CONVENTION ON
THE RIGHTS OF PERSONS
WITH DISABILITIES
Preamble
The States Parties to the present Convention,
(a) Recalling the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United
Nations which recognize the inherent dignity and worth and the equal and
inalienable rights of all members of the human family as the foundation of
freedom, justice and peace in the world,
(b) Recognizing that the United Nations, in the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights and in the International Covenants on Human Rights, has
proclaimed and agreed that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms
set forth therein, without distinction of any kind,
(c) Reaffirming the universality, indivisibility, interdependence and
interrelatedness of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and the need for
persons with disabilities to be guaranteed their full enjoyment without
discrimination,
(d) Recalling the International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel,
Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of
All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families,
(e) Recognizing that disability is an evolving concept and that
disability results from the interaction between persons with impairments and
attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinders their full and effective
participation in society on an equal basis with others,
(f) Recognizing the importance of the principles and policy guidelines
contained in the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons and in
the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with
Disabilities in influencing the promotion, formulation and evaluation of the
policies, plans, programmes and actions at the national, regional and
international levels to further equalize opportunities for persons with
disabilities,
(g) Emphasizing the importance of mainstreaming disability issues as an
integral part of relevant strategies of sustainable development,
(h) Recognizing also that
discrimination against any person on the basis of disability is a violation of
the inherent dignity and worth of the human person,
(i) Recognizing further the
diversity of persons with disabilities,
(j) Recognizing the need to promote and protect the human rights of all
persons with disabilities, including those who require more intensive support,
(k) Concerned that, despite these various instruments and undertakings,
persons with disabilities continue to face barriers in their participation as
equal members of society and violations of their human rights in all parts of
the world,
(l) Recognizing the importance of international cooperation for
improving the living conditions of persons with disabilities in every country,
particularly in developing countries,
(m) Recognizing the valued existing and potential contributions made by
persons with disabilities to the overall well-being and diversity of their
communities, and that the promotion of the full enjoyment by persons with
disabilities of their human rights and fundamental freedoms and of full
participation by persons with disabilities will result in their enhanced sense
of belonging and in significant advances in the human, social and economic development
of society and the eradication of poverty,
(n) Recognizing the importance for persons with disabilities of their
individual autonomy and independence, including the freedom to make their own
choices,
(o) Considering that persons with disabilities should have the
opportunity to be actively involved in decision-making processes about policies
and programmes, including those directly concerning them,
(p) Concerned about the difficult conditions faced by persons with
disabilities who are subject to multiple or aggravated forms of discrimination
on the basis of race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other
opinion, national, ethnic, indigenous or social origin, property, birth, age or
other status,
(q) Recognizing that women and girls with disabilities are often at
greater risk, both within and outside the home, of violence, injury or abuse,
neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation,
(r) Recognizing that children with disabilities should have full
enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms on an equal basis with
other children, and recalling obligations to that end undertaken by States
Parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child,
(s) Emphasizing the need to incorporate a gender perspective in all
efforts to promote the full enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms
by persons with disabilities,
(t) Highlighting the fact that the majority of persons with
disabilities live in conditions of poverty, and in this regard recognizing the
critical need to address the negative impact of poverty on persons with
disabilities,
(u) Bearing in mind that
conditions of peace and security based on full respect for the purposes and
principles contained in the Charter of the United Nations and observance of
applicable human rights instruments are indispensable for the full protection
of persons with disabilities, in particular during armed conflicts and foreign
occupation,
(v) Recognizing the importance of accessibility to the physical,
social, economic and cultural environment, to health and education and to
information and communication, in enabling persons with disabilities to fully
enjoy all human rights and fundamental freedoms,
(w) Realizing that the individual, having duties to other individuals
and to the community to which he or she belongs, is under a responsibility to
strive for the promotion and observance of the rights recognized in the
International Bill of Human Rights,
(x) Convinced that the family is the natural and fundamental group unit
of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State, and that
persons with disabilities and their family members should receive the necessary
protection and assistance to enable families to contribute towards the full and
equal enjoyment of the rights of persons with disabilities,
(y) Convinced that a comprehensive and integral international
convention to promote and protect the rights and dignity of persons with
disabilities will make a significant contribution to redressing the profound
social disadvantage of persons with disabilities and promote their
participation in the civil, political, economic, social and cultural spheres
with equal opportunities, in both developing and developed countries,
Have agreed as follows:
Article 1
Purpose
The
purpose of the present Convention is to promote, protect and ensure the full
and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons
with disabilities, and to promote respect for their inherent dignity.
Persons with disabilities
include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory
impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full
and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of
the present Convention:
“Communication”
includes languages, display of text, Braille, tactile communication, large
print, accessible multimedia as well as written, audio, plain-language,
human-reader and augmentative and alternative modes, means and formats of
communication, including accessible information and communication technology;
“Language” includes
spoken and signed languages and other forms of non spoken languages;
“Discrimination on the
basis of disability” means any distinction, exclusion or restriction on the
basis of disability which has the purpose or effect of impairing or nullifying
the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal basis with others, of all
human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social,
cultural, civil or any other field. It includes all forms of discrimination,
including denial of reasonable accommodation;
“Reasonable
accommodation” means necessary and appropriate modification and adjustments not
imposing a disproportionate or undue burden, where needed in a particular case,
to ensure to persons with disabilities the enjoyment or exercise on an equal
basis with others of all human rights and fundamental freedoms;
“Universal design”
means the design of products, environments, programmes and services to be
usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for
adaptation or specialized design. “Universal design” shall not exclude
assistive devices for particular groups of persons with disabilities where this
is needed.
Article 3
General principles
The principles of the present
Convention shall be:
(a) Respect
for inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the freedom to make one’s
own choices, and independence of persons;
(b) Non-discrimination;
(c) Full
and effective participation and inclusion in society;
(d) Respect
for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human
diversity and humanity;
(e) Equality
of opportunity;
(f) Accessibility;
(g) Equality
between men and women;
(h) Respect
for the evolving capacities of children with disabilities and respect for the
right of children with disabilities to preserve their identities.
