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Meeting of the Ad Hoc
Committee, 16 - 27 June 2003 : NGO Bulletins
:Disability Negotiations BulletinVolume 2, No. 3 - June 18, 2003 |
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A Demonstration of Commitment and Best PracticesYesterdays afternoon's session provided many delegations with the opportunity to make opening statements. NGOs welcome the obvious effort and preparation that these statements reflect. There were numerous examples of good work described in almost every intervention; certainly too many to list in this brief letter. Still, interventions from two delegations were such excellent examples of the positive efforts being made that NGOs felt it appropriate to highlight them here, as they offer two clear challenges to delegations; challenges that NGOs would very much like to see addressed during this meeting. First, NGOs were pleased to note that the government of Thailand organized a national seminar with Disabled People's Organizations on December 3, 2002. Given that this is the globally recognized "UN day on disability" NGOs would like to challenge all governments present to emulate the example of Thailand and begin immediately to make plans for similar national consultations with members of their own domestic disability communities. NGOs from around the world would be extremely pleased to work with their national government's to ensure that these events take place on December 3 rd of this year. We would be particularly interested in collaborating on the themes introduced by each and every one of todays expert panel members, most especially their repeated calls for a comprehensive convention and an effective monitoring mechanism. Second, the announcement by the Mexican delegation that the government of Mexico has made a contribution to the recently established Voluntary Fund offers a clear challenge to other governments to follow suit, and do so very quickly. Again the NGOs gathered here for this meeting would like to urge delegations to begin efforts to direct resources to this fund. Each delegation has spoken sincerely of the importance of a fully inclusive process; the voluntary fund is one mechanism that has been established by the Ad Hoc Committee itself to facilitate this inclusion. Thus NGOs urge delegations to consider announcing their plan for contributions to the fund during the remaining days of this meeting. Congratulations to both Thailand and Mexico for showing leadership and demonstrating best practices which other states should seriously consider. We encourage all states to examine their commitment to this process and to the full participation of people with disabilities. POLITICAL ACCESS AND RIGHT TO VOTEby Debra Benko The UN Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities provide for the full and equal participation of people with disabilities and their disability rights NGOs in policy-making and legislative processes, training, access to the vote and holding political office, and monitoring and oversight bodies. Yet, ten years after the adoption of the Standard Rules by the UN General Assembly in 1993, many people with disabilities are still denied their basic civil and political rights. People with disabilities often cannot enter polling places or exercise a secret ballot.
Many people with disabilities, especially those labeled with mental disabilities,
regardless of capacity, are denied the right to vote or other rights of citizenship under
the current laws of their countries. Equal protection under the law and equal
participation in legal systems are also regularly denied to people with disabilities.
Necessary accommodations for equal access are typically not provided, including competent
counsel, physical access to courthouses, and information Despite the fact that institutionalization of those who are political dissidents in torturous, inhuman, and degrading conditions has been universally condemned by the international community, many people with disabilities are still subject to involuntary commitment to institutions, even lifetime institutionalization, without any due process protections, community outcry, or mobilization for change in these discriminatory policies. In order for discriminatory practices to end and positive advancement in political participation and equal opportunity to occur, the rights of people with disabilities to achieve full political and legal access in society must be protected. Persons with Disabilities Want Slots On Commissions (UGANDA) KAMPALA, Uganda, 9 June 03 (The Monitor)-- By Wossita Samuel Persons with Disabilities should be appointed on public commissions, the MP for people with disabilities (Eastern) James Mwandha has said. Mr. Mwandha was speaking at an international workshop for African National Human Rights Institutions at Speke Resort Munyonyo on 5 June. The theme of the workshop was Promoting the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities: Towards a New UN Convention. Mr. Mwandha said that according to the 2002 National Population and Housing Census, Uganda has more than 2.5 million People with disabilities. He suggested that People with disabilities be appointed to bodies such as the Electoral Commission, Uganda Human Rights Commission and Public Service Commission. "This is too large a population to be ignored," he said. Mr. Julius Kamya from National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU) complained that persons with disabilities were treated like second rate citizens. "Even in families, children with disabilities are not counted as part of the families," he said. The Chairwoman of Uganda Human Rights Commission Margaret Sekaggya said that poverty, disease and conflicts compounded the level of disability in Africa. Ms. Sekaggya said that conflicts resulted in the use of land-mines and weapons of destruction. "They are used not only to kill but to maim and seriously injure the victims," she said. She said malnutrition and diseases such as polio and river blindness have also caused disabilities to thousands of children. The workshop was organised by Uganda Human Rights Commission in conjunction with African Human Rights Institutions and the Office of the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights Geneva. Delegates from 13 African countries attended. They discussed how national human rights institutions could contribute to the upcoming UN Convention on the rights and dignity of People with disabilities to take place in New York on 16-17 June. Letters to Your Leaders(This column is provided for your amusement during the meetings of the Ad Hoc Committee.) Dear Mr. President: I would very much like to vote in our elections, but I am disabled and the polling locations are not accessible to me. Prior to becoming disabled, I always voted as I believed it was my responsibility as a citizen to participate in elections. Now that I am disabled, I would like to continue to have my voice heard through our electoral process. Doesn't our country have a law that guarantees every citizen the right to vote? Can you help me? Sincerely, Dear Not Able to Vote: Thank you for your letter. I always enjoy hearing from our citizens. I am sorry to learn that you are now disabled. While you are correct, we do have a law that guarantees every citizen the right to vote, the law also stipulates that only citizens of sound mind and body can participate in the voting process. Clearly, a person with a disability is not of sound mind and body so we do not have an obligation to make voting in elections possible for you. Additionally, even if we did not have this stipulation in our electoral laws, making it possible for the crippled, blind, deaf, or mentally impaired to vote would be far too costly. When you consider the small number of people that this would effect and factor in the cost of changing our system, it is simply not worth the tremendous cost that would be incurred to include a few more voters. If you are able to perform such duties as stuffing envelopes or using the telephone, my campaign for reelection is coming up and we could always use a few more volunteers. Perhaps participating in our elections in this way would help you to feel more involved in our governmental process. Thank you again for taking the time to write. Yours truly, Your President |
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Supporting Organizations
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The following report is excerpted from the N.O.D./Harris 2000 Survey of Americans with DisabilitiesPeople with disabilities are less likely to participate in the political arena than are people without disabilities. Specifically, voter registration is lower for people with disabilities than for people without disabilities (62% versus 78% respectively), causing the political participation gap between people with disabilities and people without disabilities to be 16 percentage points. The transportation gap and the lack of accessible transportation for people with disabilities lend some support to this finding in that people with disabilities may find it more difficult to reach the polls. To increase the representation of people with disabilities in the political process, Congress passed the National Voter Registration Act in 1993. This Act requires that government and community agencies offer voter registration forms to all people with disabilities. Contact with these agencies represents the greatest chance for people with disabilities to fill out voter registration forms and participate in the political process. In the past year, fully 3 out of 10 people with disabilities (30%) have received assistance from a government or community agency that offers services to people with disabilities. Of those who received assistance, during their contact with government or community agencies, only a modest majority (58%) was offered the opportunity to register to vote. While this suggests that the law is working to some extent, it also seems that government agencies can do a better job of reaching out to people with disabilities. We welcome submissions to the Daily Bulletin. Please provide your
submissions to: |
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American Association of People with Disabilities