FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF DISABLED PERSONS CONSISTENTLY VIOLATED AROUND WORLD, COMMISSION FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT TOLD

Press Release
SOC/4528

FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF DISABLED PERSONS CONSISTENTLY VIOLATED AROUND WORLD, COMMISSION FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT TOLD

The fundamental rights of disabled persons -- including the right to education, parenthood, participation in elections, access to courts of law, and property rights -- were consistently violated around the world, the Commission for Social Development was told this afternoon as it began its consideration of the situation of special groups.

Millions of disabled persons worldwide lived in misery and exclusion, the Commission's Special Rapporteur on Disability, Bengt Lindqvist, continued. People with disabilities were left behind in emergency situations in armed conflict, and disabled children were often hidden by their families or shut up in inhuman institutions.

The Special Rapporteur this afternoon introduced his report on monitoring the implementation of the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, and then the Commission engaged in a general discussion on the issue.

The United Nations Standard Rules were leading to improvements in government policies for the disabled, Mr. Lindqvist reported. Monitoring of their implementation should continue, either through the current type of independent monitoring mechanism, or through integration into the United Nations Secretariat. The Standard Rules should be amended and new elements added. Groups with psychiatric and development disabilities were extremely vulnerable and often exposed to exclusion and neglect. The Rules should address those groups, and have a stronger gender aspect.

To questions regarding a possible convention, Mr. Lindqvist said the issue had not been put forward partly because there was a sense that it would not be supported by enough governments. But as more countries saw the disability dimension in the human rights perspective, they might be more willing to consider a convention. States and non-governmental organizations that wished to see a convention should begin to work with principles and ideas that could be included in such a treaty.

During the discussion this afternoon, the representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasized that concern for disabled persons was a social and human rights issue. The strong link between disability and poverty was proof that action was still needed. Disabled persons tended to be less

Commission for Social Development - 1a - Press Release SOC/4528 4th Meeting (PM) 9 February 2000

educated and poorer than their neighbours were. One important aspect of future partnership and participation could be the relationship between the United Nations and its agencies, as well as with other bodies interested in establishing a common agenda for countries to develop their initiatives and targets.

People with disabilities wanted to be partners in the effort to eradicate poverty, the representative of the Disabled People's International said. Ten per cent of the world's population -- some 600 million persons -- lived with disabilities. The goal of achieving and maintaining full employment remained a dream for millions with disabilities. That was a waste of human resources and economic power. Acting together, the international community could remove barriers that prevented people with disabilities from realizing their potential and contributing to society.

Also this afternoon, the Commission concluded its general discussion of its priority theme: the Commission's contribution to the overall review of the implementation of the agreements reached at the 1995 Social Summit. The Commission's work is part of the lead-up to the General Assembly's special session, to be held in Geneva this June.

This afternoon, the representative of Ecuador spoke. Also, statements were made by the representatives of the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP); and from the following non-governmental groups: World Federation of the Deaf, International Disability Alliance, Inclusion International, Pax Romana, and the World Blind Union.

When the Commission meets again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, it plans to continue considering the situation of various social groups and hold a general exchange of views on the selection of its priority theme for its thirty-ninth session.

Commission Work Programme

The Commission for Social Development met this afternoon to begin considering its agenda item entitled: "Review of relevant United Nations plans and programmes of action pertaining to the situation of social groups".

Its Special Rapporteur on Disability, Bengt Lindqvist, was scheduled to introduce his final report on monitoring implementation of the Standard Rules on the equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities, 1997-2000 (document E/CN.5/2000/3). This was to be followed by a question-and-answer session, and then a general discussion on the subject.

The 22 Standard Rules were adopted by the General Assembly at its forty- eighth session. They provide a framework to further the goals of equality and participation for disabled persons in social life and development, and are monitored through the framework of the Commission's sessions.

Also this afternoon, the Commission planned to continue its consideration of its priority theme for the thirty-eighth session: "Contribution of the Commission to the overall review of the implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen, 1995)".

In June 2000, the General Assembly will hold a special session to consider efforts to date to implement the Copenhagen Declaration and the Programme of Action that were adopted at the Social Summit, and to agree on new initiatives.

