PRESS CONFERENCE BY UNITED STATES NATIONAL COUNCIL ON DISABILITY

Lex Frieden, Chairperson of the United States National Council on Disability, told correspondents at a Headquarters press conference today that the proposed United Nations convention on the human rights of people with disabilities should not be enacted without the involvement and approval of people with disabilities.  If it were, such a convention would serve neither the people it aimed at nor fulfil its intended goals.

The Ad Hoc Committee on the Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has been holding its second session at United Nations Headquarters since 16 June.  It was established by the General Assembly in 2001 (resolution 56/168), based on a proposal by Mexico.  Depending on the progress made at the current session, it could start working on such a treaty later this year.

Mr. Frieden emphasized three points:  first, that no convention should be enacted without the approval of people with disabilities; second, that it should only occur with their participation; and finally, everyone -- people with disabilities, family members, leaders and all persons in society -- should work together to ensure their economies, public places, schools, workplaces and everywhere that people went were warm and welcoming to people with disabilities.

People with disabilities had to be encouraged in society, if there was to be a society for all, he said.  “We should all look forward to a future where we can all share one world”, and people with disabilities must fully participate and fully share in that world.

Mr. Frieden described Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s approval of the validity of such a convention as “profoundly significant”, and said that the Secretary-General’s endorsement not only validated the concerns of the United Nations for human rights and rights for all, but his -- Mr. Frieden’s -- personal views as an individual.

In response to a correspondent’s question, Mr. Frieden denied it was at the National Council’s recommendation that the United States had decided not to endorse the signing of the convention.  He said the Council had actually recommended to the current United States Administration that it play a role in the convention process, and it was his understanding that it was prepared to do so and would reconsider the possibility of being part of the convention once the process moved forward.

He declined to be drawn into commenting or discussing the Administration’s alleged stance on signing the proposed treaty, saying he didn’t think any country had made a judgement about whether to sign the convention or not, at this stage.  He, however, lauded the major strides the United States as a country had made in the area of improving the situation of people with disabilities.  Many discriminatory tendencies, practices and behaviours of the past had disappeared.

He added it was premature at this time to state whether or not the United States would be a party to the convention.  He thought it was, indeed, not only premature, but unwise for any country to make a commitment at this stage about the convention, because the process was ongoing.  To another question about whether previous administrations had been more cooperative than the present administration towards the idea of the convention, Mr. Frieden said no previous administration had even considered the possibility of being engaged in the convention process.

He paid tribute to Mexico and others in the United Nations for their leadership role in the convention process, which he hoped would culminate in fruitful results by the time the Ad Hoc Committee ended its session on 27 June.

Further information on the issue can be found at http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/, or by contacting Maribel Derjani-Bayeh, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, tel.:  (212) 963-3897.

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