Article 4
General
obligations
1. States Parties
undertake to ensure and promote the full realization of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms for all persons with disabilities without discrimination
of any kind on the basis of disability. To this end, States Parties undertake:
(a) To adopt all
appropriate legislative, administrative and other measures for the
implementation of the rights recognized in the present Convention;
(b) To take all
appropriate measures, including legislation, to modify or abolish existing
laws, regulations, customs and practices that constitute discrimination against
persons with disabilities;
(c) To take into account
the protection and promotion of the human rights of persons with disabilities
in all policies and programmes;
(d) To refrain from
engaging in any act or practice that is inconsistent with the present
Convention and to ensure that public authorities and institutions act in
conformity with the present Convention;
(e) To take all
appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability by
any person, organization or private enterprise;
(f) To undertake or
promote research and development of universally designed goods, services,
equipment and facilities, as defined in article 2 of the present Convention,
which should require the minimum possible adaptation and the least cost to meet
the specific needs of a person with disabilities, to promote their availability
and use, and to promote universal design in the development of standards and
guidelines;
(g) To undertake or
promote research and development of, and to promote the availability and use of
new technologies, including information and communications technologies,
mobility aids, devices and assistive technologies, suitable for persons with
disabilities, giving priority to technologies at an affordable cost;
(h) To provide accessible
information to persons with disabilities about mobility aids, devices and
assistive technologies, including new technologies, as well as other forms of
assistance, support services and facilities;
(i) To promote the
training of professionals and staff working with persons with disabilities in
the rights recognized in the present Convention so as to better provide the
assistance and services guaranteed by those rights.
2. With regard to
economic, social and cultural rights, each State Party undertakes to take
measures to the maximum of its available resources and, where needed, within
the framework of international cooperation, with a view to achieving
progressively the full realization of these rights, without prejudice to those
obligations contained in the present Convention that are immediately applicable
according to international law.
3. In the development and
implementation of legislation and policies to implement the present Convention,
and in other decision-making processes concerning issues relating to persons
with disabilities, States Parties shall closely consult with and actively
involve persons with disabilities, including children with disabilities,
through their representative organizations.
4. Nothing in the present
Convention shall affect any provisions which are more conducive to the
realization of the rights of persons with disabilities and which may be
contained in the law of a State Party or international law in force for that
State. There shall be no restriction upon or derogation from any of the human
rights and fundamental freedoms recognized or existing in any State Party to
the present Convention pursuant to law, conventions, regulation or custom on
the pretext that the present Convention does not recognize such rights or
freedoms or that it recognizes them to a lesser extent.
5. The provisions of the
present Convention shall extend to all parts of federal States without any
limitations or exceptions.
Article 5
Equality and
non-discrimination
1. States Parties
recognize that all persons are equal before and under the law and are entitled
without any discrimination to the equal protection and equal benefit of the
law.
2. States Parties shall
prohibit all discrimination on the basis of disability and guarantee to persons
with disabilities equal and effective legal protection against discrimination
on all grounds.
3. In order to promote
equality and eliminate discrimination, States Parties shall take all
appropriate steps to ensure that reasonable accommodation is provided.
4. Specific measures which
are necessary to accelerate or achieve de facto equality of persons with
disabilities shall not be considered discrimination under the terms of the
present Convention.
Article 6
Women with
disabilities
1. States Parties
recognize that women and girls with disabilities are subject to multiple
discrimination, and in this regard shall take measures to ensure the full and
equal enjoyment by them of all human rights and fundamental freedoms.
2. States Parties shall
take all appropriate measures to ensure the full development, advancement and
empowerment of women, for the purpose of guaranteeing them the exercise and
enjoyment of the human rights and fundamental freedoms set out in the present
Convention.
Article 7
Children with
disabilities
1. States Parties shall
take all necessary measures to ensure the full enjoyment by children with
disabilities of all human rights and fundamental freedoms on an equal basis
with other children.
2. In all actions
concerning children with disabilities, the best interests of the child shall be
a primary consideration.
3. States Parties shall
ensure that children with disabilities have the right to express their views
freely on all matters affecting them, their views being given due weight in
accordance with their age and maturity, on an equal basis with other children,
and to be provided with disability and age-appropriate assistance to realize
that right.
Article 8
Awareness-raising
1. States Parties
undertake to adopt immediate, effective and appropriate measures:
(a) To raise awareness
throughout society, including at the family level, regarding persons with
disabilities, and to foster respect for the rights and dignity of persons with
disabilities;
(b) To combat stereotypes,
prejudices and harmful practices relating to persons with disabilities,
including those based on sex and age, in all areas of life;
(c) To promote awareness
of the capabilities and contributions of persons with disabilities.
2. Measures to this end
include:
(a) Initiating and
maintaining effective public awareness campaigns designed:
(i) To nurture receptiveness to the rights
of persons with disabilities;
(ii) To
promote positive perceptions and greater social awareness towards persons with
disabilities;
(iii) To promote
recognition of the skills, merits and abilities of persons with disabilities,
and of their contributions to the workplace and the labour market;
(b) Fostering at all
levels of the education system, including in all children from an early age, an
attitude of respect for the rights of persons with disabilities;
(c) Encouraging all
organs of the media to portray persons with disabilities in a manner consistent
with the purpose of the present Convention;
(d) Promoting awareness-training
programmes regarding persons with disabilities and the rights of persons with
disabilities.
Article 9
Accessibility
1. To enable persons with
disabilities to live independently and participate fully in all aspects of
life, States Parties shall take appropriate measures to ensure to persons with
disabilities access, on an equal basis with others, to the physical
environment, to transportation, to information and communications, including
information and communications technologies and systems, and to other
facilities and services open or provided to the public, both in urban and in
rural areas. These measures, which shall include the identification and
elimination of obstacles and barriers to accessibility, shall apply to, inter
alia:
(a) Buildings, roads,
transportation and other indoor and outdoor facilities, including schools,
housing, medical facilities and workplaces;
(b) Information,
communications and other services, including electronic services and emergency
services.
