Urszula Abucewicz, Gazeta.pl Woman: You have published the 2020 poverty report. Do you see an improvement in the lives of Poles? Is poverty in Poland increasing?
Joanna Sadzik: Last year brought an improvement in the financial situation of households in Poland. The extent of extreme poverty [ubóstwo skrajne – konsumpcja poniżej poziomu, która zagraża życiu i zdrowiu człowieka. W 2019 r. dla jednoosobowego gospodarstwa domowego wyniosło 616,55 zł miesięcznie – przypis red.] decreased, but still 1.5 million people, including as many as 300 thousand. children, lived on less than PLN 20 a day. Economic indicators such as GDP and the unemployment rate leave no illusions that this year is very difficult for many Poles. We see this when we visit families who have had enough from one to one so far. When one of the people loses the opportunity to earn money, it is tough. Jerzy, a 20-year-old studying and also working on a contract in a restaurant, helps his mother, who has a modest retirement pension. It was hard before, but they managed. Now, when it is necessary to buy fuel for the winter, they are in the spot. A crisis always affects first and foremost those who were in a difficult situation before it.
1.5 million Poles struggle with extreme poverty Buttonholes / shutterstock
Do government programs such as 500+, Layette + help? Or maybe another form of help would be more effective?
The data clearly show that after the introduction of the 500+ benefit, poverty in families with children began to systematically decrease. At the same time, according to data from the beginning of 2020, 300,000 children still live in extreme poverty. We are concerned about the situation of children who are unable to participate in remote learning. Either because of the lack of equipment (according to various estimates, it is over 100,000 children) or because of problems at home. We know how important childhood is for the shape of adult life, building faith and self-confidence, so we try to support children not only as part of the Noble Package. Marysia, who was afraid to answer at the blackboard, had very poor nature grades, wanted to become a veterinarian. She learned from the lady at school that she would either have a # 5 in nature or there was nothing to dream about. And she stopped dreaming. Thanks to the work on self-confidence, the girl begins to report to the lesson. There are no fives alone, but the abdominal pains in front of nature are gone. The emotional help she received from our volunteers is extremely necessary, especially now that true friends have disappeared and the children are seeing the world through the glass.
Does the 500+ program exclude women from the labor market? Does it make women quit or appreciate their jobs?
The families that we include in the project often take a heroic fight for themselves. If someone quits work, it is usually because he has a problem with caring for a dependent person. Sometimes it is a small child for whom there is no place in a nursery or a child with a disability, sometimes it is an elderly, sick family member. It is the duty of care for women. Ania quit her job because the cost of 24-hour care for her mother-in-law was higher than her earnings. The mother-in-law passed away a few months ago, and Ania, in the pre-retirement age, is trying to find any job. What is lacking in social services is certainly respite care and assistance in caring for people who cannot take care of themselves.
You mention seven misfortunes in your report. Among them there is, among others disability, poverty, loneliness and old age. Now comes a new one: the pandemic. How many people have been affected by the negative effects of the coronavirus epidemic? How to counteract them?
About 20 percent families who were helped this year by Szlachetna Paczka have been significantly affected by the effects of the pandemic. We got to Mr. Marcin, an independent father of three children from primary school. At the beginning, the biggest problem was organizing equipment for the boys and the youngest Kasia, then learning in two rooms. Kuba studied in the bathroom. Mr. Marcin was sent to a parking lot. And then the gas stove and stove broke. Mr. Marcin, like most Poles, did not have any savings. Somehow they managed without a stove, but how to survive the winter without heating? The people we visit have an average of PLN 12 a day, how to save money? How to prepare for any crisis event with such income?
Toruń. March of volunteers supporting the ‘Szlachetna Paczka’ campaign Photo Robert Górecki / Agencja Gazeta
Each of these misfortunes already causes exclusion. And when we add loneliness and old age to disability, it is difficult to maintain fortitude and constantly struggle with life. How to counteract poverty?
Mrs. Jola suffers from schizophrenia, she also has paresis of the right leg. She lives with her disabled brother and looks after him. She goes to the doctor once a month for a check-up, just imagine walking eight kilometers to the bus with a cane. She is the heroine of every day. How is he doing? She says she has good neighbors. It is social solidarity, building a sensitive civil society and strengthening local communities that can become a recipe for the crisis. No hero should be left alone.
