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------------------------------------------ On 13th December the United Nations General Assembly will adopt a new Convention to protect the rights of the persons with disabilities round the world. This Convention will be the first major human rights Treaty of the 21st century, and addresses civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights. After four years of negotiations by a General Assembly committee, the text was finally agreed on 25 August 2006. Since then, it has been translated into the six UN languages, and a technical drafting committee has scrutinised the text to render it both internally consistent, and consistent with the language of other human rights instruments. Once adopted, it will then be open to the 192 Member States for ratification and implementation. It will enter into force when ratified by 20 countries. In a statement on 28 August, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has hailed the agreement on the Convention “as a historic achievement for the 650 million people with disabilities around the world.” Countries that ratify the Treaty agree to enact laws and other measures to improve disability rights, and also to abolish legislation, customs and practices that discriminate against persons with disabilities. Currently only some 45 countries have legislation that deal with persons with disabilities. The Convention will be opened for signature and ratification on 30 March. So what does this mean for children with disabilities? 1. A paradigm shift Throughout the drafting process of the Convention, the Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee in charge of the Convention stressed that what was needed was a ‘paradigm shift’ in the attitudes and treatment of people with disabilities – from seeing persons with disabilities as objects of charity to considering them as individuals with human rights. This necessitates recognition that people with physical, psycho-social, intellectual or sensory impairments face many barriers that prevent them from full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. Those physical, linguistic, social and cultural barriers must be removed. The focus should no longer be on addressing the ‘special needs’ of children – the approach embodied in Article 23 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Rather, it should be on the realisation of their rights. The Convention recognises that a change of attitude in society is necessary if persons with disabilities are to achieve equal status, and includes a specific Article on awareness-raising to promote respect for the rights and dignity of people with disabilities. However, the Convention in its entirety is dedicated to achieving that change. The Convention will finally ensure that countries will no longer be allowed to relegate children with disabilities to the margins of society. Governments that ratify it will be legally bound to treat them as subjects of the law with clearly defined rights. 2. New obligations to protect the rights of children with disabilities Children with disabilities, have the same human rights as all other children. Human rights are universal. But, in practice those rights are violated or neglected in almost all areas of their lives – they experience discrimination, for example, in relation to family life, education, health, participation and personal freedoms. The new Convention seeks to introduce new obligations on governments and other duty bearers to take all the measures necessary to ensure that all their rights are fulfilled, protected and respected. All the provisions in the new Convention apply to children with disabilities as well as adults, but there are also additional measures included to address the specific situation of children. For example: In terms of building the momentum for the paradigm shift, the process of drafting the Convention was as important as the text itself. The pressure for the Convention came from the disability movement, and they have been actively involved throughout the entire process. The Ad Hoc Committee established by the UN General Assembly appointed a Working Group to prepare a draft text for the Convention. This Working Group comprised disabled peoples’ organisations as well as government delegations who collaborated on an equal basis to produce this initial text. Over the next three years, the draft text was debated in the Ad Hoc Committee, which met twice yearly, usually for two weeks in January and August. At these meetings, the International Disability Caucus (IDC), a coalition of 70 international and national disabled people and allied organisations around the world, played a crucial role – drafting amendments, analysing the debates, lobbying government delegations, speaking from the floor, organising meetings, providing information, and presenting a unified and powerful voice to ensure the best possible final text. People with disabilities were represented through the IDC, but also, increasingly over the three years, through government delegations. Children and young people with disabilities also played an important role. In January 2006, two children from Bangladesh, and two young people (from China and the UK) came to New York to present their perspectives on why the Convention needed to include specific measures to protect their rights. They made a presentation to the Ad Hoc Committee setting out their demands including the right to inclusive education, to be consulted, to support for families and to non discrimination. In a widely circulated written statement, they also highlighted the need for recognition of the importance of ending institutionalisation, challenging violence and abuse, ensuring access to services, opportunities for friendships with peers, and access to information They ran a successful lunchtime meeting at which they explored the challenges and suffering faced on a daily basis by children with disabilities, and took part in numerous press interviews. Their participation in the process was important. There had been a widespread view among many government delegations that it was not necessary to include provisions on children in the text. The reasons varied, but included the belief that the adult provisions applied equally to children, that it was unhelpful to make special pleading for different groups, that children already had the Convention on the Rights of the Child and that inclusion of provisions in the new Convention might serve to undermine those rights. The presence of children at the meeting served to challenge those views: The involvement of people with disabilities, including children, as key actors in the development of the Convention was transforming, and a learning experience for all involved. Government delegations who had no previous experience of the issues, let alone of working directly with people with disabilities, were confronted with profound challenges to their stereotypes and prejudices. The very presence and competence of the disability organisations confounded traditional perceptions of people, including children with disabilities as victims in need of care, protection and support. It forced a recognition that these were people entitled to respect for their rights and able to articulate and advocate forcefully for that respect. 4. Moving forward The Convention represents a monumental step forward. However, of itself, it is only a paper document. It will take sustained commitment to translate its obligation into meaningful action at the country level.
3. Recognising the importance of the process as well as the outcome - the participation of NGOs, disabled people and children
Further information
Owner: Gerison Lansdown, Save the Children