2. States Parties shall
also take appropriate measures:
(a) To develop,
promulgate and monitor the implementation of minimum standards and guidelines
for the accessibility of facilities and services open or provided to the
public;
(b) To ensure that
private entities that offer facilities and services which are open or provided
to the public take into account all aspects of accessibility for persons with
disabilities;
(c) To provide training
for stakeholders on accessibility issues facing persons with disabilities;
(d) To provide in
buildings and other facilities open to the public signage in Braille and in
easy to read and understand forms;
(e) To provide forms of
live assistance and intermediaries, including guides, readers and professional
sign language interpreters, to facilitate accessibility to buildings and other
facilities open to the public;
(f) To promote other
appropriate forms of assistance and support to persons with disabilities to
ensure their access to information;
(g) To promote access for
persons with disabilities to new information and communications technologies
and systems, including the Internet;
(h) To promote the
design, development, production and distribution of accessible information and
communications technologies and systems at an early stage, so that these
technologies and systems become accessible at minimum cost.
Article 10
Right to life
States Parties
reaffirm that every human being has the inherent right to life and shall take
all necessary measures to ensure its effective enjoyment by persons with
disabilities on an equal basis with others.
Article 11
Situations of
risk and humanitarian emergencies
States Parties shall
take, in accordance with their obligations under international law, including
international humanitarian law and international human rights law, all
necessary measures to ensure the protection and safety of persons with
disabilities in situations of risk, including situations of armed conflict,
humanitarian emergencies and the occurrence of natural disasters.
Article 12
Equal
recognition before the law
1. States Parties reaffirm
that persons with disabilities have the right to recognition everywhere as
persons before the law.
2. States Parties shall
recognize that persons with disabilities enjoy legal capacity on an equal basis
with others in all aspects of life.
3. States Parties shall
take appropriate measures to provide access by persons with disabilities to the
support they may require in exercising their legal capacity.
4. States Parties shall
ensure that all measures that relate to the exercise of legal capacity provide
for appropriate and effective safeguards to prevent abuse in accordance with
international human rights law. Such safeguards shall ensure that measures
relating to the exercise of legal capacity respect the rights, will and
preferences of the person, are free of conflict of interest and undue
influence, are proportional and tailored to the person’s circumstances, apply
for the shortest time possible and are subject to regular review by a
competent, independent and impartial authority or judicial body. The safeguards
shall be proportional to the degree to which such measures affect the person’s
rights and interests.
5. Subject to the
provisions of this article, States Parties shall take all appropriate and
effective measures to ensure the equal right of persons with disabilities to
own or inherit property, to control their own financial affairs and to have
equal access to bank loans, mortgages and other forms of financial credit, and
shall ensure that persons with disabilities are not arbitrarily deprived of
their property.
Article 13
Access to
justice
1. States Parties shall
ensure effective access to justice for persons with disabilities on an equal
basis with others, including through the provision of procedural and
age-appropriate accommodations, in order to facilitate their effective role as
direct and indirect participants, including as witnesses, in all legal
proceedings, including at investigative and other preliminary stages.
2. In order to help to
ensure effective access to justice for persons with disabilities, States
Parties shall promote appropriate training for those working in the field of
administration of justice, including police and prison staff.
Article 14
Liberty and security of person
1. States Parties shall
ensure that persons with disabilities, on an equal basis with others:
(a) Enjoy the right to liberty and security
of person;
(b) Are not deprived of
their liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily, and that any deprivation of liberty is
in conformity with the law, and that the existence of a disability shall in no
case justify a deprivation of liberty.
2. States Parties shall
ensure that if persons with disabilities are deprived of their liberty through
any process, they are, on an equal basis with others, entitled to guarantees in
accordance with international human rights law and shall be treated in
compliance with the objectives and principles of the present Convention,
including by provision of reasonable accommodation.
Article 15
Freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment
1. No
one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
or punishment. In particular, no one shall be subjected without his or her free
consent to medical or scientific experimentation.
2. States Parties shall
take all effective legislative, administrative, judicial or other measures to
prevent persons with disabilities, on an equal basis with others, from being
subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Article 16
Freedom from
exploitation, violence and abuse
1. States Parties shall
take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social, educational and other
measures to protect persons with disabilities, both within and outside the
home, from all forms of exploitation, violence and abuse, including their
gender-based aspects.
2. States Parties shall
also take all appropriate measures to prevent all forms of exploitation,
violence and abuse by ensuring, inter alia, appropriate forms of gender- and
age-sensitive assistance and support for persons with disabilities and their
families and caregivers, including through the provision of information and
education on how to avoid, recognize and report instances of exploitation,
violence and abuse. States Parties shall ensure that protection services are
age-, gender- and disability-sensitive.
3. In order to prevent the
occurrence of all forms of exploitation, violence and abuse, States Parties
shall ensure that all facilities and programmes designed to serve persons with
disabilities are effectively monitored by independent authorities.
4. States Parties shall
take all appropriate measures to promote the physical, cognitive and
psychological recovery, rehabilitation and social reintegration of persons with
disabilities who become victims of any form of exploitation, violence or abuse,
including through the provision of protection services. Such recovery and
reintegration shall take place in an environment that fosters the health,
welfare, self-respect, dignity and autonomy of the person and takes into
account gender- and age-specific needs.
5. States Parties shall
put in place effective legislation and policies, including women- and
child-focused legislation and policies, to ensure that instances of
exploitation, violence and abuse against persons with disabilities are
identified, investigated and, where appropriate, prosecuted.
Article 17
Protecting the
integrity of the person
Every person with
disabilities has a right to respect for his or her physical and mental
integrity on an equal basis with others.
Article 18
Liberty of movement and nationality
1. States Parties shall
recognize the rights of persons with disabilities to liberty of movement, to
freedom to choose their residence and to a nationality, on an equal basis with
others, including by ensuring that persons with disabilities:
(a) Have the right to
acquire and change a nationality and are not deprived of their nationality
arbitrarily or on the basis of disability;
(b) Are not deprived, on
the basis of disability, of their ability to obtain, possess and utilize
documentation of their nationality or other documentation of identification, or
to utilize relevant processes such as immigration proceedings, that may be
needed to facilitate exercise of the right to liberty of movement;
(c) Are free to leave any
country, including their own;
(d) Are not deprived,
arbitrarily or on the basis of disability, of the right to enter their own
country.
