UN ESCAP Workshop on Women and Disability: Promoting Full Participation of Women with Disabilities in the Process of Elaboration on an International Convention to Promote and Protect the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities
18-22 August 2003, Bangkok, Thailand
13 October 2003, Bangkok, Thailand

III. ORGANIZATION OF THE WORKSHOP

A. Background

Governments in the UNESCAP region declared the extension of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 1993-2002, for another decade, 2003-2012. As policy guidelines for the renewed decade, the high-level intergovernmental meeting to conclude the Asian and Pacific Decade, Otsu, Shiga, October 2002, adopted the Biwako Millennium Framework for Action towards an Inclusive, Barrier-Free and Rights-Based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific (BMF).

BMF incorporates disability concerns into national policies and programmes for the purpose of achieving the targets of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG). BMF also promotes the paradigm shift from a charity-based approach to a rights-based approach to disability and development, and supports the elaboration of an international convention on the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities.

The review of the achievements of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 1993-2002 revealed that progress was evident in all twelve policies areas under the Agenda for Action for the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons; however, the achievements were uneven in terms of the policy areas as well as among sub regions.

Based on this review of the outcome of the current Asian and Pacific Decade, Governments in the region proclaimed the extension of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 1993-2002, for another decade from 2003 to 2012, through Commission resolution 58/4, adopted at the 58th session in May 2002. Governments also adopted the Biwako Millennium Framework for Action towards an Inclusive, Barrier-Free and Rights-Based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific (BMF), guiding policies for the renewed Decade from 2003 to 2012. The BMF identifies the following seven priority areas: (1) self-help organizations of persons with disabilities and related family and parental associations, (2) women with disabilities, (3) early detection, early intervention and education, (4) training and employment, including self-employment, (5) access to built environments and public transport, (6) access to information and communications, including information and communications and assistive technologies, and (7) poverty alleviation through capacity-building, social security and sustainable livelihood programmes.

Indeed, the BMF singled out women with disabilities together with self-help organizations of persons with disabilities as the two main agents (as well as beneficiaries) for positive changes to be brought up by implementing these priority areas.

Women with disabilities are one of the most marginalized groups in society in the Asia and Pacific region, as they are multiply disadvantaged through their status as women, as persons with disabilities and are over-represented among persons living with poverty. Women and girls with disabilities (far more than boys and men with disabilities) face discrimination within the family, and denied equal access to health care, education, training, employment and income generation opportunities, and are excluded from community activities.

In fact, within self-help organizations of persons with disabilities in some countries, women with disabilities face further discrimination. Women with disabilities tend to be under-represented in membership of mainstream self-help organizations and not so visible in leadership and executive roles. Their concerns are often not sufficiently addressed in the advocacy agenda of NGOs and self-help organizations. Women with disabilities may not have been targeted to leadership training.
Furthermore, mainstream women's organizations may not have included women with disabilities in their membership, and their issues are not addressed.

In conclusion, women with disabilities lack the advocacy skills and training to improve this situation. In the process of preparation for UNESCAP regional input to the International Convention on Promoting and Protecting the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities, these women's opinions must be well reflected.

The overall project, of which this workshop is a component, was designed to disseminate the BMF and the Standard Rules, and provide advocacy skills for women with disabilities, through two regional workshops. These workshops will ensure that the gender-mainstreaming targets and strategies of the BMF will be well recognized and incorporated into future plans, policies and programmes of NGOs and self-help groups in order to achieve truly inclusive, barrier-free and rights-based society for persons (women and men) with disabilities in the region. At the end of the project (this workshop and a one day follow-up workshop to be held in October), women with disabilities would be provided with a good package of advocacy skills, so that they can fully participate in the national, regional and global process of preparing for the International Convention.

