DiSU: March 2017

Friday, 31 March 2017

Convention of Rights 21: Personal mobility

Article 20 of the CRPD says PWDs have the right to mobility with the greatest possible independence, through:

Facilitating personal mobility at a time of their choice at a reasonable price.
Facilitating access to quality mobility equipment and assistance at an affordable cost.
Providing training in mobility skills for PWDs and specialist staff.
Encouraging whoever makes mobility equipment and assistive technology to take all aspects of mobility of PWDs into account.

This article is about ensuring mobility through high quality equipment. It is about ensuring accessibility to an adapted environment. The common types of mobility aids referred to are:

Prosthetics.
Orthotics.
Crutches.
Sticks.
Walking frames.
Wheelchairs.
Tricycles.

These devices bring about equality for PWDs because they help with access to education, health services, work and community life. These devices increase and enhance community participation. The World Health Organisation (WHO) web page Personal Mobility - facilitating access to quality mobility aids and devices says:

Despite their importance, surveys report considerable unmet needs for these devices, often due to a lack of financial resources.

For PWDs mobility equipment can be vital for integration and bringing about rights. Once again we can see that all the rights in the CRPD are all interrelated. This 2017 news article about supplying mobility equipment to PWDs, Uganda: Promoting Mobility for People With Disabilities, illustrates the importance of good mobility equipment for children to access the community:

Naomi Ayot, the human rights promotion programme manager at ACODEV (Action for Community Development), says some of the children have always wanted to attain the right to education while others have been neglected but with the wheelchairs, they will be less of a burden to the parents.

"These mobility devices are very vital in their lives because they will be able to move around, play or even go to school since some of the children dropped out due to mobility issues," Ayot says. This also reduces the workload and burden their caretaker has to bear. We, however, make sure that the devices given are not a risk to the children getting more injuries while using them."

If you are a PWD you have the right to access cheap high quality mobility equipment.

World’s first functional 3D-printed prosthetic legs in Uganda.

A team of Ugandan researchers and their Canadian counterparts are revolutionizing orthopedics in Uganda by applying 3D scanning and 3D printing technology to help produce affordable prosthetic for amputees. These free 3D printed limbs have seen people flocking in from all over Africa, but not just because of its price tag. Unlike the traditional methods which could take weeks, the inexpensive and easily accessible limbs can be ready in just 24 hours.

This is written in Article 20 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Thursday, 30 March 2017

Convention of Rights 20: Living independently in the community

Article 19 of the CRPD says PWDs have equal rights to live in the community with choices equal to others. All effective measures should be taken to ensure full inclusion and participation in the community through:

The opportunity to choose any place of residence with whoever they want, in any living arrangement.
Access to a range of services either residential or at home and other support services like personal assistants. These services should prevent isolation and segregation from the community.
Community services and facilities that are available to the general being available on an equal basis to PWDs.

Article 19 is about treating PWDs as equal members of the community and including them in the community in which they live. The CRPD shifts the emphasis of access away from the PWD, to the community that does not accommodate human diversity. PWDs do not need to lead lives isolated from the community, there is no need for them to be institutionalized but rather they should be free to live supported lives in the community in their own homes (see Article 19 [Living Independently and Being Included in the Community]).

People with mental disabilities are often institutionalized and isolated from the community in Uganda. The Mental Disability Advocacy Centre (MDAC) seeks to end these practices. The following are the conclusions to their 2 reports They don't consider me as a person and Psychiatric hospitals in Uganda:

I’m a person

Under this campaign, MDAC seeks an end to systems of guardianship, both formal and informal, and advocates for people with mental disabilities to receive the support they need to make decisions about their lives.

Finding: national law allows for stripping of decision-making rights solely on the basis of an individual having an intellectual and/or psychosocial disability. De facto guardianship still exists.

Recommendation: eliminate all forms of substituted decision making—whether formal or informal— and replace these with regimes of supported decision-making.

My home, my choice

Under this campaign, MDAC advocates in favour of support for people with mental disabilities to live in the community, and an end to institutitionalisation and the abuses therein

Finding: people with mental disabilities are marginalised, excluded from the community by being put in institutions.

Recommendation: along with committing to the process to deinstitutionalisation, develop community-based services giving individuals access to health and employment, and personal assistance in order to live an independent life in the community.

Schools for all

Under this campaign, MDAC calls for inclusive education for all children, regardless of their disabilities, and an end to segregation and the denial of education to children with mental disabilities.

Finding: the government promotes segregated education over inclusive education for children with disabilities. There is a distinct lack of adequately trained teachers to forward the cause of inclusive education.

