From Exclusion to Equality Realizing the rights of persons with disabilities
2007
Persons with disabilities remain amongst the most marginalized in every society. While the international human rights framework has changed lives everywhere, persons with disabilities have not reaped the same benefits. Regardless of a country’s human rights or economic situation, they are gener- ally the last in line to have their human rights respected. Being denied the opportunities that would enable them to be self-sufficient, most persons with disabilities resort to the kindness or charity of others. In recent years, there was a growing realization throughout the world that continuing to deny 650 million individuals their human rights was no longer acceptable. It was time to act.
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is the response of the international community to the long history of discrimination, ex- clusion and dehumanization of persons with disabilities. It is historic and groundbreaking in many ways, being the fastest negotiated human rights trea- ty ever and the first of the twenty-first century. The Convention is the result of three years of negotiations involving civil society, Governments, national human rights institutions and international organizations. After adopting
the Convention in the United Nations General Assembly in December 2006, a record number of countries demonstrated their commitment to respecting the rights of persons with disabilities by signing the Convention and Optional Protocol when they opened for signature in March 2007.
The Convention ensures that the world’s largest minority enjoys the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. It covers the many areas where persons with disabilities have been discriminated against including access to justice; participation in political and public life; education; employment; free- dom from torture, exploitation and violence, as well as freedom of movement. Under the Optional Protocol, individuals of States parties to the Protocol who allege violations of their rights, and who have exhausted national remedies, can seek redress from an independent international body.
The Convention is long overdue. It is over 25 years since the 1981 International Year of Disabled Persons brought global attention to the issues affecting persons with disabilities. In the intervening years, many societies have moved away from considering persons with disabilities as ebjects of charity and pity by acknowledging that society itself is disabling. The Convention embodies this attitudinal change, and is a major step towards altering the perception of disability and ensuring that societies recognize that all people must have the opportunity to reach their ftiII potential.
This Handbook is the auteome of cooperation between the United Nations Department of Economie and Social Affairs, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union. The preparatioi of the Handbook benefited from an editorial review board consisting of parliamentarians, academies and practitioners - many af whom are persons with disabilities.
Parilaments and parliamentarians have a key rele to play in promoting and protecting human rights. This Handbook aims to assist parliamentarians and others in efforts to realize the Convention so that persons with disabilities eau achieve the transition from exclusion to equality The Handbook seeks to raise awareness of the Convention and its provisions, promote an appreciation of disability concerns, and assist parilaments in understanding the mechanisms and frameworks needed to translate the Convention into practice. 'By providing examples and insights, it is hoped that the Handbook will serve as a useful tool for parliamentarians to promoee and protect the rights of persons with disabilities all over the world.