UN Human Rights Treaties

UNITED NATIONS
E
Economic and Social
Council
Distr.
GENERAL
E/CN.4/2006/72
20 January 2006
Original: ENGLISH
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Sixty-second session
Item 14 (d) of the provisional agenda
SPECIFIC GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS:
OTHER VULNERABLE GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS
Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
on progress in the implementation of the recommendations contained
in the study on the human rights of persons with disabilities
GE.06-10323
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Summary
In its resolution 2005/65, the Commission on Human Rights requested the Office of the
High Commissioner for Human Rights to report to the Commiss ion at its sixty-second session on
progress in the implementation of the recommendations contained in the study on human rights
and disability and on the achievement of the objectives set forth in the programme of work of the
Office in relation to the huma n rights of persons with disabilities.
The study on “Human rights and disability: the current use and future potential of
United Nations human rights instruments in the context of disability” analyses the provisions of
the (then) six core human rights treaties from a disability perspective, and reviews the
functioning of the United Nations human rights system in the context of disability. The study
addresses a wide range of recommendations designed to enhance the future use of the United
Nations human rights system in the context of disability. It is directed at States parties, the
treaty-monitoring bodies, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the
Commission on Human Rights, national human rights institutions and civil society.
The present report consists of three parts. The first part summarizes replies received from
States pursuant to resolution 2005/65. The second part focuses on the work undertaken by
OHCHR in the field of human rights and disability. The third contains some concluding remarks
and recommendations on how to enhance the effectiveness of the human rights machinery in the
context of disability.
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CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
Introduction ........................................................................................... 1 - 4 4
I. REPLIES RECEIVED FROM GOVERNMENTS ...................... 5 - 15 4
II. OHCHR PROGRAMME OF WORK ON THE
HUMAN RIGHTS OF PERSONS
WITH DISABILITIES ............................................................... 16 - 24 7
III. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ..................... 25 - 27 9
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Introduction
1. The present report is submitted in accordance with Commission on Human Rights
resolution 2005/65, in which the Commission requested the Office of the High Commissioner for
Human Rights (OHCHR) “to report to the Commission at its sixty-second session on progress in
the implementation of the recommendations contained in the study on human rights and
disability and on the achievement of the objectives set forth in the programme of work of the
Office in relation to the human rights of persons with disabilities” (see also E/CN.4/2003/88,
E/CN.4/2004/74 and E/CN.4/2005/82).
2. The 2002 study on “Human rights and disability: the current use and future potential of
United Nations human rights instruments in the context of disability” (hereinafter, the study)
focuses on the work carried out by the (then) six core United Nations human rights treaty bodies
to advance the equal effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms by persons
with disabilities. The study concludes that, despite their considerable potential, the
United Nations human rights treaties have not been fully used in the context of disability. In
order to enhance the future use of the existing human rights treaties and mechanisms, the study
addresses a wide range of recommendations to States parties, treaty bodies, the Office of the
High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Commission on Human Rights, national human
rights institutions and civil society.1 The study is available on the OHCHR website
(www.ohchr.org/english/issues/disability/study.htm).
3. In June 2005, a comprehensive note verbale was sent to all Permanent Missions to the
United Nations Office at Geneva, requesting information or comments pursuant to the relevant
resolutions and decisions adopted by the Commission on Human Rights at its sixty-first session.
As of 30 November 2005, the following States provided information on progress in the
implementation of the recommendations contained in the study on the human rights of persons
with disabilities: Georgia, Mexico and the Syrian Arab Republic. The replies received are
available on the OHCHR extranet page and are also available for consultatio n at the Secretariat.
4. The present report consists of three parts. The first part summarizes replies received from
States pursuant to resolution 2005/65. The second part focuses on the work undertaken by
OHCHR in the field of human rights and disability. The third contains some concluding remarks
and recommendations on how to enhance the effectiveness of the human rights machinery in the
context of disability.
I. REPLIES RECEIVED FROM GOVERNMENTS
A. Georgia
5. The Government of Georgia reported on the entry into force of the Law on the Social
Protection of Persons with Disabilities. The aim of the law is to prohibit all forms of
discrimination and ensure the equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities.
According to this law, the State shall adopt measures to provide persons with disabilities with
favourable living conditions and to facilitate their involvement in political and economic life.
Special measures and guarantees will be put in place to ensure the effective realization of the
rights of children with disabilities.