Recommendation: create a time frame for the transition of inclusive education to inclusive education, making sure budgets, and the necessary services are allocated to facilitate this process. Undertake a rigorous review of the curriculum, and provide training to teachers and relevant educational professionals on inclusive education.

If you are a PWD or a child with a disability (CWD), you have the right to supported education with people your age in your community.

Children with disabilities 'invisible', marginalised: UN
Disabled children are at greater risk of being poor, are least likely to receive an education and healthcare, and in many countries face abandonment or institutionalisation.

This is written in Article 19 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Wednesday, 29 March 2017

Convention of Rights 19: Liberty of movement and nationality

Article 18 of the CRPD says:

1. PWDs have the right to a nationality, freedom of movement and can live wherever they choose like any other persons. PWDs have the right to change their nationality and not be deprived of their nationality because of their disability. Disability should not be the reason to prevent anyone from getting documentation of nationality or identification. Disability should not prevent use of the immigration system to allow free movement. PWDs are free to leave any country, including their own. PWDs should not be denied the right to enter their own country.

2. Children with disabilities (CWDs) must be registered after their birth and have the right to name and nationality. CWDs have the right, as far as possible, to know and be cared for by their parents.

Article 18 is about the right to nationality and the right to free movement between countries.

Free international movement is often prevented by States refusing entry into their country because of disability or by the invisibility of PWDs from legal frameworks and migration policies. Broadly speaking the right to free movement between countries is hampered by immigration policies that view PWDs as being incapable of contributing to the country in which they live, in either an economic or social and cultural sense.

People who wish to migrate often face stringent laws and policies that are unaccommodating and discriminate against PWDs because they reflect the medical model of disability. PWDs are denied entry because they are seen as a threat to the health and safety of the population or as a drain on the community services. Some countries restrict entry if a person has health problems, a psychiatric disorder or intellectual disability (See Article 18 [Liberty of Movement and Nationality]).

This Article raises the important issue of birth registration by making it mandatory for CWDs to be registered straight after birth. Without this registration CWDs will not be eligible for the services their country provides. In other words they are denied their right to nationality and name.

Is your child registered? It is every child's right to have name and nationality.

The 2016 book, Invisible Children: Reimagining International Development at the Grassroots says:

Mobile registrations are also underway in parts of Uganda, which has more than 5 million children under 5 without birth registrations and an unregistered rate of 70%.

This is written in Article 18 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Tuesday, 28 March 2017

Convention of Rights 18: Right to personal integrity

Article 17 of the CRPD says that PWDs have the right to protection of their physical and mental integrity on an equal basis.

The right to personal integrity is the right to be treated in a humane manner, in a way that preserves mental and physical wholeness. It recognizes that neither the state nor anyone else has the right to physically or mentally harm another person or PWD.

No one has the right to treat a PWD as less of a human being or to interfere with their minds and bodies. People have the right to be respected as they are. The right to physical and mental integrity is violated for instance: By forcing a PWD to be sterilized or sterilizing them without their knowledge, or over medicating people in residential care or forcing someone into marriage (see The Development of Disability Rights Under International Law: From Charity to Human Rights). This right has a lot to do with informed consent and the right to make choices in full understanding of the facts.

The 2016 report Implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Uganda cites an example of of the infringement of the right to personal integrity in Ugandan law:

The Mental Treatment Act still provides for involuntary institutionalization of persons with disabilities in institutions. There is no appeal mechanism apparent in the Act. Indeed, there are cases of persons who have spent up to years in Butabika hospital, without any review of their individual cases.

If you are a PWD you have the right to give your informed consent for any medical treatment.

Jimmy Acellam Odoki is a mental health advocate.
A call for dignified treatment of mental health patients in Uganda.
The dignity of the mental health service users is very important because they are very sensitive to the way they handled despite the illusion that they know nothing in their state. It is not uncommon to find some people with mental illness, especially in rural areas, being tied up with ropes and being subjected to the most inhumane treatment. Others are forcefully detained and taken for treatment without their consent.

This is written in Article 17 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Monday, 27 March 2017

Convention of Rights 17: Freedom from exploitation, violence and abuse

Article 16 of the CRPD says that PWDs should be free from exploitation violence and abuse. Violence, exploitation and abuse should be prevented with gender and age sensitive assistance and support for PWDs, their families and caregivers. The assistance should provide information and education on how to avoid exploitation, violence and abuse. Protection services must be sensitive to age, gender and disability. Facilities and programs designed to support PWDs and prevent of all types of exploitation, violence and abuse, should be monitored by independent authorities. Appropriate measures should be taken to ensure anyone that suffers from exploitation, violence or abuse has full care and protection. Recovery should be in an environment that fosters health, dignity and self respect, and takes into account gender and age specific needs. Effective legislation should be put in place to protect PWDs, the legislation should be woman and child based and instances of abuse should be identified, investigated and prosecuted.

