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UN ESCAP Workshop on Regional Follow-up to the Seventh
Session and Preparation for the Eighth Session of the Ad Hoc Committee of
the General Assembly on the Elaboration of a Convention on the Rights and
Dignity of Persons with Disabilities |
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Materials :
Country Papers :Philippine Country PaperCatalina L. Fermin The Philippines has actively pursued activities to support the adoption of the International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities. The Philippine government through the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons (NCWDP), the national focal point for all disability concerns, focused in Information Education Communication (IEC) and advocacy programs to raise the levels of awareness and knowledge about the rights of persons with disabilities (PWDs) and their protection as embodied in the proposed International Convention. The member agencies of the NCWDP Board were briefed by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on the latest status of the on-going process of elaborating the Convention based on the report from the 7th session of the Ad Hoc Committee held from 16 January – 3 February, 2003 in New York. In said briefing, the member agencies were challenged in terms of the support they have to provide through programs and projects as the translation of the provisions of the Convention should it be adopted and ratified by the UN member countries. They were also challenged to further study the provisions and their implications to their respective organizations relative to the limited resources and economic situation of the country. At the regional level, the seventeen (17) Regional Committees for the Welfare of Disabled Persons (RCWDPs), the NCWDP’s machinery have been consulted as regards their viewpoints on the Convention’s provisions and how they can and the country as well provide assistance to its implementation towards achieving the goal of creating a rights-based and inclusive society for Filipinos with disabilities. In every forum, conference and similar activities or opportunity where the NCWDP is represented, the International Convention is always a part of the Council’s advocacy inputs to increase the level of awareness and promote the rights of PWDs. The Convention is promoted as an international instrument that would set in motion all means that will enable PWDs to share more freely in life with others, to have access to the human development that corresponds to their rights as human beings and to their abilities in accordance to their dignity. In preparation for the 8th session of the Ad Hoc Committee, the NCWDP partnering with the Department of Foreign Affairs will hold a round table discussion among relevant government departments/agencies including representatives from the sector with disability. The participants in this round table discussion will once again examine every provision of the Convention, its implications to their mandates, functions and resources and how the provisions can be enhanced to appropriately and timely responds to the rights-based needs of Filipinos with disabilities. In the same forum, the provision on International Monitoring shall be put at the center stage so to speak to frame the country’s stand in relation to our national and local monitoring frameworks and the Asian and Pacific (AP) Region as well. It is believed that the goal of monitoring and assessment is to improve policy-making and adopting best practices so that it is imperative that a monitoring framework is developed. This is to facilitate the integration and interdependence of member states for technical cooperation and partnerships. It will support coordination for review of approaches relevant and useful to the Convention’s implementation. Should a Monitoring Framework be designed, criteria and indicators must be anchored on the objectives, goals, and targets of the Convention. Optimizing the ICT development for monitoring, reporting system can be electronically done on a standardized format on “thematic” and priority issues and individual/state cases category based on indicators both in international and national protocols. The Philippines through NCWDP has embarked on breaking down digital and disability barriers worldwide by upscaling the creation of “disabled-friendly” websites in government and private organizations, provide all concerned sectors especially the PWDs access to information that would bolster their efforts in addressing disability concerns and rights-based needs of PWDs towards empowerment. The results of the round table discussion on the Convention will serve as inputs in drafting the Philippine position paper which will be transmitted to the Philippine Mission to the UN. The International Convention, the BIWAKO Millennium Framework for Action towards, an Inclusive Barrier-free and Rights-based Society for Persons with Disabilities, Standard Rules on Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities and disability legislation of countries have only one common goal and objective – to develop PWDs as equal partners in development by protecting and promoting their rights as any other citizens of a country. These Conventions legislation and Standard Rules recognize and protects the civil rights of PWDs and safeguard them against exploitation and victimization particularly those marginalized PWDs who lack access to services for their empowerment. In the Philippines, Republic Act 7277 or the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons is the landmark legislation providing a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against Filipinos with disabilities. It also identifies opportunities to allow persons with disabilities to participate fully in mainstream Philippine society. This Law ensures members of the sector with disability equal access to transportation, employment, education, health services, housing and other services towards becoming partners in nation-building. The country believes that the Convention is a powerful tool in eliminating discrimination and victimization of PWDs. It provides a means for PWDs to seek, redress on issues that impede their advancement as members of the sector and citizens of the country. It may address the country’s justice system that does not provide fair remedy to any violation of human dignity in line with the international and local laws on discrimination. Efforts of the Philippines in promoting the rights of PWDs as embodied in the Magna Carta, Accessibility Law and the National Plan of Action for the Decade of Persons with Disabilities will not succeed if they are taken out of the context of those being done at the regional or ASEAN level. It is therefore imperative that the Philippines continues to strengthen and maintain its relationship with other countries and organizations, and tap into these linkages whenever possible. The Philippines must continue to remain open in receiving and sharing opportunities for the exchange of technical assistance and information within the region, particularly in the implementation of the Convention. This will assist the country in policy formulation and program development, service delivery, and the capability-building of human resources, in order to maximize the effectiveness of the Convention. Learning from the experiences and adopting the best practices of other countries in the development of strategies for PWDs will enrich the country’s existing programs and services. Only in rising to meet the challenges which will be brought about by the adoption of the International Convention can the Philippines attain its ultimate goal for PWDs to become fully contributing partners in the national development process living in an inclusive, barrier-free and rights-based Philippine society. |