2. Children with
disabilities shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the
right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and, as far as
possible, the right to know and be cared for by their parents.
Article 19
Living
independently and being included in
the community
States Parties to the
present Convention recognize the equal right of all persons with disabilities
to live in the community, with choices equal to others, and shall take
effective and appropriate measures to facilitate full enjoyment by persons with
disabilities of this right and their full inclusion and participation in the
community, including by ensuring that:
(a) Persons with
disabilities have the opportunity to choose their place of residence and where
and with whom they live on an equal basis with others and are not obliged to
live in a particular living arrangement;
(b) Persons with
disabilities have access to a range of in-home, residential and other community
support services, including personal assistance necessary to support living and
inclusion in the community, and to prevent isolation or segregation from the
community;
(c) Community services
and facilities for the general population are available on an equal basis to
persons with disabilities and are responsive to their needs.
Article 20
Personal
mobility
States Parties shall
take effective measures to ensure personal mobility with the greatest possible
independence for persons with disabilities, including by:
(a) Facilitating the
personal mobility of persons with disabilities in the manner and at the time of
their choice, and at affordable cost;
(b) Facilitating access
by persons with disabilities to quality mobility aids, devices, assistive
technologies and forms of live assistance and intermediaries, including by
making them available at affordable cost;
(c) Providing training in
mobility skills to persons with disabilities and to specialist staff working
with persons with disabilities;
(d) Encouraging entities
that produce mobility aids, devices and assistive technologies to take into
account all aspects of mobility for persons with disabilities.
Article 21
Freedom of
expression and opinion, and access
to information
States Parties shall
take all appropriate measures to ensure that persons with disabilities can
exercise the right to freedom of expression and opinion, including the freedom
to seek, receive and impart information and ideas on an equal basis with others
and through all forms of communication of their choice, as defined in article 2
of the present Convention, including by:
(a) Providing information
intended for the general public to persons with disabilities in accessible
formats and technologies appropriate to different kinds of disabilities in a timely
manner and without additional cost;
(b) Accepting and
facilitating the use of sign languages, Braille, augmentative and alternative
communication, and all other accessible means, modes and formats of
communication of their choice by persons with disabilities in official
interactions;
(c) Urging private
entities that provide services to the general public, including through the
Internet, to provide information and services in accessible and usable formats
for persons with disabilities;
(d) Encouraging the mass
media, including providers of information through the Internet, to make their
services accessible to persons with disabilities;
(e) Recognizing and
promoting the use of sign languages.
Article 22
Respect for
privacy
1. No person with disabilities,
regardless of place of residence or living arrangements, shall be subjected to
arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family, home or
correspondence or other types of communication or to unlawful attacks on his or
her honour and reputation. Persons with disabilities have the right to the
protection of the law against such interference or attacks.
2. States Parties shall
protect the privacy of personal, health and rehabilitation information of
persons with disabilities on an equal basis with others.
Article 23
Respect for
home and the family
1. States Parties shall
take effective and appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against
persons with disabilities in all matters relating to marriage, family,
parenthood and relationships, on an equal basis with others, so as to ensure
that:
(a) The right of all
persons with disabilities who are of marriageable age to marry and to found a
family on the basis of free and full consent of the intending spouses is
recognized;
(b) The rights of persons
with disabilities to decide freely and responsibly on the number and spacing of
their children and to have access to age-appropriate information, reproductive
and family planning education are recognized, and the means necessary to enable
them to exercise these rights are provided;
(c) Persons with
disabilities, including children, retain their fertility on an equal basis with
others.
2. States Parties shall
ensure the rights and responsibilities of persons with disabilities, with
regard to guardianship, wardship, trusteeship, adoption
of children or similar institutions, where these concepts exist in national
legislation; in all cases the best interests of the child shall be paramount.
States Parties shall render appropriate assistance to persons with disabilities
in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities.
3. States Parties shall
ensure that children with disabilities have equal rights with respect to family
life. With a view to realizing these rights, and to prevent concealment,
abandonment, neglect and segregation of children with disabilities, States
Parties shall undertake to provide early and comprehensive information,
services and support to children with disabilities and their families.
4. States Parties shall
ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against
their will, except when competent authorities subject to judicial review
determine, in accordance with applicable law and procedures, that such
separation is necessary for the best interests of the child. In no case shall a
child be separated from parents on the basis of a disability of either the
child or one or both of the parents.
5. States Parties shall,
where the immediate family is unable to care for a child with disabilities,
undertake every effort to provide alternative care within the wider family, and
failing that, within the community in a family setting.
Article 24
Education
1. States Parties
recognize the right of persons with disabilities to education. With a view to
realizing this right without discrimination and on the basis of equal
opportunity, States Parties shall ensure an inclusive education system at all
levels and lifelong learning directed to:
(a) The full development
of human potential and sense of dignity and self-worth, and the strengthening
of respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and human diversity;
(b) The development by
persons with disabilities of their personality, talents and creativity, as well
as their mental and physical abilities, to their fullest potential;
(c) Enabling persons with
disabilities to participate effectively in a free society.
2. In realizing this
right, States Parties shall ensure that:
(a) Persons with
disabilities are not excluded from the general education system on the basis of
disability, and that children with disabilities are not excluded from free and
compulsory primary education, or from secondary education, on the basis of
disability;
(b) Persons with
disabilities can access an inclusive, quality and free primary education and
secondary education on an equal basis with others in the communities in which
they live;
(c) Reasonable
accommodation of the individual’s requirements is provided;
(d) Persons with
disabilities receive the support required, within the general education system,
to facilitate their effective education;
(e) Effective
individualized support measures are provided in environments that maximize
academic and social development, consistent with the goal of full inclusion.