(For more background on the Commission's thirty-eighth session, and for review of reports being considered, see Press Release SOC/4524 of 7 February.)

Statement by Special Rapporteur on Disability

BENGT LINDQVIST, the Commission's Special Rapporteur on Disability, introduced his report on monitoring the implementation of the Standard Rules on the equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities. He said he had felt the need to remind the Commission of the misery and exclusion in which millions of disabled persons lived worldwide. He could have filled the report with information about how persons with disabilities were left behind in emergency situations in armed conflict, or how disabled children were often hidden by their families or shut up in inhuman institutions. He could have described the violations of fundamental rights that occurred as a matter of course in the lives of disabled persons, including the right to education, parenthood, participation in elections, access to courts of law, and property rights.

A feature of the United Nations Standard Rules was its expression of State responsibility to remove obstacles to participation and the enjoyment of rights and freedoms by disabled people, he said. For six years, he had been informing governments of their duties according to the Standard Rules and encouraging them to adopt programmes and policies in accordance with those Rules. For the report, he had chosen to look at the situation from the perspective of government polices. From that perspective, progress was being made.

The Standard Rules were playing a key role in that development, and their monitoring should continue, he said. This could be done through different means: the current type of independent monitoring mechanism could continue, or the process could be integrated at the United Nations Secretariat. In either case, there should be a special rapporteur on the global level. Advisory services must be strengthened and integrated into regional development efforts. The system of a consultative panel of experts in the field should be kept.

The Rules should be amended and new elements added, he said. Groups with psychiatric and development disabilities were extremely vulnerable and often exposed to exclusion and neglect. To assist the United Nations in raising the standards for monitoring the situation of children with disabilities, a non- governmental working group had been formed with a link to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. More needed to be done to end the double discrimination faced by women and girls with disabilities; the Rules should have a stronger gender aspect.

Question-and-Answer Session

Responding to a question on the relation between the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Standard Rules, Mr. LINDQVIST said each of those instruments had a different legal status. The Convention contained a section on children with disabilities, while the Standard Rules contained guidelines for dealing with those children, making it a much richer mechanism. Furthermore, they complemented each other, and the Standard Rules could serve the Convention in providing further guidelines on the issue of disabled children. He hoped that the working group he had mentioned earlier would play a key role in helping create a database on those guidelines, particularly for the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in its monitoring of implementation of the Convention.

Addressing other questions, he said that there had been progress in the area of exclusion. However, implementation of many laws on disability was slow in a number of countries. It was obvious that many years passed after those laws had been adopted before anything was done. The main problem for disabled persons was exclusion, he stressed. It was expressed in small, as well as outrageous, forms. One way to deal with that was through education.

He also suggested that regionalization of advisory services should complement what was being done on a global level. On the integration of disabled children in society and being able to attend special schools, he referred to Standard Rule No. 6, which stated that those children should stay in the natural environment while having access to education and training. Responding to a question on accessible building facilities, he noted that a number of countries had established appropriate building codes stating specific requirements for people with disabilities.

AKIKO ITO, Division for Social Policy and Development, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said on the programme on disability, her Division had taken a number of catalytic actions. It had organized technical meetings to contribute to capacity building. The United Nations voluntary fund had focused on children with disabilities; information was available in document A/54/388. Last November, meetings had been organized with the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) and civil society in Lebanon on accessibility in urban infrastructure. Documents were available on the Department's Internet site.

To questions regarding a possible convention, Mr. LINDQVIST said one of the main reasons the issue had not been put forward was the sense that it would not be supported by enough governments to be meaningful. But as more countries saw the disability dimension in the human rights perspective, they might be more willing to consider a convention. States and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that wished to see a convention should begin to work with principles and ideas that could be included in such a treaty. Would it be on a high principle level, or would it be more specific, and replace the Standard Rules? he wondered. He hoped the Commission on Human Rights would take up the issue, and the idea of protocols, in a working group, to find the right forms for protecting the rights of disabled people.

Turning next to comments on the fact that ageing was not a prominent feature of the present version of the Standard Rules, he said that the Standard Rules’ definition of disability had no age limits -- it was valid for all ages. But the special dimension of ageing and the functional limitations and disabilities that accompanied old age could and should be better reflected. The matter should be considered in any exercise to amend the Rules.

