The artist himself admits that he no longer has the strength to take care of his household. People are questioning why state and municipal institutions did not offer appropriate help in time to a person in such a situation.
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The artist’s situation was spoken about on social networks by former Member of Parliament Monika Ošmianskienė.
“In Geneva – progress. In Lithuania – Andrius.
This week at the United Nations, Lithuania spoke about how it has advanced over a decade in implementing the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – strengthening legal protection, developing community services, deinstitutionalization is underway, and service accessibility is improving.
People at the center!
And here is another slide from Lithuania’s social system ppt. But this one is not in Geneva. This one is from Vilnius city municipality.
Andrius.
A well-known artist. A person with a disability. A person who needs help and who DOES NOT REFUSE it.
Today, his home is full of piles of waste, flies, cockroaches, and a strong odor. The person moves with difficulty, hardly goes anywhere, is lonely and isolated.
And no, he is not a hoarder. He did not live like this before. Simply, at one point, the person’s ability to take care of himself became too limited.
And the system… The system disappeared somewhere.
Social workers came by. Once. They took out, as it is said, ten bags. And disappeared.
When a person can no longer independently manage household, health, documents, food, hygiene, communication, and their life, they do not need a checkmark on a paper. They need a person and a system beside them. Case management. Home help. Environment cleanup. Health care. Psychosocial support.
And more. We now also have coordinators for people with disabilities’ affairs. This is a person who should coordinate. Not just send a phone number. Not explain which department is not responsible. Not forward a letter to three more institutions.
Coordinate.
This is where a real disability affairs coordinator is needed. Has anyone heard of such a person in Vilnius city?
A person who takes Andrius’s situation and does not let go until a solution is found. Who brings social services, the health system, home help – everyone needed – to the same table.
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The system must gather around Andrius.
Because that’s what it was created for, damn it.
By the way. Andrius said a very simple sentence:
– It turns out I cannot live alone.
When he was in care, he says, it was good. There were people. Communication. There was no loneliness. Now he wants to return to where he felt safe. He wants to live. He wants to paint. He says he will paint old people.
By the way, this is not only Andrius’s issue.
A twelve-story building. Waste. Flammable materials. Smoking. One unlucky spark is enough. Then we will no longer have a social policy problem. We will have evening news. And after that a commission. And another “we need to learn lessons.” We learn lessons extraordinarily well after tragedies. Somehow less well before tragedies.
In Geneva, the Lithuanian delegation said a very correct thing – the gap between legislation and its practical implementation needs to be reduced.
So.
Here is that gap for you.
In photos. Not in percentages. Not in indicators. Not in the growth of service recipients. Cockroaches on the walls. Flies. Loneliness. And a living person in the middle of the room.
And more. It’s good that there is a kind-hearted acquaintance. But one person cannot change the municipality, the health system, social services, and the state.
Andrius does not need another visit.
Not another ten bags taken out.
Not another phone number.
A comprehensive, continuous solution is needed.
And yes, his own participation is also needed.
He agrees.
He wants help.
He wants to live differently.
What else does a person have to do for the state to finally come not to check, but to help?
That’s all about Geneva. Reports are necessary. The Convention is necessary. Laws are necessary. But human rights do not begin in a conference hall. They begin when someone opens the door of such an apartment and says:
– Andrius, we will not leave you here alone,” she writes.
The first to publicly speak about A. Kviliūnas’s situation was actress Judita Marija Smith, who knows him well and shared a video from his home.
“SOS! The person, well-known artist Andrius Kviliūnas, my late father’s friend, really needs help, because it seems various services and institutions are pushing responsibility onto each other, and in the 21st century we see a disabled person living like this… Among garbage, flies, and cockroaches.
Andrius has not drunk alcohol for 5 years, only smokes. Heart failure developed from overweight, he also visits a psychiatrist. He has a disability. By the way, everything is a hair’s breadth from a big disaster, because all this is in a 12-story building where a fire can break out at any time. I would mediate in resolving this situation. If anyone can advise or help, write personally. If you can, share. Thank you!” she wrote.