3. States Parties shall
enable persons with disabilities to learn life and social development skills to
facilitate their full and equal participation in education and as members of
the community. To this end, States Parties shall take appropriate measures,
including:
(a) Facilitating the
learning of Braille, alternative script, augmentative and alternative modes,
means and formats of communication and orientation and mobility skills, and
facilitating peer support and mentoring;
(b) Facilitating the learning
of sign language and the promotion of the linguistic identity of the deaf
community;
(c) Ensuring that the
education of persons, and in particular children, who are blind, deaf or
deafblind, is delivered in the most appropriate languages and modes and means
of communication for the individual, and in environments which maximize
academic and social development.
4. In order to help ensure
the realization of this right, States Parties shall take appropriate measures
to employ teachers, including teachers with disabilities, who are qualified in
sign language and/or Braille, and to train professionals and staff who work at
all levels of education. Such training shall incorporate disability awareness
and the use of appropriate augmentative and alternative modes, means and
formats of communication, educational techniques and materials to support
persons with disabilities.
5. States Parties shall
ensure that persons with disabilities are able to access general tertiary
education, vocational training, adult education and lifelong learning without
discrimination and on an equal basis with others. To this end, States Parties
shall ensure that reasonable accommodation is provided to persons with
disabilities.
Article 25
Health
States Parties
recognize that persons with disabilities have the right to the enjoyment of the
highest attainable standard of health without discrimination on the basis of
disability. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure access
for persons with disabilities to health services that are gender-sensitive,
including health-related rehabilitation. In particular, States Parties shall:
(a) Provide persons with
disabilities with the same range, quality and standard of free or affordable
health care and programmes as provided to other persons, including in the area
of sexual and reproductive health and population-based public health
programmes;
(b) Provide those health
services needed by persons with disabilities specifically because of their
disabilities, including early identification and intervention as appropriate,
and services designed to minimize and prevent further disabilities, including
among children and older persons;
(c) Provide these health
services as close as possible to people’s own communities, including in rural
areas;
(d) Require health
professionals to provide care of the same quality to persons with disabilities
as to others, including on the basis of free and informed consent by, inter
alia, raising awareness of the human rights, dignity, autonomy and needs of
persons with disabilities through training and the promulgation of ethical
standards for public and private health care;
(e) Prohibit
discrimination against persons with disabilities in the provision of health
insurance, and life insurance where such insurance is permitted by national
law, which shall be provided in a fair and reasonable manner;
(f) Prevent
discriminatory denial of health care or health services or food and fluids on
the basis of disability.
Article 26
Habilitation and rehabilitation
1. States
Parties shall take effective and appropriate measures, including through peer
support, to enable persons with disabilities to attain and maintain maximum
independence, full physical, mental, social and vocational ability, and full
inclusion and participation in all aspects of life. To that end, States Parties
shall organize, strengthen and extend comprehensive habilitation and
rehabilitation services and programmes, particularly in the areas of health,
employment, education and social services, in such a way that these services
and programmes:
(a) Begin at the earliest
possible stage, and are based on the multidisciplinary assessment of individual
needs and strengths;
(b) Support participation
and inclusion in the community and all aspects of society, are voluntary, and
are available to persons with disabilities as close as possible to their own
communities, including in rural areas.
2. States Parties shall
promote the development of initial and continuing training for professionals
and staff working in habilitation and rehabilitation services.
3. States Parties shall
promote the availability, knowledge and use of assistive devices and
technologies, designed for persons with disabilities, as they relate to
habilitation and rehabilitation.
Article 27
Work and
employment
1. States Parties
recognize the right of persons with disabilities to work, on an equal basis
with others; this includes the right to the opportunity to gain a living by
work freely chosen or accepted in a labour market and work environment that is
open, inclusive and accessible to persons with disabilities. States Parties
shall safeguard and promote the realization of the right to work, including for
those who acquire a disability during the course of employment, by taking
appropriate steps, including through legislation, to, inter alia:
(a) Prohibit
discrimination on the basis of disability with regard to all matters concerning
all forms of employment, including conditions of recruitment, hiring and employment,
continuance of employment, career advancement and safe and healthy working
conditions;
(b) Protect the rights of
persons with disabilities, on an equal basis with others, to just and
favourable conditions of work, including equal opportunities and equal
remuneration for work of equal value, safe and healthy working conditions,
including protection from harassment, and the redress of grievances;
(c) Ensure that persons
with disabilities are able to exercise their labour and trade union rights on an
equal basis with others;
(d) Enable persons with
disabilities to have effective access to general technical and vocational
guidance programmes, placement services and vocational and continuing training;
(e) Promote employment
opportunities and career advancement for persons with disabilities in the
labour market, as well as assistance in finding, obtaining, maintaining and
returning to employment;
(f) Promote
opportunities for self-employment, entrepreneurship, the development of
cooperatives and starting one’s own business;
(g) Employ persons with
disabilities in the public sector;
(h) Promote the
employment of persons with disabilities in the private sector through
appropriate policies and measures, which may include affirmative action programmes,
incentives and other measures;
(i) Ensure that
reasonable accommodation is provided to persons with disabilities in the
workplace;
(j) Promote the
acquisition by persons with disabilities of work experience in the open labour
market;
(k) Promote vocational
and professional rehabilitation, job retention and return-to-work programmes
for persons with disabilities.
2. States Parties shall
ensure that persons with disabilities are not held in slavery or in servitude,
and are protected, on an equal basis with others, from forced or compulsory
labour.
Article 28
Adequate
standard of living and social protection
1. States Parties
recognize the right of persons with disabilities to an adequate standard of
living for themselves and their families, including adequate food, clothing and
housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions, and shall take
appropriate steps to safeguard and promote the realization of this right
without discrimination on the basis of disability.