On questions regarding implementation of the Commission on Human Rights resolution 1998/31, he said that the text had been an encouraging breakthrough in the disability dimension on the human rights level. But no one had been prepared for that breakthrough, certainly not the human rights sector. There must be discussion on ways to improve monitoring. Education and awareness- raising were needed for those in the field of human rights, and for States, who perhaps did not know how to report on the subject. Organizations in the disability field, too, must learn more about how human rights monitoring took place.

Responding to a question on cooperation between the State and agencies that worked with persons with disabilities, he said it was most important to stimulate that cooperation to achieve results. The United Nations document, the Beijing Guidelines for Creating and Developing National Coordination, as well as Rule 17 of the Standard Rules, provided a blueprint for establishing those committees or councils. It was becoming customary for countries to set up structures for cooperation between governments and NGOs. There were several different structures, and one important feature was the status of such a committee or council. He suggested that such bodies be directly connected to the office of the head of State of each country.

Review of Plans and Programmes for Social Groups

GARETH HOWELL, Deputy Director, International Labour Organization (ILO), said the strategic objectives of the ILO placed special emphasis on policy and action on the situation of special groups. Those included creating greater opportunities for women and men to secure decent employment and income, and promoting and realizing fundamental principles and rights in the workplace.

The organization had also made objectives for greater respect for the rights of persons with disabilities and the development of a supportive environment for their increased social and economic integration.

He stated that, in 1998, the ILO’s Committee of Experts had observed that community-based rehabilitation experiments in several developing countries had facilitated the integration of disabled persons into the economic and social life of their communities. It had also noticed that there was a general trend in favouring vocational rehabilitation of people with disabilities. Consequently, the social and occupational integration of a large proportion of disabled persons had contributed to changing negative ideas and attitudes about the role of those persons at work and in society. During the monitoring period, the ILO had promoted employment for disabled persons and had undertaken actions to overcome discrimination.

The ILO had provided legal advice on disability issues to countries in all developing and transitional regions for revising legislation and had technical cooperation projects in many States, he continued. Also, it had continued to have consultations with international NGOs on related issues. Among new challenges was the increase of persons with psychiatric disabilities, in society and in the workplace. Therefore, the ILO was studying mental health issues at work, vocational rehabilitation of people with psychiatric disabilities and employer practices in that regard.

ENRICO PUPULIN, Coordinator, Disability and Rehabilitation Team, World Health Organization (WHO), said the organization’s work in the area had emphasized the preventive aspect through an expanded community-based programme in areas including immunization, maternal and child health care, and projects for the blind and deaf. Two areas of concern had emerged -- the increasing number of persons with disabilities and the urgent need to encourage participation by appropriate agencies.

He noted that the ageing of the global population was often accompanied by an increase in the number of persons with vision impairments, and decreasing hearing and mental capacities. There was also a general increase in the number of persons affected by communicable and non-communicable diseases, which spurred the increase of children born with disabilities. Moreover, in many low-income countries, due to delayed discovery, rehabilitation for those children began too late.

Concern for disabled persons was a social and human rights issue, and the strong link between disability and poverty remained proof that action was still needed, he emphasized. Disabled persons tended to be less educated and poorer than their neighbours were. One important aspect of future partnership and participation could be the relationship between the United Nations and its agencies, as well as with other bodies interested in establishing a common agenda for countries to develop their initiatives and targets. About 7 to 10 per cent of the global population suffered from some form of disability, he continued. If more action were not taken, less than 10 per cent of disabled persons, particularly those in developing countries, would have access to rehabilitation services.

SELMAN ERGUDEN, United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat), said the Centre’s guiding framework addressed social development and improvement of social services through its diverse activities, including urban management, sustainable cities, community development, and women and habitat. Additionally, the Centre had recently intensified its focus on social integration and reducing exclusion in cities.

During the Year of Older Persons (1999), Habitat had facilitated a modest field survey in 12 major urban centres worldwide to assist local officials and influence national policies and programmes, by suggesting guidelines for integrating older persons into society and to identify various aspects of living conditions that they experienced. The report of the research was on display at the Centre’s Web site. Also, Habitat’s agenda for 1998 through 1999 included an element that facilitated reviews of the status of youth activities.

