Following the invitation of the Federal Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Protection, the Red Cross of Serbia representatives, Natasa Todorovic and Dr Milutin Vracevic participated in the international expert conference “Human Rights and Older Persons” in Vienna on 12 and 13 November 2018. The main goal of the Conference to have experts engaged in the areas ageing and of human rights, as well as representatives of governments speak about human rights of older women and men in light of the new challenges brought forth by the technological developments and robotics. The Conference was opened by the Austrian Minister of Labour, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Protection, Beate Hartinger-Klein.

Living in the 21 Century and the era of rapid digitalisation, it is important to ask how robotics and automatization may improve the quality of life of older people, but also how they may make their lives harder. If development is not aligned with the needs of older women and men among other societal groups, it may present a challenge, even a threat for them. It is necessary to analyse the effect digitalisation, robotics and automatization have on human rights of older people, on access to services and rights, as well as to explore how the quality of life of older people can be improved through digitalisation. Of course, it is very important to ensure older people are more socially and economically included in their communities and provided with more opportunities for lifelong learning.

Participating in a panel, Natasa Todorovic of the Red Cross of Serbia said that it is necessary to combat ageism and stereotypes, underlining that racism and sexism are outlawed, but that ageism still gets a pass. She explained the importance of working with older people themselves, highlighting the Red Cross of Serbia as example of good practice, its Taking Action on Social Inclusion of Older People project and its educational workshops for older people on human rights and recognising internalised ageism. In the same project, the local level initiatives implemented through subgrants support the education of older people through projects, because this increases their digital inclusion. As a reminder, digital literacy is older people’s right, and it is up to the society to provide them with learning opportunities.

The Conference was attended by approximately one hundred participants from across the globe, experts, governmental representatives, civil society organisations, different UN agencies, independent bodies, including Ms. Rosa Kornfeld-Matte, the first Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons as well as Ms. Brankica Jankovic, Serbian Commissioner for Protection of Equality.

The Conference was preceded by NGO forum, organised on 10 November, collecting suggestions provided by civil society organisations for the next session of the Open Ended Working Group on Ageing. The suggestions are related to the legal framework of two issues important for dignified ageing: autonomy and independence.