2. States Parties
recognize the right of persons with disabilities to social protection and to
the enjoyment of that right without discrimination on the basis of disability,
and shall take appropriate steps to safeguard and promote the realization of
this right, including measures:
(a) To ensure equal
access by persons with disabilities to clean water services, and to ensure
access to appropriate and affordable services, devices and other assistance for
disability-related needs;
(b) To ensure access by
persons with disabilities, in particular women and girls with disabilities and
older persons with disabilities, to social protection programmes and poverty
reduction programmes;
(c) To ensure access by
persons with disabilities and their families living in situations of poverty to
assistance from the State with disability-related expenses, including adequate
training, counselling, financial assistance and respite care;
(d) To ensure access by
persons with disabilities to public housing programmes;
(e) To ensure equal
access by persons with disabilities to retirement benefits and programmes.
Article 29
Participation
in political and public life
States Parties shall
guarantee to persons with disabilities political rights and the opportunity to
enjoy them on an equal basis with others, and shall undertake:
(a) To ensure that
persons with disabilities can effectively and fully participate in political
and public life on an equal basis with others, directly or through freely
chosen representatives, including the right and opportunity for persons with
disabilities to vote and be elected, inter alia, by:
(i) Ensuring
that voting procedures, facilities and materials are appropriate, accessible
and easy to understand and use;
(ii) Protecting
the right of persons with disabilities to vote by secret ballot in elections
and public referendums without intimidation, and to stand for elections, to
effectively hold office and perform all public functions at all levels of
government, facilitating the use of assistive and new technologies where
appropriate;
(iii) Guaranteeing
the free expression of the will of persons with disabilities as electors and to
this end, where necessary, at their request, allowing assistance in voting by a
person of their own choice;
(b) To promote actively
an environment in which persons with disabilities can effectively and fully
participate in the conduct of public affairs, without discrimination and on an
equal basis with others, and encourage their participation in public affairs,
including:
(i) Participation
in non-governmental organizations and associations concerned with the public
and political life of the country, and in the activities and administration of
political parties;
(ii) Forming
and joining organizations of persons with disabilities to represent persons
with disabilities at international, national, regional and local levels.
Article 30
Participation in cultural life, recreation,
leisure and sport
1. States Parties
recognize the right of persons with disabilities to take part on an equal basis
with others in cultural life, and shall take all appropriate measures to ensure
that persons with disabilities:
(a) Enjoy access to
cultural materials in accessible formats;
(b) Enjoy access to
television programmes, films, theatre and other cultural activities, in
accessible formats;
(c) Enjoy access to
places for cultural performances or services, such as theatres, museums,
cinemas, libraries and tourism services, and, as far as possible, enjoy access
to monuments and sites of national cultural importance.
2. States Parties shall
take appropriate measures to enable persons with disabilities to have the
opportunity to develop and utilize their creative, artistic and intellectual
potential, not only for their own benefit, but also for the enrichment of
society.
3. States Parties shall
take all appropriate steps, in accordance with international law, to ensure
that laws protecting intellectual property rights do not constitute an
unreasonable or discriminatory barrier to access by persons with disabilities
to cultural materials.
4. Persons with
disabilities shall be entitled, on an equal basis with others, to recognition
and support of their specific cultural and linguistic identity, including sign
languages and deaf culture.
5. With a view to enabling
persons with disabilities to participate on an equal basis with others in
recreational, leisure and sporting activities, States Parties shall take
appropriate measures:
(a) To encourage and
promote the participation, to the fullest extent possible, of persons with
disabilities in mainstream sporting activities at all levels;
(b) To ensure that
persons with disabilities have an opportunity to organize, develop and
participate in disability-specific sporting and recreational activities and, to
this end, encourage the provision, on an equal basis with others, of
appropriate instruction, training and resources;
(c) To ensure that
persons with disabilities have access to sporting, recreational and tourism
venues;
(d) To ensure that
children with disabilities have equal access with other children to
participation in play, recreation and leisure and sporting activities,
including those activities in the school system;
(e) To ensure that
persons with disabilities have access to services from those involved in the
organization of recreational, tourism, leisure and sporting activities.
Article 31
Statistics and
data collection
1. States Parties
undertake to collect appropriate information, including statistical and
research data, to enable them to formulate and implement policies to give
effect to the present Convention. The process of collecting and maintaining
this information shall:
(a) Comply with legally
established safeguards, including legislation on data protection, to ensure
confidentiality and respect for the privacy of persons with disabilities;
(b) Comply with
internationally accepted norms to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms
and ethical principles in the collection and use of statistics.
2. The information
collected in accordance with this article shall be disaggregated, as
appropriate, and used to help assess the implementation of States Parties’
obligations under the present Convention and to identify and address the
barriers faced by persons with disabilities in exercising their rights.
3. States Parties shall
assume responsibility for the dissemination of these statistics and ensure
their accessibility to persons with disabilities and others.
Article 32
International
cooperation
1. States Parties
recognize the importance of international cooperation and its promotion, in
support of national efforts for the realization of the purpose and objectives
of the present Convention, and will undertake appropriate and effective
measures in this regard, between and among States and, as appropriate, in
partnership with relevant international and regional organizations and civil
society, in particular organizations of persons with disabilities. Such
measures could include, inter alia:
(a) Ensuring that international
cooperation, including international development programmes, is inclusive of
and accessible to persons with disabilities;
(b) Facilitating and
supporting capacity-building, including through the exchange and sharing of
information, experiences, training programmes and best practices;
(c) Facilitating
cooperation in research and access to scientific and technical knowledge;
(d) Providing, as
appropriate, technical and economic assistance, including by facilitating
access to and sharing of accessible and assistive technologies, and through the
transfer of technologies.
2. The provisions of this
article are without prejudice to the obligations of each State Party to fulfil
its obligations under the present Convention.
Article 33
National implementation
and monitoring
1. States Parties, in
accordance with their system of organization, shall designate one or more focal
points within government for matters relating to the implementation of the
present Convention, and shall give due consideration to the establishment or
designation of a coordination mechanism within government to facilitate related
action in different sectors and at different levels.
2. States Parties shall,
in accordance with their legal and administrative systems, maintain,
strengthen, designate or establish within the State Party, a framework,
including one or more independent mechanisms, as appropriate, to promote,
protect and monitor implementation of the present Convention. When designating
or establishing such a mechanism, States Parties shall take into account the
principles relating to the status and functioning of national institutions for
protection and promotion of human rights.
