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Meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee, 16 - 27 June 2003 : NGO Bulletins : Disability Negotiations Bulletin Volume 2, No. 4 - June 19, 2003
Today's Weather Light Rain High: 70° F Low: 61° F Ad Hoc Committee Meeting Today's Schedule 10 AM - 1 PM General debate 3 PM - 6 PM Nature and Structure Discussion Exchange Rate 10 US Dollars New Zealand (NZD ) = 17.07 Canada (CAD) = 13.38 Sri Lanka (LKP) = 971.60 Thailand (THB) = 416.00 Costa Rica (CRC) = 3968.60   Informal Briefing: Support Coalition International & World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry will hold a briefing to discuss psychiatric survivors’ and disability issues. The briefing will be held on Thursday, June 19, from 5-6:00 PM in Conference Room A.   According to Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, in the European Union-14 countries, among those who are 25 to 59 years old, fewer than 30% of those reporting severe disabilities work compared to 72% of those reporting no disability.   A Tanzanian survey: "Households with a member who has a disability have a mean consumption less than 60% of the average."   From "Disability Rights Going Dutch" (Disability World) by Agnes van Wijnen: In the Netherlands, employment rates among people with disabilities are 38%, compared to 61% among people without disabilities.	The Nature of the Convention There is no question that disabled people are subjects of the international human rights system, and entitled to the full enjoyment of all the rights delineated in each of the existing human rights instruments. Yet everyone gathered here knows well that human rights abuses remain a daily reality for millions of disabled people around the world. People with disabilities are currently marginalized within the international human rights framework. Our very presence here attests to the need to bridge the gap that exists between the values expressed by the human rights system, and the reality of disability. Mindful of this, NGOs are convinced that in order for this divide to be effectively bridged, a specific international human rights Convention for disabled people must be elaborated. Furthermore, we believe that this Convention must be based in, and draw from, existing human rights norms and standards. The new convention must address, in concrete terms, the full range of human rights. NGOs wish to be clear that in our understanding this means that any convention must encompass the full range of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. In addition, we believe the new convention must not be limited to an anti-discrimination framework. Without reservation, NGOs support the adoption and implementation of non-discrimination legislation at the domestic level, we also recognize that non-discrimination and equality of opportunity must be intrinsic components of any human rights convention for disabled people. Yet, there must be scope for the full elaboration of human rights in the context of disability if the international human rights framework is to effectively incorporate the disability perspective. There are no human rights to which disabled people do not lay claim, and if existing norms and standards are to be placed in a disability context the convention must address the full range of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Anything less than a fully comprehensive convention will perpetuate the marginalization of people with disabilities, and this we cannot tolerate. RIGHT TO EMPLOYMENT AND RELATIONSHIP OF EMPLOYMENT TO EDUCATION LEVEL Statement by: National Educational Association of Disabled Students One of the most significant areas of concern for post-secondary students with disabilities, and indeed all people with disabilities, is employment. Much has been written about the under-representation of people with disabilities in the workplace. There is also an emerging recognition that education is one of the most effective ways to address this under-representation. For example, in a report entitled In Unison 2000: Persons with Disabilities in Canada, released by the federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for social services, the following statement is made: "overall, people with higher levels of education are more likely to participate in the paid labour market and educational attainment among persons with disabilities has been increasing. The 1996 Census clearly shows the strong correlation between educational attainment and labour force participation rates among persons with disabilities." (33-34) Mindful of these facts, Human Resources Development Canada's (HRDC) Youth Initiatives Directorate (YID) has included youth with disabilities in their work with "youth at risk." For example, the Directorate ensured the participation of disabled youth in the series of Youth at Risk Discussion Groups conducted across Canada in 2000. The National Educational Association of Disabled Students is a consumer organization, with a mandate to encourage the self-empowerment of post-secondary students with disabilities. Universal Design Could Get People Working (2002, Disability World) By Deborah Kaplan, Executive Director of the World Institute on Disability We in the disability movement have a grand concept known as "universal design." It postulates that if a building, appliance, service or just about anything else in civilization is designed with all users in mind, including the 50 million Americans with disabilities, everyone benefits. A wheelchair access ramp is used more often by pedestrians than wheelchairs; speakerphones were designed for the disabled but are universal today; close-captioned TV ostensibly for the hearing impaired wound up in every sports bar in America. There are many such examples, and they all eliminate false distinctions between people with disabilities and the other four-fifths of the population, seeing the aggregate as one big "market" for a smart product or service. Ventures which ignore 20% of a potential market are apt to fail, but ideas adaptable to the widest possible markets are apt to succeed and innovate. The 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act envisioned a workforce in which people with disabilities were fully integrated into the whole. But today, only about a third of working-age people with disabilities work, as opposed to the eight out of 10 of them who say they want jobs. Despite the ADA's promising principles, the employment rate for people with disabilities remains unchanged since 1990. Thus millions of willing and able workers are sidelined, supported at an annual cost of $232 billion in direct payments plus $195 billion in lost earnings and taxes. The failure of the ADA to produce higher employment rates for people with disabilities is due in part to how it has been applied. The Supreme Court has systematically narrowed the ADA's scope by siding against people with disabilities in all six ADA employment cases it heard. But beyond legal