Elderly: the past rules the future

Article 9 of the Statute of the Elderly (Law that defines, protects and preserves the rights of the elderly) ensures that it is the State's obligation to guarantee the elderly person protection of life and health, through the implementation of public social policies that allow for healthy aging in dignified conditions. With the technological development of medicine, there has been an increase in the life expectancy of Brazilians, which is currently almost 74 years. In 12 years, it is estimated that this number will jump to 76 years.

This reality implies higher expenses for Social Security, the provision of medicines, and access to public policies so that this segment of the population, which is growing exponentially, is served and respected in its rights. However, public policies in the areas of Health and Education are flawed because the state, as well as society in general, has not yet fully realized that all human beings age and that, therefore, constant and comprehensive public policies aimed at this population are necessary.

In Brazil, there are not enough geriatricians, people prepared to care for the growing number of elderly people, despite the government's efforts to fill this gap, as demonstrated by health programs, increased budgets, and the "Mais Médicos" (More Doctors) program. Furthermore, there is still a large number of illiterate elderly people, especially in low-income groups, which increases the difficulty for older citizens to receive information, undergo treatment, and read prescriptions and medication leaflets. The Elderly Commission of the Rio de Janeiro City Council is fighting to create the Municipal Council for the Defense of the Rights of the Elderly, an organization that, once established, will propose public policies in favor of the elderly, as well as monitor whether these policies have been effectively implemented in the second largest municipality in the country, which has a tradition of being at the forefront in improving the quality of life and protection of the elderly.

The Senior Citizens Commission has been reporting to Mayor Eduardo Paes and the Special Secretariat for Healthy Aging and Quality of Life to request the creation of the Council for the Elderly, because it is a fair demand, as well as extremely useful for society, which, sadly, mistreats the elderly—our parents and grandparents—which is absurd, cowardly, and shows a lack of care for those who raised us, supported us, and helped build this country.

Another issue to be discussed, with regard to support for the elderly, is the creation of reference centers that enable the inclusion of the elderly in recreation, sports, gymnastics, leisure, and other activities, allowing them to continue their citizenship after retirement. Not having access to activities, for me, is the death of those who are still alive, who dream and fight for a better quality of life, both for those over 60 and for their descendants.

The issue of the elderly is complex because there is often a lack of human and financial resources to adequately carry out projects and programs that benefit this important segment of society, which must be valued. It is not easy being elderly in Brazil because governments often fail to give due attention to those who have reached their twilight years, and also because a large part of society has not yet realized that the elderly are important in our lives because they are our parents and grandparents, people who are part of our lives, responsible for our upbringing and existence.

The elderly are viewed with prejudice by society, as if its members would not, in the future, also grow old. I even consider the mistreatment of the elderly to be an immeasurable mistake, especially since I believe that a society that does not care for its elders is shooting itself in the foot, which is very contradictory, because if we solve the problems of the elderly, we will obviously solve our own problems, since, in the future, we will inevitably be older.

Another important factor I want to highlight is violence against the elderly, which I consider one of the greatest acts of cowardice that humanity commits. The violence is indescribable because it happens against defenseless people who have no way to defend themselves or escape their aggressor. The Commission for the Elderly has been combating various forms of crime and neglect against the elderly. When victims of violence, they are advised to seek their rights and, consequently, protect themselves from barbarity. In turn, the Commission for the Elderly receives complaints and forwards them to the Elderly Persons' Police Station, the Public Prosecutor's Office, and other protection agencies related to the condition of being elderly.

The individuals who most frequently commit violence against the elderly are those closest to them, relatives and friends, which is an unspeakable absurdity. Society punishes its parents and grandparents with all kinds of villainy. To be more precise about what I am saying, I inform you that, in the city of Rio de Janeiro and in Brazil, all kinds of aggression and neglect are committed, starting with abandonment. Soon after, the most common crimes are theft and fraud, and consequently, physical and moral aggression, many of which involve cruelty that could be considered torture. Violence and arbitrariness are unbelievably domestic and carried out within homes. However, cowardice and disrespect towards the elderly continue in hospitals, banks, shops, public transport, and on the streets.

The areas where abuses against the elderly most frequently occur in Rio de Janeiro are, in order of occurrence, the South Zone, West Zone, North Zone, and Center, in the Baixada Fluminense and metropolitan region. It's worth reminding those listening that the South Zone, in the Copacabana neighborhood, has an Elderly Persons' Police Station, the first in Brazil, which certainly contributes to complaints being filed and the collected data being made available to the Public Security Institute. This will make the aggressor think twice before committing atrocities against someone who cannot defend themselves.

But it's not all bad news that I have to file away in my heart. The elderly have been receiving attention from the municipal and state governments. In addition to the Elderly Persons' Police Station inaugurated in Copacabana, a Rio de Janeiro neighborhood that concentrates 17 percent of the population over 60 years old, the following were also announced: the installation of exercise equipment in numerous squares, the so-called Senior Citizens' Academies; the expansion of Community Centers; the renewal and improvement of various agreements; as well as the construction and inauguration of the first Elderly Trauma Reference Center, the first of its kind in Brazil, located in Tijuca, in the northern zone of Rio. The Center is a hospital that serves only the elderly and is therefore a specific and high-level health unit, as are the Sara Network and INTO, which serve people with bone problems.

Hospital care for the elderly is special and requires different care than the rest of the Brazilian population. The elderly have health problems related to their age, and are more frail, which means that healthcare professionals need to provide quick and careful care. However, this is a difficult struggle and often doesn't interest certain segments of our society. Therefore, I believe that attending to the needs of those over 60 should be routine. Project 159/2009 established, in Rio de Janeiro, the system of senior citizen gyms and the Carioca Academy of Health and Healthy Aging, which aims to encourage the regular practice of physical activity or sports.

In Rio, there is a law that establishes an essay contest among students in the city's public school system, to be held annually during the week that includes the first day of October, always with the theme "Aging and the appreciation of the elderly." In this way, society makes younger people aware that they will grow old and that they will face challenges in their daily lives, and therefore should always respect the elderly.

Another law modifies Article 1 of Law 2.373, of October 9, 1995. If this is the case, the municipality of Rio de Janeiro will celebrate Senior Citizens' Day on October 1st of each year. There is also a bill concerning volunteer service for the elderly. Therefore, volunteer service for the elderly is considered to be unpaid activity performed by an individual for a public entity of any kind, or a private for-profit institution, whose objective is to care for the elderly.

The law concerning priority processing of administrative procedures for elderly people within the municipality is also now in effect. Therefore, the elderly will be entitled to faster processing of cases in which they are involved or have an interest. The law complies with Constitutional Amendment No. 45, which made changes to the Constitution.

Finally, project 243/09 included the following clause in article five of Municipal Law No. 2.599: j) obliges the family, the community, society and the Public Authorities to ensure, with absolute priority, the effective realization of the right to life, health, food, education, culture, sport, leisure, work, citizenship, freedom, dignity, respect and family and community life for the elderly.

As you can see, the struggle is tough, but it is healthy to fight for the benefit of society, and specifically, for the elderly. Society cannot fail to realize that the elderly are young people in all their experience and history. Young people and the elderly are the same people, the latter having gray hair because of their prolonged existence and the problems they have solved in the past and continue to solve in the present. He who fights is not dead.

Life is a succession of facts, events, and problems presented to us, and the elderly are the great victors because they have gone through all these stages, because they have overcome the barriers of time. Old age is the icing on the cake of our lives, of our stories. Let's respect the elderly. The past governs the future. That's it.