U.N.
TACKLES CHALLENGE OF HOW TO APPLY RIGHTS
Aug.
20, 2005
Helen Henderson, Life Section, Toronto Star
No teeth.
A fitting epithet for those who shun dentists and
laws that don't work.
Also the subject of some discussion at the United
Nations this month in the course of efforts to draft
a treaty on the rights of some 600 million people
coping with disabilities throughout the world.
Needless to say, the ad hoc committee on a comprehensive
and integral international convention on the protection
and promotion of the rights and dignity of persons
with disabilities might not have phrased things
exactly like that. But that was the gist of the
message delivered by New Zealand's Don MacKay, who
chaired the group, when he met with the press at
the conclusion of deliberations last week.
People with disabilities already
enjoy exactly the same rights as everyone else,
MacKay noted. They are enshrined in such basic codes
as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. "The
rights of persons with disabilities are recognized
by the other human rights conventions, but we need
to actually implement these rights...."This
convention sets out a detailed code of implementation
and spells out how individual rights should be put
into practice."
So — no need to spend time
reinventing the wheel. Let's cut to the chase.
It's a refreshing message in a world
dominated by semantics and pedantics. It does not
mean barriers are going to come tumbling down tomorrow.
It does not mean people who move or communicate
or process information differently are going to
suddenly find themselves embraced. But it was one
of a number of encouraging signs incorporated in
the U.N. deliberations and a message Canada could
take to heart.
We are justly proud of our Charter
of Rights and Freedoms but what's granted on paper
means little if there's no way to enforce it. Children
with special needs have the right to a good education
but if the resources aren't there, nothing happens.
People who use wheelchairs are entitled to equal
opportunities for jobs but closed minds make a mockery
of the best intentions.
Reality is complicated, notes Diane
Richler, senior policy analyst with the Canadian
Association for Community Living, president of Inclusion
International and a long-time advocate for the rights
of people with an intellectual disability. "We
may be promoting inclusion in education but there
are many different practices." Richler, who
moderated a panel on self-advocacy and inclusion
during the U.N. disability sessions, says this month's
open debate and consultation should provide a solid
base for constructive change. She also has high
hopes for an October seminar in Romania, where Inclusion
International will join groups looking at disability
issues in Eastern Europe.
The fact that the U.N. is inviting
people with disabilities to participate in all its
deliberations brings a whole new dynamic to the
issues. Toronto's Rebecca Beayni, for example, told the meeting she had some concerns
about the draft convention's emphasis on independence
for people with disabilities. Beayni, who has physical
and intellectual disabilities and does not communicate
verbally, emphasized that the convention should
also recognize the importance of the family and
community supports needed to enable everyone to
participate. In his closing remarks to delegates,
MacKay said people like Beayni are making "a
huge contribution" to the committee's work
by bringing "experience that many delegates
did not have...."The tendency has been to segregate
persons with disabilities from the rest of society,"
he said. "But persons with disabilities perform
much better, work much better, contribute much better
if included in the society."
No one has any illusions about the
challenges involved in getting the world to implement
the rights to which people with disabilities are
entitled in education, employment, transportation
and every aspect of community life. Among other
things, delegates noted the "enormous gap"
between the resources of developed and developing
countries. They agreed that countries should establish
"national frameworks" to co-ordinate and
monitor implementation efforts. They also discussed
setting up an international monitoring body. Two
more sessions are planned for next year in New York,
one in January and one in August. Still a long way
to go, but a road worth taking.
For more information, check
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/rights/ahcwgreportax1.htm.
Or you can write the United Nations
Global Programme on Disability, Two United Nations
Plaza, DC2-1372, New York, NY 10017.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Write: Helen Henderson, Life Section, Toronto Star,
One Yonge St., Toronto, Ont. M5E 1E6. Email: hhenderson@thestar.ca