He also briefed the Commission on the issue of homelessness -– one of the greatest barriers in improving social integration in cities. The Habitat was addressing that issue through various initiatives, including a collaboration with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in developing a programme on housing rights.

LISA KAUPPINEU, World Federation of the Deaf, said international disability organizations with consultative status to the Economic and Social Council had agreed upon a statement drawn by the International Disability Alliance. The implementation of the Standard Rules had made it possible to enhance the living conditions of persons in Member States. The model had proven effective -- it should be continued, not dismantled. This was particularly true as many countries had not yet begun their work to implement the Rules. The Commission should support the African Decade on Disability, which began this year. The Disability Alliance fully supported the Special Rapporteur's strategy paper on future initiatives and proposed that all United Nations agencies be mindful of disabled persons and the Standard Rules when establishing policies and guidelines.

JOSHUA MALINGA, World Federation of the Deaf and Chairperson of the International Disability Alliance, said formal monitoring of the implementation of the Standard Rules should be continued for a third term. The current monitoring mechanism, comprising the Special Rapporteur supported by a panel of experts, should be strengthened by including a regional dimension. The Standard Rules should be supplemented under the Special Rapporteur's leadership to include elements on gender, children, elder persons, human rights, environment, housing, social integration, and people with disabilities in situations of armed conflict. The Rules should provide for the right of self-determination for people with psychiatric and intellectual disabilities.

The Commission should continue to strengthen inter-agency collaboration on disability issues and formal consultation between United Nations agencies and international organizations of disabled persons, he said. He then urged the Commission to support the African Decade of Disabled Persons, which sought to alleviate poverty among people with disabilities and their families; raise awareness and focus on preventable causes of disability, including war; put

disability on the social, economic and political agenda of African governments; and mobilize and strengthen organizations of disabled persons. Disabled persons brought unique experience and expertise in providing solutions to their problems. Like other marginalized groups, they must provide leadership in developing solutions to their own problems.

LUCY WONG-HERNANDEZ, Disabled People's International, said 600 million persons lived with disabilities, which was more than 10 per cent of the world's population. If persons with disabilities were not taken into consideration when strategies for social development were designed and implemented, they would continue to be the poorest and most neglected sector of society. People with disabilities wanted to be partners in the effort to eradicate poverty. The goal of achieving and maintaining full employment remained a dream for millions with disabilities. That was a waste of human resources and economic power. Acting together, the international community could remove barriers that prevented people with disabilities from realizing their potential and contributing to society.

G. DONALD WILLS, Inclusion International, said that despite the stipulations in the Standard Rules, only about 2 per cent of disabled people in developing countries and in countries in transition received any support. Too many governments were uninterested. For example, in one country there were some 100,000 children living in institutions for the disabled and for abandoned children. There were also about 15,000 children in hospitals for children infected with HIV/AIDS. At three years old, disabled children were placed in institutions where there was little stimulation, no contact with family, no personal belongings, no education, little food, and where they were being drugged in the evenings. They were moved to other institutions when they reached 18 years old. All over the world, people with intellectual and psychiatric disabilities also lived in large inhuman institutions.

He suggested that the Standard Rules be amended and that its monitoring system be enhanced by appointing regional advisers, securing reasonable funding and by giving the United Nations resources to function as a focal point. Coordination between the Organization and global and national organizations of the disabled should also be improved.

JOHN SAUTTER, Pax Romana, said there was urgent need to examine the role of the international financial institutions and the private movements of capital and commerce. The present global financial architecture made the world safer for global capital, not for social development. Capital must be accountable to human and international labour standards; it must be rooted in and rendered accountable to local communities for social and ecological needs. Legal mechanisms were needed to regulate all global capital flows -- both public and private -- for the sake of the common good. At the local level, community ownership of capital and intellectual property rights would contribute to effective control and use of capital by local peoples.

Reforming credit systems to encourage micro-enterprise and worker-owned enterprise, with community control over ecological impact, was an important goal, he continued. A people-oriented approach to global and local capital

required a radically redesigned financial architecture based on participatory democracy. There must be transparency at all levels of decision-making and evaluation, including by the World Trade Organization (WTO).

