Opinion|Reader’s opinion
If the system is inaccessible to a large number of people, this will not be remedied by developing the system but by developing an alternative service process.
Marjo Götte (HS Opinion 26.10.) brought up problems of accessibility of digital services for non-residents. The problem was the impossibility of digital identification.
The same problem applies to other groups of citizens, including the elderly. I have tried to take care of my father’s affairs and have come across many impossible situations in digital services because they are completely inaccessible to my father. According to Article 9 (2) of the Digital Services Act, the accessibility statement should include instructions on how the service user can obtain the information contained in the digital service or the service in an alternative way if the service or part of it is not accessible to the user.
These guidelines are usually not included in public service accessibility statements. I made requests for clarification of this in accordance with section 4 of the said Act for three public services. One was not answered at all, one responded with regret, and one stated that the grievance I raised would be taken into account in the development of the system.
If the whole system is in itself inaccessible to a large number of people, this may not be remedied by developing the system, but by creating an alternative service process and instructions for starting the process. For example, if a city’s website says that this matter is handled by the x-system, I think that city should tell on its own website what is the alternative way to get the service it needs if the system is not available at all. The answers I received suggest that there is no alternative process.
An alternative to digital authorization should always be to provide the authorization in traditional paper format if the authorization is impossible by digital means from the point of view of accessibility. Otherwise, the public service necessary for the citizen will not be available to all groups of citizens.
Jukka Ivonen
Helsinki
Reader opinions are speeches written by HS readers, selected and delivered by HS editorial. You can leave a comment or read the principles of the writing at www.hs.fi/kirjtamielipidekirjoitus/.
.
#Reader #opinion #alternative #digital #services
