“Reaching the finish line in equality” is the motto used by the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality for the sixth consecutive year during Belgrade Marathon to extend its support to persons with disability in their struggle against discrimination. More than 500 citizens who visited the stand of the Commissioner had a unique opportunity to mingle and talk with athletes with disability and become better acquainted with the problems they face in their every day life but also to directly talk to Commissioner Janković and staff members which enabled them to learn more about the institution and its scope of work and activities. In addition, visitors also took part in a survey administered by the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality.

Commissioner Janković stressed that there are many people with disability living in Serbia who do not have the same starting position and opportunities as others have and that they face many obstacles, ranging from architectural to many other barriers that they encounter in their every day life. However, the situation is slowly improving and as the persons with disability said themselves, it is better that it was in the previous years. The Commissioner said that this means that we need to continue striving to that end and that all competent authorities, but we as citizens as well, must do our share in keeping those issues in the public eye. She added that there are certain problems when it comes to the full inclusion of children with disability in the social and education system, and that there is a lack of adequate support in education institutions, while young disabled adults encounter problems in employment regardless of the progress made in the legal framework that governs these issues.

Our well known athletes attended the event, among which were Olympic medal winners Borislava Perić and Draženko Mitrović, as well as Tijana Bogdanović, a taekwondo medalist with her coach Dragan Jović, as well as other athlethes with disability who took part in the Just-for-fun Race. The guest of the Commissioner was Michael Uyehara, OSCE Deputy Chief of Mission to Serbia.

The event ended when the Just-for-fun Race began. Athlethes with disability, guests, staff members of the Commissioner and many other citizens who cheered them on ran the race.

“Reaching the finish line in equality” drive was jointly organized in partnership with the Serbian Association of People with Disability for the sixth consecutive year.