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6. In 2005, the Ministry of Labour, Public Health and Social Protection adopted a
Programme on the Promotion of Social Adaptation of Persons with Disabilities. The programme
envisages the adoption of several measures aimed at facilitating the full inclusion of persons with
disabilities in their society, including social rehabilitation programmes, tax benefits and funding
of organizations of persons with disabilities. Other programmes intended to facilitate the
equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities are carried out at the municipal level.
B. Mexico
7. The Government of Mexico reported that in December 2000 the Representative Office
for the Promotion and Social Integration of Persons with Disabilities was established by
presidential decree with a view to mainstreaming disability issues in all public policies and
programmes adopted at the federal, state and municipal levels. The Representative Office, which
is assisted by the National Consultative Council for the Integration of Persons with Disabilities,
has carried out several programmes with different state ministries aimed at creating or modifying
public policies so as to meet the expectations and needs of persons with disabilities and their
representative organizations.
8. In June 2005, Mexico enacted the General Law on Persons with Disabilities. The law
states that public policies on disability shall be informed by the principles of equality, social
justice, equalization of opportunities, respect for human differences, dignity, integration, respect
and accessibility. The law created the National Council for Persons with Disabilities, which
ensures inter-ministerial coordination on disability issues.
9. The Government of Mexico reported that 55.5 percent of the 3.1 million persons with
disabilities under its jurisdiction live in conditions of poverty. The Ministry (Secretaría) of
Social Development promotes the adoption of measures guaranteeing the integration of persons
with disabilities in all actions and programmes that it coordinates, for example those relating to
food support and those relating to the improvement of housing conditions in disadvantaged urban
areas.
10. Other programmes aimed at promoting the social integration of persons with disabilities
and their inclusion in social development programmes include: (a) awareness-raising
programmes on disability, including programmes aimed at providing health education and
information on the prevention of disabilities; (b) habilitation and rehabilit ation programmes
aimed at facilitating the valorisation of persons with disabilities and their participation in social
life; (c) programmes to promote inclusive education and the strengthening of special education;
(d) tax incentives to improve access of persons with disabilities to the work market; (e) special
programmes for women with disabilities; and (f) social security programmes.
11. Mexico recalled that, as a follow-up to the proposal formulated by President Fox at the
World Conference against Racism, held in Durban in September 2001, during the fifty-sixth
session of the General Assembly the Mexican delegation presented a draft resolution for the
establishment of an Ad Hoc Committee to consider proposals for a comprehensive and integral
international convention to promote and protect the rights and dignity of persons with
disabilities. Mexico has participated actively in the work of the Ad Hoc Committee of the
General Assembly since its inception, and supported through voluntary contributions the
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participation of organizations of persons with disabilities and experts from developing and least
developed countries in the sessions of the Ad Hoc Committee.
12. Mexico is a party to the Inter-American Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities and to ILO Convention No. 159 concerning
Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Disabled Persons) of 1983.
C. Syrian Arab Republic
13. The Syrian Arab Republic provided information on the most important pieces of
legislation on the rights of persons with disabilities, including the recent Disabled Persons’ Act
No. 34 of 17 August 2004. The Act accords numerous benefits and rights to persons with
disabilities in the fields of health, education, sport, rehabilitation, employment, access to built
environment and means of communication, tax exemption and services. Other legislative
instruments aimed at protecting and promoting the rights of persons with disabilities include:
Legislative Decree No. 40 of 1970 concernin g the establishment of vocational
education institutes for deaf and deaf-mute persons;
Legislative Decree No. 154 of 1970 relating to the establishment of specialized
centres for the rehabilitation and vocational training of persons with disabilities;
Act No. 144 of 1958, which establishes special schools for the education and
rehabilitation of blind persons; and
Legislative Decree No. 1439 of 1973 on the establishment of special schools for
persons with physical disabilities who are unable due to their disability to enrol in
public schools.
14. The Syrian Arab Republic also reported that special educational institutes have been
established in different parts of the country to respond to the special needs of children with
mental disabilities and children with cerebral palsy and to facilitate their integration in the
communities where they live. In 1997, the Government launched, in collaboration with the
regional office of the International Labour Organization in Beirut, a community rehabilitation
scheme. The scheme is a strategy designed to achieve equal opportunities and social integration
for persons with different forms of disability. The scheme is implemented through the concerted
efforts of persons with disabilities, their families and communities and of health, social,
educational and vocational welfare institutions.
15. In the Syrian Arab Republic, more than 600 private associations and institutions have
been established pursuant to the Private Associations and Institutions’ Act No. 93 of 1958.
