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Summary: At its seventh session which ended today, the General Assembly Committee drafting the first-ever international Convention on disability rights reached agreement on privacy rights and came close to an accord on issues ranging from equality and non-discrimination to the right to education, health and work.
[UNITED NATIONS, 3 February 2006] - At its seventh session which ended today, the General Assembly Committee drafting the first-ever international convention on disability rights reached agreement on privacy rights and came close to an accord on issues ranging from equality and non-discrimination to the right to education, health and work. "We had a very good session, with a rich debate", said the Chair of the Committee, Ambassador Don McKay (New Zealand), at the conclusion of the session of the Ad Hoc Committee on a Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities. Meeting from 16 January to 3 February, the Committee concluded a second full reading of the draft and reached a breakthrough agreement on privacy rights (article 22). States that become parties to the Convention will be obligated to protect the privacy of persons with disabilities, including personal, health and rehabilitation information, and prevent arbitrary or unlawful interference with their privacy, family, home, correspondence and communications. Participants made progress on the contentious definition of persons with disabilities. To the delegate of Serbia and Montenegro, who said "Defining persons with disabilities will be a mission impossible,"Mr. McKay replied, "It will certainly be mission difficult, but not mission impossible". Delegates and disability advocates expressed general support for the revised Chair's text on the Convention's purpose (article 1), principles (article 3), general obligations (article 4). equality and non-discrimination (article 5), right to life (article 10), liberty and security of the person (article 14), freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (article 15), freedom from exploitation, violence and abuse (article 16), liberty of movement (article 18) and personal mobility (article 20). Participants also generally supported the Chair's text on respect for the home and the family (article 23), education (article 24), habilitation and rehabilitation (article 26), adequate standards of living and social protection (article 28), and participation in political and public life (article 29), under which States would guarantee equal political rights to persons with disabilities, including the right to stand for elections, hold office and perform public functions at all levels of government. There was also general support for article 27, under which States would recognise the equal right to work and gain a living. Several delegations proposed adding provisions on protection for persons unable to work in the open market, protection from harassment in the workplace and disabilities acquired in the workplace. There was widespread support for article 30, which would require States to recognise the equal right to take part in cultural life and in recreational, leisure and sporting activities, and for article 31, which would require States parties to collect information, statistics and statistical data to enable them to enact policies giving effect to the Convention. Disability organisations asked to be consulted on information and data collecting. Participants also reached a general agreement on shortening the Convention's title and came closer to an agreement on it. The European Union proposed "International Convention on the Human Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities", while the International Disability Caucus argued for "International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities". The Committee also came closer to an agreement on awareness raising (article 8), accessibility (article 9) and freedom of expression and opinion and access to information (article 21). But differences remained on equal recognition as a person before the law (article 12), access to justice (article 13), protecting the integrity of the person (article 17) and living independently and being included in the community (article 19). Participants reached a general agreement on article 25, under which persons with disabilities would have the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of health without discrimination. But differences remained on the reference to sexual and reproductive health services. There were also differences on international cooperation (article 32), with the facilitator's text calling for appropriate measures between and among States, including technical and economic assistance, in support of national efforts to realise the goals of the Convention. There was still no draft on international monitoring (article 34), and Mr. MacKay asked participants to reflect on the membership and powers of the Committee that would monitor implementation of the treaty, as well as the possibility of establishing other bodies and processes. Participants did not reach agreement as to whether there should be separate articles on women and children with disabilities, or whether provision on women and children should be included in relevant articles throughout the Convention. These and other contentious issues will have to be resolved at the next session, to be held from 14 to 25 August. For the first time, six children and young people with disabilities addressed the Commission on 18 January, urging participants to address the exclusion and neglect of an estimated 150-200 million children with disabilities around the world. The six young representatives of the organisation "Save the Children", from Bangladesh, China and the United Kingdom, reminded delegates that "Living in a world which does not value everyone equally is to live in a world which dehumanises everyone." United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour addressed the Commission on 27 January, reminding delegates that attitudes, rather than resource constraints, often create the strongest barriers to the enjoyment of rights by persons with disabilities. "Rules that block persons with disabilities from obtaining personal documentation or from voting in elections can be modified, often at little expense," she said. "Access to education or employment can sometimes be improved also through simple and inexpensive regulatory changes." More than 400 representatives from governments and leading disability organisations from around the world attended the session. The International Disability Caucus, the umbrella group for disability organisations, played a crucial role. The Department of Social and Economic Affairs served as the substantive secretariat of the Committee, while the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights provided its expertise.