hurdles is the greater obstacle of a mentality that needlessly segments and categorizes the population as disabled vs. not disabled -- those defined in the presumptive workforce vs. those defined out. A universal design approach to the problem would survey the entire pool of potential workers, and ask what innovations could encourage inclusion for all. Letters to Your Leaders (This column is provided for your amusement during the meetings of the Ad Hoc Committee.) Dear Mr. Prime Minister: I am an educated person, capable of working, however, I use a wheelchair and cannot find an employer that will hire me. Employers always have some reason like, "you don’t have the right skill set", "you are overqualified", or "we need someone in the position who can travel easily". I know that we have legislation in our country that makes employment discrimination illegal, however, this seems to constantly happen to me. Is there anything you can do to help me? Yours truly, Want to Work But Being Supported by the State Dear Wants to Work: Thank you for your letter. I am always pleased to hear from my constituents. Yes, you are quite right, we do have a law that makes employment discrimination illegal; however, I must ask that you take a broader view. You see, every year our government collects many more income tax dollars from our citizens than your government can possibly spend. Can you imagine the problem that more taxpaying citizens would create for us? Not only would more taxpayers increase our tax revenues, but the decrease in spending for social programs to support the needs of disabled people would only compound the problem. Thank you for taking the time to write. I hope this helps you to understand the situation your government faces and do hope you will understand. Sincerely, Your Prime Minister International Disability Convention Caucus In order to establish an effective advocacy body and ensure that the disability community speaks with a unified voice, the Disability Caucus formed a steering committee made up of sixteen members, including one spokesperson that will speak as the voice of the International Convention Disability Caucus. The spokesperson will be the only person from the Disability Caucus making formal interventions on its behalf during the Ad Hoc Committee meeting. The steering committee is made up of the following members: one representative from each of the seven International Disability Alliance (IDA) organizations (Disabled Peoples’ International, Inclusion International, Rehabilitation International, World Blind Union, World Federation of the Deaf, World Federation of the Deaf-Blind, World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry); six regional representatives; one representative from the Landmine Survivors Network; one representative from the Center for International Rehabilitation and one representative from the non-aligned organizations. Venus Ilagan of Disabled Peoples’ International is serving as the steering committee spokesperson through June 20. Liisa Kauppinen of World Federation of the Deaf is the steering committee spokesperson from June 23-27. Kicki Nordstrom of World Blind Union is serving as an alternate in the event a spokesperson is not available.
Supporting Organizations American Association of People with Disabilities American Council of the Blind Center for International Rehabilitation China Disabled Persons' Federation ouncil of Canadians with Disabilities Disabled Peoples' International European Disability Forum Inter-American Institute on Disability Landmine Survivors Network Mental Disability Rights International People Who Rehabilitation International Support Coalition International United States International Council on Disabilities World Blind Union World Institute on Disability World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry	The Right to Decent Work of Persons with Disabilities The International Labour Organization (ILO) has commissioned the paper on ‘The Right to Decent Work of Persons with Disabilities’ as a contribution to the deliberations taking place in preparation for the development of a United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The paper aims to enable those involved in preparing the proposed UN Convention to build on achievements so far in relation to vocational training and work. It examines the development over time of the "right to work" of disabled persons, the way in which this matter has been dealt with in international instruments and national legislation to date, and experience in implementing employment and work opportunities. The right to decent work, which is the ILO’s guiding principle, includes not only the right to employment and income generation opportunities, but also the right to skills training and skills development, to vocational guidance, employment services and to social security, where disabled persons are not part of the active labour force for a shorter or longer period. For national policies to reflect these rights in an effective and coordinated manner, a multisectoral approach is required, involving cooperation between different Government Ministries, and adequate resource allocation to assist in translating these rights into realities. Since many women and men with disabilities live in poverty, particularly in developing countries, the ILO is convinced that the Convention should call for the explicit targeting of people with disabilities in poverty alleviation strategies and in activities to improve standards in the informal economy. The ILO is prepared to contribute actively to the process of drafting such a Convention, which will provide a framework for action at national level and internationally to improve the status of persons with disabilities and to move towards a "Society for All." The paper is currently available in English and Spanish, and will shortly be available in Arabic, French and Japanese. Copies may be obtained through the ILO Disability Programme (disability@ilo.org). Contact With Our Delegates During the afternoon meetings on Tuesday, the Bosnian representative for LSN was able to contact Slovenian member who attended the committee meeting, and he stated that their views of the Convention are very supportive, however, by virtue of being part of the EU, they are tied to the position of the entire European Union. They ensured the LSN representative that the position of the EU is a least common denominator on which the countries involved could agree. The next day, Bosnian representatives from LSN approached the Croatian delegation to inquire about their position regarding the creation of a convention. The Croatian delegate was very enthusiastic and supportive of the idea of a Convention. He said that far as the EU position is concerned, they will preferably follow the lead of the EU, but that because of the specific circumstances that Croatia faces regarding people with disabilities, they will not hesitate to diverge from EU position, if it conflicts with their principles and needs.