Women live longer, and more often they suffer from extreme poverty in their old age Mircea Iancu / shutterstock
Poor people are often very proud and will not ask for help. How to help them? How to get help?
Someone who knows the history of the family always reports to the Parcel in need. This is a person who is somehow close to the family. It is she, the first protagonist – sometimes a neighbor, sometimes a community nurse, sometimes a friend or teacher from school, who notices that it is worth helping the family and talks with the family so that they agree to meet volunteers. This year, we are in 625 locations, 93 new ones, of which there has not been a Parcel before. It was there that local social leaders, often people working in other organizations helping in the blood, decided to create regions of the Noble Package.
On the other hand, there are also people who are dependent on benefits and who abuse help. How to recognize such cases? Giving isn’t always the solution.
We happen to end up in homes where very enterprising people can live without work. I remember when, as a volunteer, a few years ago I found a lady who had a detailed schedule, where food, clothes and other things are distributed in Krakow for those in need. We do not include such people in the project, they do not need our help. The donor of the Parcel, deciding to help, knows that his help will reach the family whose real needs are met by the volunteer. We organize legal and medical assistance for families – sometimes this need is the most important. And solving the dragging case for alimony or facilitating rehabilitation allows the family to catch their breath and start looking for a solution to their situation.
One of the people who spoke in the report does not hide that he cannot imagine the future. There are millions of such people. What do you say to such people? How to pour hope in them?
When I delivered the first package, I remember that there was a lot of screeching and children’s joy in a large family. At the same time, mum, Mrs. Marta, was surprised that the package is not one, but a dozen or so boxes. What was most important to her and what she couldn’t believe was that someone chose HER family. He chose. He wanted to help them. The package contains exactly what the family needs. There are also special gifts. In the family I’m talking about, it’s a white Christmas Eve tablecloth. The package is a great emotional support. The volunteer meets the family for several months, if possible – he accompanies him in organizing renovation, childcare, work, and sometimes, like Mrs. Irenka, who is 84 years old, Anka – our volunteer – simply comes to her from time to time. time for tea. Hope is always the other person.
This year, the parcels will go to families on December 12-13. The Weekend of Miracles will take place at this time.
Does poverty have a gender?
According to EUSILC data included in the Gender Equality Index 2017, the rates of relative poverty among women and men in Poland are similar. At the same time, it’s hard not to notice that the situation of women is difficult, especially at the end of life. There are 139 women among seniors for every 100 men. Women live longer, they have 5 years more life ahead of them than men. However, a healthy life is essential for the quality of life. The results of the 2017 Eurostat survey show that in Poland, a 65-year-old man still has about 15 years of life ahead of him, including 8.3 years of healthy life, while a woman has 8.6 years of healthy life, out of the remaining 20 years of her life. . This is an indication of how common an experience it is for women to live their days alone in poor health. Often for many years.
Poor people are often doomed to loneliness Denys Kurbatov / shutterstock
You use the phrase “no-fault poverty” in your report. People suffer like Job?
If we understand Job’s suffering as a struggle with misfortune and fate that unexpectedly falls on the family – you can put it this way. Every day, eight people are killed in road accidents in Poland. He’s somebody’s dad, maybe mom, sometimes the only breadwinner. A year ago, we were making a package for a girl whose husband drowned during the summer holidays, and she stayed overnight with two tiny twins, they were not yet a year old, they lived in a rented apartment. The package was needed to catch her breath, to feel that she has friendly people around her. In Poland, over 4 million people struggle with disabilities. Many of them need a second person with them permanently. The life of Hanka and Tadek was wonderful – a company, a house, a garden, two children. The third, Marcin, was born too early. It turned out that for the rest of his life he would be lying, he would never say “mom”. Hanka quit her job, Tadek began to struggle with depression, and for some time he pretended to be brave. It was only when it turned out that the company basically collapsed that he admitted that he could not cope. They did not manage to keep the house, the company collapsed. One event changed their lives.
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Szlachetna Paczka has been connecting Poles for 20 years around the idea of helping those most in need wisely. This year’s edition is attended by over 8,000 volunteers who meet with families and organize dedicated help for them. Despite an exceptionally difficult year, they visited over 20,000 homes. In this edition, 14,000 families will receive material assistance.
Source: Gazeta
Tristin is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