Furthermore, the two workshops are expected to enhance the unified support for the International Convention in the ESCAP region and strengthen consolidated, ongoing regional activities toward the Convention. This would function as the regional input to the working group on elaboration of the Convention created under "the Ad- hoc Committee for the Comprehensive and Integrated International Convention on Protecting and Promoting the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities, based on the decision made during the 2nd session of the Ad Hoc Committee held in New York in June 2003.

The outcome of this workshop will be used for the forthcoming Convention-related ESCAP activities to be held in October and November 2003 as one of the main working papers. Also, the Joint Statement will be forwarded to the drafting committee under the Ad Hoc committee through the United Nations DESA New York.

The targets groups were policy makers and managers of civil society organizations (NGOs of persons with disabilities, mainstreaming women's NGOs, human rights organizations, etc.) and self-help groups of persons with disabilities, in addition to some representatives from governmental agencies. Special preference is to be given to women with disabilities (see the list of participants in the annex).

B. Attendance

The workshop was attended by some 30 experts from 13 countries of the ESCAP region, 4 resource persons and number of observers from UN agencies, permanent missions, etc. (See Annex I).

C. Opening of the workshop

The workshop was opened by Ms. Thelma Kay, the Chief of Emerging Social Issues Division, UNESCAP and in her opening statement; she drew the attention of the experts and observers to the background of the workshop.

She expressed her gratitude to the Division for Social Policy and Development, Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), which has greatly supported the efforts of UNESCAP to promote full participation and equality of persons with disabilities, not only for this particular meeting but also for many other activities during the past Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons.

She referred to the Biwako Millennium Framework for Action towards an Inclusive, Barrier-free and Rights-based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific (BMF) that incorporates disability concerns into national policies and programmes for the purpose of achieving the targets of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG). She continued by mentioning that the BMF identified seven priority areas, including women with disabilities and the BMF supports the elaboration of an international convention on the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities.

She emphasized that women with disabilities are one of the most marginalized groups in society in the Asia and Pacific region, facing all kinds of discrimination within the family with their access to health care, education, training, employment and income generation opportunities being denied.

She pointed out that within self-help organizations of persons with disabilities in some countries, women with disabilities face further discrimination. Women with disabilities tend to be under-represented in membership of mainstream self-help organizations and not so visible in leadership and executive roles.

She concluded her opening statement by emphasizing her hope that at the end of the workshop, all of participants would have been provided with a good package of advocacy skills so that they would be able to participate fully in the national, regional and global process of preparing for the international convention.

D. Adoption of the training subjects

The workshop adopted the following training elements:

1. Opening of the Workshop.
2. Toward the Elaboration of an International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities:
   1. Overview of issues related to elaboration of an international convention on the rights of persons with disabilities and ESCAP expert group meeting (2-4 June 2003);
   2. Norms and Standards Related to the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Development;
   3. Elaboration of an International Convention and further implementation of the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities of Persons with Disabilities, including the report of the 2nd session of the Ad Hoc Committee held in June 2003.
3. Disability mainstreaming
   1. Disability mainstreaming in development; Implementation of the Biwako Millennium Framework (women and disability, early intervention, education, employment and poverty alleviation);
   2. Review of Regional, Sub-Regional and National Situation on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and gender mainstreaming;
   3. Empowerment and Advocacy;
   4. Rights based approaches to development and advancement of persons with disabilities in the Asian and Pacific Region.
4. Gender Mainstreaming
   1. Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women;
   2. Gender Mainstreaming in Development.
5. Working Group Discussions
   Critical Analysis of the Bangkok Recommendations from a gender perspective.
   1. Group one: Nature of the Convention, Structure, Preamble, Definitions, and Accessibility.
   2. Group two: General State obligations (guarantee of equality and non-discrimination, guarantees of specific rights; and other states obligations);
   3. Group three: Monitoring mechanisms and participation of women with disabilities.
6. Discussion of Recommendations and drafting the joint statement.
7. Closing.

E. Adoption of the joint statement during the workshop

The participants in the workshop discussed, agreed upon and adopted the set of the recommendations included in the Joint Statement (see the section 1 of this report)

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