Among these private organizations, 26 complement and support the Government’s efforts with
regard to the welfare, rehabilitation and education of persons with different kinds of disabilities.
These civil society organizations are overseen by the Ministry of S ocial Affairs and Labour, and
provide a wide range of services and assistance to persons with disabilities and their families.
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II. OHCHR PROGRAMME OF WORK ON THE HUMAN
RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
16. OHCHR considers that its action in the field of the promotion and protection of human
rights of persons with disabilities should remain tri-dimensional (multi-track approach), and
focus on:
Supporting the drafting of a comprehensive and integral international convention on
protection and promotion of the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities;
Encouraging the integration of disability issues in the activities of treaty bodies and
human rights extra-conventional mechanisms; and
Continuing its close collaboration with other United Nations agencies and bodies with
a mandate on disability, including the Special Rapporteur on disability of the
Commission for Social Development.
17. In accordance with the mandate entrusted to it by the General Assembly 2 and the
Commission on Human Rights,3 the Office continued in 2005 to provide assistance and technical
support to the Ad Hoc Committee established by the General Assembly with the task of
negotiating a new international convention on the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities. 4
OHCHR was represented at the fifth and sixth sessions of the Ad Hoc Committee, which took
place in New York on 24 January- 4 February and 1-12 August 2005, and provided technical
advice on procedural and substantial issues, as requested, to the Chairperson of the Ad Hoc
Committee, the Secretariat, and States and observers participating in the negotiating process.
18. OHCHR is of the view that its experience in providing support to the work of treaty
bodies could prove useful to inform discussions concerning possible monitoring mechanisms for
the new disability convention. At the fifth session of the Ad Hoc Committee, OHCHR submitted
a background conference paper entitled “Monitoring implementation of the international human
rights instruments: an overview of the current treaty body system”, which provided factual
information about the existing human rights treaty body system. 5
19. At that session, the Office also organized a panel discussion on “UN human rights treaty
monitoring bodies and mechanisms: achievements and challenges”. The aim of this event was to
assist the Ad Hoc Committee in identifying the factors and elements to be taken into account in
discussions concerning possible monitoring mechanisms for the proposed new treaty, but to do
so by focusing on the achievements of, and challenges faced by, the current treaty monitoring
system. The panel included the following experts:
•Jane Connors, OHCHR, provided a brief overview of the current monitoring system, and
focused on current efforts regarding treaty body ref orm;
•Kyung-wha Kang, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea, provided information on
the experience of States in dealing with the current monitoring system;
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•Hanna Beate Schöpp-Schilling, Vice-Chairperson of the Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination against Women, focused on the achievements of, and challenges faced by,
CEDAW in monitoring States’ compliance with the Convention;
•Philip Alston, New York University, reflected a broader perspective on the discussion of
needed reforms to the treaty body system going beyond the current issues being discussed
by treaty bodies and States;
•Theresia Degener, co-author of the OHCHR study on “Human rights and disability”,
provided an overview on how the current functioning of the treaty body system had
influenced the ability of the existing treaty bodies to protect the human rights of persons
with disabilities.
20. At its sixty-first session, the Commission requested OHCHR to prepare an expert paper,
“focusing on the lessons learned from existing monitoring mechanisms, possible relevant
improvements and possible innovations in monitoring mechanisms for a comprehensive and
integral international convention on the protection and promotion of the rights and dignity of
persons with disabilities”. 6 The expert paper was to be made available to the Ad Hoc Committee
at its seventh session (16 January-3 February 2006). The paper makes specific suggestions on the
issue of monitoring mechanisms for the new disability convention, based of the experience
gained by the Office in providing assistance to the existing treaty bodies. In order to provide
advice to the High Commissioner on this issue, OHCHR organized a small Expert Meeting on
Possible Monitoring Mechanisms for the New Disability Convention (Geneva, 24-25 November
2005). On 25 November, OHCHR organized a public briefing on the outcome of the expert
meeting, with a view to facilitating an exchange of views between the experts and interested
delegations, United Nations agencies and civil society organizations. More than 20 permanent
missions attended.
