New UN Disability Rights Treaty
20 nations must sign to activate
this new law
by Katherine Guernsey
On December 13, 2006, the
United Nations General Assembly adopted the first ever UN convention
to address the human rights of people with disabilities. The Convention
on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is the first core
international human rights convention (also called a “treaty”)
of the twenty-first century. As noted by then Secretary General,
Kofi Annan, this was the fastest negotiated human rights convention
in the history of international law, having been completed in just
under five years!
The CRPD will be opened
for signature by UN Member States on March 30, 2007. From that
point onwards, countries will be able to become States Parties
to the Convention by signing and then ratifying it. Once a country
becomes a States Party, it is legally obliged to comply with the
provisions set forth in the convention. Twenty countries must become
States Parties in order for the CRPD to “enter
into force,” a term used to mean that the convention is legally
activated and operational. Once the CRPD has entered into force,
the committee of experts will be formed to monitor implementation
of the Convention and ensure that States Parties are living up to
their commitments.
History of the CRPD
The current
process to draft the CRPD began in December of 2001. At that time
Mexico sponsored a General Assembly resolution to establish an “Ad
Hoc Committee” to consider proposals
for a new human rights convention for people with disabilities.
The Ad Hoc Committee met for a total of eight sessions at UN Headquarters
in New York, with each session lasting two or three weeks each.
The final meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee took place last December,
when they adopted a final text for consideration by the UN General
Assembly.
Throughout the Ad Hoc
Committee sessions, people with disabilities from around the world
played a critical role, providing unique perspectives based on
their lived experiences. Over time, many government delegations
came to include people with disabilities as members of their delegations.
During the phase when the first draft of the Convention was put together,
people with disabilities from a variety of Disabled People’s
Organizations (DPOs) participated on an equal basis with governments.
Never before have members of international civil society played such
an involved and integrated role in a process to draft a UN human
rights convention. Although some government delegations were initially
opposed to this type of participation, the DPO rallying cry of “Nothing
About Us Without Us” proved too strong to resist; over the
course of the negotiations those same government delegations came
to rely on the counsel, knowledge and leadership of the people with
disabilities participating in the process.
Benefits of the New Treaty
What
then does the CRPD offer to people with disabilities, including disabled
people here in the United States? First of all, it should be noted
that the CRPD is not, and cannot be, a “magic bullet” for
all the problems faced by disabled people in different countries.
Nor can it provide solutions to these problems overnight. What
the CRPD does offer is a powerful tool for use by people with disabilities
and disability advocates. The CRPD covers the full range of human
rights, and clarifies what governments must do to ensure that people
with disabilities are able to fully enjoy their human rights, whoever
they are and wherever they live. Moreover, the provisions of the
CRPD are legally binding for governments who become States Parties.
That means they must comply with their obligations, instead of
just taking action when they feel like it. The CRPD also draws
international attention to disability issues, helping to ensure
that disabled people are no longer “invisible” within
the international human rights system.
With a Committee in place to monitor implementation of the CRPD,
governments will be held accountable for their actions, and disability
advocates will have a body to turn to when violations occur. The
CRPD Committee will also serve as a resource, helping other existing
human rights treaty bodies to understand how to address disability
issues in their work to monitor the implementation of the other UN
human rights conventions.
For people with disabilities
who live in countries without legislation like the ADA, the CRPD
will hopefully prompt their governments to adopt such legislation,
giving disabled people in those countries another tool to use in
their advocacy. For people with disabilities here in the United States,
the CRPD can help to promote and reinvigorate the original spirit
of the ADA; the principles the CRPD promotes are entirely consistent
with the original intent of the drafters of the ADA. The CRPD also
complements the ADA by requiring that people with disabilities and
their representative organizations be consulted by government in
all decisions affecting their lives. This requirement of consultation
is not seen as a favor, but rather a right of disabled people, and
one that promotes respect for the inherent dignity of people with
disabilities.
Will the US Sign?
In reviewing the
CRPD, it may be seen that there are many provisions that could
bolster and support the work of disability advocates on a variety
of issues here in the United States. However, for the CRPD to
be fully utilized, the United States needs to become a States Party
to the Convention. Only then will the provisions of the CRPD
become legally binding upon the government. At present the United
States is undecided as to whether it will even sign the Convention,
let alone become a States Party. If you are interested in encouraging
the U.S. to join with other countries in supporting this historic
Convention, please contact your Senator and ask them to encourage
the President to sign and ratify the CRPD. Though the CRPD negotiations
have ended, it is never too late to say “Nothing
About Us Without Us,” and do your part to promote the full
enjoyment of all human rights by all people with disabilities,
including here in the United States! ![]()
Selected Excerpts from the
Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Article 1: Purpose
The purpose
of the present Convention is to promote, protect and ensure the
full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms
by all persons with disabilities, and to promote respect for their
inherent dignity.
Article 5: Equality and non-discrimination
States
parties recognize that all persons are equal before and under the
law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection
and equal benefit of the law.
Article 6: Women with disabilities
States
parties recognize that women and girls with disabilities are subject
to multiple discrimination, and in this regard shall take measures
to ensure the full and equal enjoyment by them of all human rights
and fundamental freedoms.
Article 7: Children with disabilities
In
all actions concerning children with disabilities, the best interests
of the child shall be a primary consideration.
Article 15: Freedom from
torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
In
particular, no one shall be subjected without his or her free consent
to medical or scientific experimentation.
Article 19: Living independently
and being included in the community
Persons with disabilities
have the opportunity to choose their place of residence and where
and with whom they live on an equal basis with others and are not
obliged to live in a particular living arrangement.
Article 22: Respect for
privacy
No person with disabilities,
regardless of place of residence or living arrangements, shall be
subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy.
Article 24: Education
States
Parties shall ensure that persons with disabilities can access
an inclusive, quality and free primary education and secondary education
on an equal basis with others in the communities in which they
live. ![]()
Further resources
To contact your Senator:
Senator Norm Coleman 202-224-5641, Fax-202-224-1152
Senator Amy Klobuchar 202-224-3244, Fax-202-228-2186
UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs: www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/index.html
Disabled Peoples’ International
Ratification Toolkit (stay tuned for an Implementation Toolkit
coming soon!):
www.icrpd.net
