work.
• The state assists with entry into working life and with starting a family. A harmonious coexistence of all generations is achieved.
• The future of the citizens of Slovakia is protected by supporting education that is at a standard customary for Europe.
• Economic development is built on the education and knowledge of the citizens of Slovakia and not on exploitation in the assembly plants of foreign owners.
• We do not squander what we have borrowed from our ancestors — soil, water, air — but instead improve and sustainably use it for the well-being of the whole society.
• Slovak society develops in accordance with the principles of solidarity, cooperation among all, and social justice.
• Slovakia has no underdeveloped regions and no excluded groups of the population.
• Everyone is guaranteed a universal social minimum, and every citizen, municipality and region has the opportunity and the right to improve their situation, but not at the expense of the interests of society.

International comparison and open discussion can bring new insights. The European Commission calls for capitalism with a human face. Why could we not make Slovakia a country where life is good? Anyone who cares about their future destiny should come and will have the opportunity to express themselves and participate in shaping conclusions and their implementation. I drafted the conclusions and recommendations of the International Labour Organization on the importance of social development in 2001 — let us finally, after thirteen years, bring them to Slovakia.

Do you have something to say? Would you like to participate? The deadline for registration of active participants is no later than: 10 February 2014. The deadline for registration of passive participants is no later than: 15 February 2014. More here: http://www.prohuman.sk/socialna-praca/konferencia-socialne-investovanie-2014

doc. RNDr. Miloslav Hetteš, CSc. Main Representative of SKTS at the International Council for Social Welfare (ICSW)