At the 1st of October celebrates the Elder's day in Brazil. Until 2006, Elderly Day was celebrated on September 27th. This is because, in 1999, the Commission for Education, of the Federal Senate, had instituted such a date for reflection on the situation of the elderly in society, that is, the reality of the elderly in issues related to health, family life, abandonment, sexuality, retirement etc.
On October 1, 2003, however, the Law No. 10741, which made the Statuteof the Elderly. Due to the fact that the Statute was instituted on October 1st, in 2006 another law was created (the Law No. 11,433, December 28, 2006) to move Seniors Day to October 1st. It is noteworthy that since 1994, with the Law No. 8842, the Brazilian State had already included the figure of the elderly in the scope of national policy, given that this law created the National Council for the Elderly.
The fact is that, with the creation of the Elderly Statute, in 2003, Brazil began to incorporate into its jurisprudence resolutions of international organizations such as the United Nations (UN) and the World Organization of Health (WHO). It is known that, in 1982, the UN created, in Vienna, Austria, the first
World Assembly on Aging. From that Assembly, an International Plan of Action on Aging was prepared, which had 62 points, which began to guide the reflections, legislation and subsequent actions regarding the old man.Do not stop now... There's more after the advertising ;)
It is also known that, at the 1991 General Assembly, the UN approved the Resolution 46/91, which deals with the rights of the elderly. The principles of this resolution guide contemporary discussions on the situation of the elderly. Among these principles are those of “self-fulfillment” and the “dignity”, whose points are:
self-fulfillment:
Take advantage of opportunities for the full development of their potential;
Have access to society's educational, cultural, spiritual and leisure resources;
Dignity:
To be able to live with dignity and security, without being the object of exploitation and physical or mental abuse;
Be treated fairly, regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, disabilities, economic conditions or other factors.
In addition to these principles, the UN also highlighted the issues of assistance to the elderly and their integration and participation in society, as well as independence which is inherent to them and which must be guaranteed to them in rights such as: work, leisure, determine when to leave the labor market, be able to live in safe environments etc. October 1st, therefore, is set aside to think about all these fundamental questions about the elderly.
By Me. Cláudio Fernandes
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
FERNANDES, Claudio. "October 1st – Elderly Day"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/datas-comemorativas/dia-idoso.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.