MOSCOW, October 12 (Itar-Tass) —— The leaders of the Russian Communist party have presented a new program on Wednesday which is part of their election platform.
"There are almost 13 million incapacitated people in Russia, but only a few of them have jobs," leader of the Communist party Gennady Zyuganov told a press conference on Wednesday. Vice-speaker of the State Duma Ivan Melnikov, also a communist, said that only 11, 000 people with deficient eyesight are employed now against 52,000 such people who had jobs in the former Soviet Union.
"We call on the state to support organizations of the incapacitated people and create more work places for them," said Duma MP from the Communist party Oleg Smolin. The state sector should have no less than a five- percent quota for the incapacitated people, and their number at ordinary enterprises with the staff of no more than 30 should be three percent," Smolin said.
Duma Vice-speaker Ivan Melnikov urged the government to return social benefits and guarantees to the incapacitated people they enjoyed before the notorious 122 bill on monetization of benefits was enacted. First, the communists demand to establish a separate minimal subsistence level for incapacitated people certified as suffering from heavy disability. The basic minimal subsistence level should be 15, 000- 17,000 roubles per month, rather than 7,000 officially proclaimed now, Melnikov said. He also demanded to reinstate a 50- percent discount on telephone communications and a similar 50 percent discount on public utilities tariffs for incapacitated people and their families.
"Incapacitated people with deficient eyesight have to be certified by all the existing doctors in order to get a seeing eye-dog," Smolin said, adding that the rule makes all doctors feel ferocious as well. The communist demand to simplify this procedure and make it possible to perform the necessary formalities by proxy without asking an invalid to apply in person, "which would save time and strength of both citizens and the state," Smolin said.