3. Civil society, in
particular persons with disabilities and their representative organizations,
shall be involved and participate fully in the monitoring process.
Article 34
Committee on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
1. There shall be
established a Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (hereafter
referred to as “the Committee”), which shall carry out the functions
hereinafter provided.
2. The Committee shall
consist, at the time of entry into force of the present Convention, of twelve
experts. After an additional sixty ratifications or accessions to the Convention,
the membership of the Committee shall increase by six members, attaining a
maximum number of eighteen members.
3. The members of the
Committee shall serve in their personal capacity and shall be of high moral
standing and recognized competence and experience in the field covered by the
present Convention. When nominating their candidates, States Parties are
invited to give due consideration to the provision set out in article 4,
paragraph 3, of the present Convention.
4. The members of the
Committee shall be elected by States Parties, consideration being given to
equitable geographical distribution, representation of the different forms of
civilization and of the principal legal systems, balanced gender representation
and participation of experts with disabilities.
5. The members of the
Committee shall be elected by secret ballot from a list of persons nominated by
the States Parties from among their nationals at meetings of the Conference of
States Parties. At those meetings, for which two thirds of States Parties shall
constitute a quorum, the persons elected to the Committee shall be those who
obtain the largest number of votes and an absolute majority of the votes of the
representatives of States Parties present and voting.
6. The initial election
shall be held no later than six months after the date of entry into force of
the present Convention. At least four months before the date of each election,
the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall address a letter to the
States Parties inviting them to submit the nominations within two months. The
Secretary-General shall subsequently prepare a list in alphabetical order of
all persons thus nominated, indicating the State Parties which have nominated
them, and shall submit it to the States Parties to the present Convention.
7. The members of the
Committee shall be elected for a term of four years. They shall be eligible for
re-election once. However, the term of six of the members elected at the first
election shall expire at the end of two years; immediately after the first
election, the names of these six members shall be chosen by lot by the
chairperson of the meeting referred to in paragraph 5 of this article.
8. The election of the six
additional members of the Committee shall be held on the occasion of regular
elections, in accordance with the relevant provisions of this article.
9. If a member of the
Committee dies or resigns or declares that for any other cause she or he can no
longer perform her or his duties, the State Party which nominated the member
shall appoint another expert possessing the qualifications and meeting the
requirements set out in the relevant provisions of this article, to serve for
the remainder of the term.
10. The Committee shall
establish its own rules of procedure.
11. The Secretary-General of
the United Nations shall provide the necessary staff and facilities for the
effective performance of the functions of the Committee under the present
Convention, and shall convene its initial meeting.
12. With the approval of the
General Assembly of the United Nations, the members of the Committee
established under the present Convention shall receive emoluments from United
Nations resources on such terms and conditions as the Assembly may decide,
having regard to the importance of the Committee’s responsibilities.
13. The members of the
Committee shall be entitled to the facilities, privileges and immunities of
experts on mission for the United Nations as laid down in the relevant sections
of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.
Article 35
Reports by
States Parties
1. Each State Party shall
submit to the Committee, through the Secretary-General of the United Nations, a
comprehensive report on measures taken to give effect to its obligations under
the present Convention and on the progress made in that regard, within two
years after the entry into force of the present Convention for the State Party
concerned.
2. Thereafter, States
Parties shall submit subsequent reports at least every four years and further
whenever the Committee so requests.
3. The Committee shall
decide any guidelines applicable to the content of the reports.
4. A State Party which has
submitted a comprehensive initial report to the Committee need not, in its subsequent
reports, repeat information previously provided. When preparing reports to the
Committee, States Parties are invited to consider doing so in an open and
transparent process and to give due consideration to the provision set out in
article 4, paragraph 3, of the present Convention.
5. Reports may indicate
factors and difficulties affecting the degree of fulfilment of obligations
under the present Convention.
Article 36
Consideration
of reports
1. Each report shall be
considered by the Committee, which shall make such suggestions and general
recommendations on the report as it may consider appropriate and shall forward
these to the State Party concerned. The State Party may respond with any
information it chooses to the Committee. The Committee may request further
information from States Parties relevant to the implementation of the present
Convention.
2. If a State Party is
significantly overdue in the submission of a report, the Committee may notify
the State Party concerned of the need to examine the implementation of the
present Convention in that State Party, on the basis of reliable information
available to the Committee, if the relevant report is not submitted within
three months following the notification. The Committee shall invite the State
Party concerned to participate in such examination. Should the State Party
respond by submitting the relevant report, the provisions of paragraph 1 of
this article will apply.
3. The Secretary-General
of the United Nations shall make available the reports to all States Parties.
4. States Parties shall
make their reports widely available to the public in their own countries and
facilitate access to the suggestions and general recommendations relating to
these reports.
5. The Committee shall
transmit, as it may consider appropriate, to the specialized agencies, funds
and programmes of the United Nations, and other competent bodies, reports from
States Parties in order to address a request or indication of a need for
technical advice or assistance contained therein, along with the Committee’s
observations and recommendations, if any, on these requests or indications.
Article 37
Cooperation
between States Parties and the Committee
1. Each State Party shall
cooperate with the Committee and assist its members in the fulfilment of their
mandate.
2. In its relationship
with States Parties, the Committee shall give due consideration to ways and
means of enhancing national capacities for the implementation of the present
Convention, including through international cooperation.
Article 38
Relationship
of the Committee with other bodies
In order to foster the
effective implementation of the present Convention and to encourage
international cooperation in the field covered by the present Convention:
(a) The specialized
agencies and other United Nations organs shall be entitled to be represented at
the consideration of the implementation of such provisions of the present
Convention as fall within the scope of their mandate. The Committee may invite
the specialized agencies and other competent bodies as it may consider
appropriate to provide expert advice on the implementation of the Convention in
areas falling within the scope of their respective mandates. The Committee may
invite specialized agencies and other United Nations organs to submit reports
on the implementation of the Convention in areas falling within the scope of
their activities;
(b) The Committee, as it
discharges its mandate, shall consult, as appropriate, other relevant bodies
instituted by international human rights treaties, with a view to ensuring the
consistency of their respective reporting guidelines, suggestions and general
recommendations, and avoiding duplication and overlap in the performance of
their functions.