STIG OHLSON, World Blind Union, said that deaf-blindness was a unique handicap with its own problems. For example, if there were no access to interpretation services, a deaf-blind person would be very isolated. There was an average of 150 to 200 deaf-blind for every 2 million of the population, and most countries had little or no knowledge of their numbers and situation. In the future, his organization would use the Standard Rules in providing information and in the conduct of its work.

HASUDUNGAN TAMPUBOLON, Social Development Division, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), said that ESCAP had developed special regional impetus for issues crucial to the full participation and equality of people with disabilities. Cooperation had been undertaken in the areas of education for children and youth with disabilities, employment placement and poverty alleviation among rural persons with disabilities, and the organization had supported pilot projects in efforts to meet the region’s need for tangible examples of developing countries in promoting non-handicapping environments.

The ESCAP had combined its success in that area with its ongoing commitment to strengthening the self-help initiatives of people with disabilities, he said. Draft guidelines for training to promote non- handicapping environments had been tested in slum conditions in India and was being reinforced through a series of training for professionals and people with disabilities.

Commission's Contribution to Review of Social Summit

MARIO ALEMAN (Ecuador) said globalization was not reaching two thirds of the world. The economic policies suggested by international financial bodies had neglected the social development factor and, to a great extent, weakened governments’ ability to regulate their own markets. As a result, the very governability of developing societies had been undermined. Structural adjustment policies would not yield the desired success if social development were neglected.

The Copenhagen Declaration must take concrete form through domestic programmes supported by international cooperation, he said. Ecuador was engaged in efforts to address the problems of poverty and to generate productive employment. The large informal sector and the large numbers of people that were underemployed must be taken into account in the design of appropriate policies to overcome unemployment. Ecuador's efforts included technical training for young people, and family-credit and micro-credit programmes in the rural sphere for small- and medium-scale producers. Despite its serious financial limitations, the Government attached particular importance to vulnerable groups.

Ecuador's enormous burden of external debt was approximately 117 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP), he said. Debt servicing accounted for some 40 per cent of its annual budget. Policies for social development and employment would be doomed if solutions were not found. Intermediate economies, such as Ecuador's, must not be excluded. Ecuador could not meet the payment of its external debts and its social debt to the most vulnerable sectors at the same time. Due to the diversion of resources for the external debt in 1999, GDP had decreased, currency had been devalued by almost 200 per cent, and inflation was among the highest in Latin America. International financial bodies should take into account the urgent need for social development, the lack of which could even destabilize national systems.

SIBA DAS, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Development Policy, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), said the agency, alongside governments, would help to facilitate poverty eradication by championing more open and even-handed global governance in cancelling external debts; widening market access; and in improved management and orientation of external assistance. At the national level, they could support sound political, economic and social governance by contributing to understanding of the forces that caused poverty, by elucidating feasible policy choices, and by reliably monitoring and reporting progress. The UNDP was currently conducting a field evaluation of the poverty strategies initiative -– a multi-donor programme to assist countries in efforts to fulfil the Summit’s commitments. Together with the forthcoming Poverty Report, that initiative would enable the UNDP to learn about progress in implementing the Copenhagen goals and develop new poverty reduction strategies.

Poverty targets of the Summit were based on monetary measures, while most development practitioners presently agreed that poverty was multi-dimensional, he observed. Therefore, it was appropriate to incorporate explicit targets, such as for malnutrition, illiteracy and an abbreviated life span, into poverty programming. Also, only a minority of countries had action plans with explicit targets. Many did not have explicit plans, but had incorporated poverty into national planning.

He stressed that anti-poverty strategies needed to be comprehensive and should use a multi-sectoral approach. The sustainable livelihoods approach was an innovative one that built on community and government assets for poverty eradication in a sustainable manner. To that end, the UNDP -- the pioneer of that approach –- had identified concrete policy options which could contribute to country efforts in achieving the Copenhagen commitments. However, the two- track approach to poverty hampered its reduction: growth on one track, and human development on the other. The two rarely intersected, as economic policies were not pro-poor, while social services were assigned the burden of addressing poverty. A part of the problem was defining pro-poor growth and determining how to gauge it. The UNDP was providing substantive input for the special session in the four key areas of poverty eradication, sustainable livelihoods, reporting on the 20/20 initiative and aid coordination.

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