21. In order to contribute to the clarification of controversial issues discussed in previous
sessions, the Office submitted to the Ad Hoc Committee at its sixth session two background
conference documents on “The concept of “special” measures in international human rights law”
and on “Legal capacity”.7 The first document reviews the existing core human rights treaties and
the jurisprudence of treaty bodies on “special” or temporary measures, with a view to clarifying
the nature and scope of these measures, as well as their relations with other social policies aimed
at eliminating discrimination suffered by particular groups of individuals. The second provides
an overview of the way in which the terms “recognition everywher e as a person before the law”
and “legal capacity” are used in existing human rights law treaties and in selected domestic legal
systems, and seeks to assess the relationship – and possible overlapping – between these two
terms and such other terms such as “legal personality”, “juridical capacity” and “capacity to act”.
22. During 2005, OHCHR has continued its efforts to disseminate the study on human rights
and disability to States, national institutions, disability and human rights NGOs, academic
institutions and disability advocates. To make information concerning the possible use of the
existing human rights machinery available to the general public, OHCHR prepared a “Fact Sheet
on human rights and disability” to present in concise and non-technical language the main
findings of the study. The Fact Sheet, which will be published in 2006, also aims to facilitate the
submission of disability-related information to the treaty bodies by disability NGOs, national
human rights institutions and specialized agencies of the United Nations.
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23. OHCHR continues to collaborate closely with other United Nations agencies and bodies
with a mandate on disability. As requested by the General Assembly and the Commission on
Human Rights,8 OHCHR continued to work in close collaboration and coordination with the
Division for Social Policy and Development of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs
(DESA) in supporting the work of the Ad Hoc Committee. In June 2005, OHCHR participated
in a Consultative Meeting of the A rab Region on the Draft Comprehensive and Integral
International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons
with Disabilities. The meeting, organized by DESA, took place in Casablanca, Morocco, on
15-17 June 2005.
24. During 2005, the Office also continued its close collaboration with such agencies as the
International Labour Organization and the World Health Organization, and – to a lesser extent –
with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the United Nations
Children’s Fund and the World Bank. OHCHR also attended the annual informal consultation of
United Nations agencies working in the field of disability, which took place on 15 February at
the DESA office in New York.
25. In 2005, OHCHR continued to provide support and assistance to the Special Rapporteur
on disability of the Commission for Social Development, Ms. Al-Thani, in her efforts to promote
the implementation of the 1993 Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons
with Disabilities. In particular, the Office assisted the Special Rapporteur during her mission to
Geneva to present her annual report for the Commission on Social Development to the sixty-first
session of the Commission on Human Rights.
III. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
26. The report submitted by the High Commissioner to the sixty-first session of the
Commission on Human Rights showed that since the publication of the study in 2002 there
have been some encouraging developments in the way in which disability issues are
addressed within the existing human rights treaty system. The review of positive changes
introduced since the publication of the study showed that implementation of the
recommendations contained in the study on disability could undoubtedly contribute to
increasing the attention devoted to disability under existing human rights mechanisms.
They should therefore be carefully considered by States, treaty bodies, national
institutions, non-governmental organizations and other relevant actors - including relevant
United Nations bodies, agencies and programmes.
27. OHCHR recognizes the need to ensure greater attention to the human rights of
persons with disabilities. In view of the growing attention the issue of disability is attracting
at the international level, the Commission on Human Rights may wish to consider
requesting that a more analytical report focusing on specific issues concerning the human
rights of persons with disabilities be prepared by the High Commissioner in the future.
28. OHCHR supports the elaboration of a new international convention to promote and
protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities, and considers that such an
instrument could strengthen the protection already afforded by existing human rights
treaties by tailoring existing human rights and standards to the particular situation and
needs of persons with disabilities. OHCHR welcomes the valuable contribution made by
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national human rights institutions and civil society organizations to this process, and would
like to encourage their continuing active and meaningful participation in discussions on the
proposed new treaty.
Notes
1 G. Quinn and T. Degener, “Human rights and disability: the current use and future potential of United Nations
human rights instruments in the context of disability”, HR/PUB/02/1, United Nations, New York and Geneva,
2002. For more detailed inform ation on the content of the study, see E/CN.4/2002/18/Add.1.
2 General Assembly resolution 59/198, para. 6.
3 Commission on Human Rights resolution 2005/65, paras. 6 and 7.
4 General Assembly resolution 56/168 of 19 December 2001.
5 A/AC.265/2005/CRP. 2, available at http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/rights/ahc5documents.htm .
6 Commission on Human Rights resolution 2005/65, para. 7.
7 See http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/rights/ahc6documents.htm .
8 See General Assembly resolution 59/198, para. 6, and Commission on Human Rights resolution 2005/65, para. 6.
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