Article 39
Report of the
Committee
The Committee shall
report every two years to the General Assembly and to the Economic and Social
Council on its activities, and may make suggestions and general recommendations
based on the examination of reports and information received from the States
Parties. Such suggestions and general recommendations shall be included in the
report of the Committee together with comments, if any, from States Parties.
Article 40
Conference of
States Parties
1. The States Parties
shall meet regularly in a Conference of States Parties in order to consider any
matter with regard to the implementation of the present Convention.
2. No later than six
months after the entry into force of the present Convention, the Conference of
States Parties shall be convened by the Secretary-General of the United
Nations. The subsequent meetings shall be convened by the Secretary-General
biennially or upon the decision of the Conference of States Parties.
Article 41
Depositary
The Secretary-General
of the United Nations shall be the depositary of the present Convention.
Article 42
Signature
The present Convention
shall be open for signature by all States and by regional integration
organizations at United Nations Headquarters in New York as of 30 March 2007.
Article 43
Consent to be bound
The present Convention
shall be subject to ratification by signatory States and to formal confirmation
by signatory regional integration organizations. It shall be open for accession
by any State or regional integration organization which has not signed the
Convention.
Article 44
Regional
integration organizations
1. “Regional integration
organization” shall mean an organization constituted by sovereign States of a
given region, to which its member States have transferred competence in respect
of matters governed by the present Convention. Such organizations shall
declare, in their instruments of formal confirmation or accession, the extent
of their competence with respect to matters governed by the present Convention.
Subsequently, they shall inform the depositary of any substantial modification
in the extent of their competence.
2. References to “States
Parties” in the present Convention shall apply to such organizations within the
limits of their competence.
3. For the purposes of
article 45, paragraph 1, and article 47, paragraphs 2 and 3, of the present
Convention, any instrument deposited by a regional integration organization
shall not be counted.
4. Regional integration
organizations, in matters within their competence, may exercise their right to
vote in the Conference of States Parties, with a number of votes equal to the
number of their member States that are Parties to the present Convention. Such
an organization shall not exercise its right to vote if any of its member
States exercises its right, and vice versa.
Article 45
Entry into
force
1. The present Convention
shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the deposit of the twentieth
instrument of ratification or accession.
2. For each State or regional
integration organization ratifying, formally confirming or acceding to the
present Convention after the deposit of the twentieth such instrument, the
Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the deposit of its
own such instrument.
Article 46
Reservations
1. Reservations
incompatible with the object and purpose of the present Convention shall not be
permitted.
2. Reservations may be
withdrawn at any time.
Article 47
Amendments
1. Any State Party may
propose an amendment to the present Convention and submit it to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations. The Secretary-General shall
communicate any proposed amendments to States Parties, with a request to be
notified whether they favour a conference of States Parties for the purpose of
considering and deciding upon the proposals. In the event that, within four
months from the date of such communication, at least one third of the States
Parties favour such a conference, the Secretary-General shall convene the
conference under the auspices of the United Nations. Any amendment adopted by a
majority of two thirds of the States Parties present and voting shall be
submitted by the Secretary-General to the General Assembly of the United
Nations for approval and thereafter to all States Parties for acceptance.
2. An amendment adopted
and approved in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article shall enter into
force on the thirtieth day after the number of instruments of acceptance
deposited reaches two thirds of the number of States Parties at the date of
adoption of the amendment. Thereafter, the amendment shall enter into force for
any State Party on the thirtieth day following the deposit of its own
instrument of acceptance. An amendment shall be binding only on those States
Parties which have accepted it.
3. If so decided by the
Conference of States Parties by consensus, an amendment adopted and approved in
accordance with paragraph 1 of this article which relates exclusively to
articles 34, 38, 39 and 40 shall enter into force for all States Parties on the
thirtieth day after the number of instruments of acceptance deposited reaches
two thirds of the number of States Parties at the date of adoption of the
amendment.
Article 48
Denunciation
A State Party may
denounce the present Convention by written notification to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations. The denunciation shall become
effective one year after the date of receipt of the notification by the
Secretary-General.
Article 49
Accessible
format
The text of the
present Convention shall be made available in accessible formats.
Article 50
Authentic
texts
The Arabic, Chinese,
English, French, Russian and Spanish texts of the present Convention shall be
equally authentic.
IN WITNESS THEREOF the
undersigned plenipotentiaries, being duly authorized thereto by their
respective Governments, have signed the present Convention.
OPTIONAL
PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION ON THE
RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
The
States Parties to the present Protocol have agreed as follows:
Article 1
1. A State Party to the present Protocol
(“State Party”) recognizes the competence of the Committee on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities (“the Committee”) to receive and consider
communications from or on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals
subject to its jurisdiction who claim to be victims of a violation by that
State Party of the provisions of the Convention.
2. No communication shall be received by
the Committee if it concerns a State Party to the Convention that is not a party
to the present Protocol.
Article 2
The Committee shall consider a
communication inadmissible when:
(a) The communication is anonymous;
(b) The
communication constitutes an abuse of the right of submission of such
communications or is incompatible with the provisions of the Convention;
(c) The same
matter has already been examined by the Committee or has been or is being
examined under another procedure of international investigation or settlement;
(d) All
available domestic remedies have not been exhausted. This shall not be the rule
where the application of the remedies is unreasonably prolonged or unlikely to
bring effective relief;
(e) It is
manifestly ill-founded or not sufficiently substantiated; or when
(f) The facts
that are the subject of the communication occurred prior to the entry into
force of the present Protocol for the State Party concerned unless those facts
continued after that date.
Article 3
Subject to the provisions of article
2 of the present Protocol, the Committee shall bring any communications
submitted to it confidentially to the attention of the State Party. Within six
months, the receiving State shall submit to the Committee written explanations
or statements clarifying the matter and the remedy, if any, that may have been
taken by that State.