Persons with disabilities are at greater risk of violence and abuse, the report Human Rights. Yes! Chapter 6: Freedom from Torture and Other Forms of Abuse offers the following statistics:

World Report on Disability: Persons with disabilities are at greater risk of being exposed to violence.

Persons with disabilities are at greater risk of violence than persons without disabilities.

Research in the United States discloses that violence against persons with disabilities is 4–10 times greater than violence against persons without disabilities.

The prevalence of sexual abuse against persons with disabilities is reported to be higher than such abuse against persons without disabilities.

Sexual violence is particularly prevalent for persons who are institutionalized and for persons with intellectual disabilities.

In Uganda it is common for persons with mental disabilities to suffer abuse. The 2015 report Uganda: Police Strip and Parade Women with Mental Health Issues in Public talks about a case that is going to court:

For the first time in Uganda, the Kampala High Court will hear a case concerning the torture of a woman with mental health issues, Aidah Namulindwa, at the hands of police forces. The victim’s claim is being brought by Legal Action for Persons with Disabilities (LAPD) and the Mental Disability Advocacy Centre (MDAC), and highlights widespread official abuses faced by people with mental health issues in the country.

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a form of abuse that is common in Uganda. Though FGM is outlawed cases still take place. Besides threatening the life of women, the surgery can be permanently disabling and cause major problems for the mother during child birth. This 2016 article Sports Among Sabiny May End FGM says:

Among the Sapiiny community, FGM is seen as an initiation of girls into womanhood. Once cut, the girls are then deemed ready for marriage. Besides being a spiritual obligation, for Chelangat, FGM was a business. She charged 20,000 shillings and a hen for every cut. She admitted to having cut over 100 girls during her two years as a ‘surgeon’. She however, never admitted to struggling to breakaway from this practice like many surgeons had, but maintained that she had only stopped because she feared the law. Some of the dangers of FGM include excessive bleeding when not properly done and sharing of knives, which could cause diseases and fistula among other complications. However, despite the existence of this law, the practice continues, although silently among the sabiny.

If you are a PWD you should not have to suffer abuse.

“Even Dead Bodies Must Work.”
Health, Hard Labor, and Abuse in Ugandan Prisons.

Prisoners with mental disabilities are in some cases targeted for beatings, and even pregnant women are not spared.
Inmates with mental disabilities at some prisons are simply isolated in punishment cells with no treatment.
Several prisoners with mental health problems reported being targeted for beatings by inmates with disciplinary authority because of their mental disabilities.
As Ali, one inmate in the “mental health” cell at Murchison Bay, observed, “The cleaner [an inmate with disciplinary authority] will say, ‘Stay in the wards,’ and if you go out—you are beaten. But these people [with mental disabilities] don’t see things in the normal sense. They are punishing people for being mentally sick.”

This is written in Article 16 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Sunday, 26 March 2017

Convention of Rights 16: Freedom from cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment

Article 15 of the CRPD says no one should be subject to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. No one shall be the subject of experimentation without their free consent. All steps must be taken to ensure that PWDs are not subject to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

PWDs are at greater risk from abuse. When abuse happens it mostly goes unnoticed because it occurs in institutional settings or places hidden from public scrutiny. Like all human beings PWDs have an equal right to be free from all forms of violence.

Why are PWDs often the subjects of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment? Consider these factors highlighted in Human Rights. Yes! Chapter 6: Freedom from Torture and Other Forms of Abuse:

Factors Contributing to Violence against Persons with Disabilities

Negative myths and stereotypes about disability that relegate persons with disabilities to powerless positions and the perception of being an “easy target” for perpetrators.

Power imbalances between persons with disabilities and their caregivers.

Isolation in homes or institutions away from public and governmental scrutiny.

Lack of education and training that helps to identify and address violence, especially for women and girls with disabilities.

Lack of training by family members, caregivers, and health professionals on appropriate care for persons with disabilities.

Armed conflict and certain environmental hazards, such as landmines.

Poverty.

Cultural practices, such as female genital mutilation, “virgin rape” of women with disabilities (based on the false assumption that they are asexual and often connected to notions of cure for HIV), and withholding food from infants with disabilities.

Women and girls with disabilities are at higher risk of gender based violence in their homes, schools, institutions, and the community. They are often excluded from prevention programs, support services, or access to the law due to stereotyped views about their sexuality, physical and communication barriers, and lack of materials in accessible formats. The 2015 Human Rights Watch (HRW) report Include Women, Girls With Disabilities in Anti-Violence Efforts continues:

The World Health Organization estimates that 35 percent of women worldwide experience gender-based violence in their lifetime. Women and children with disabilities are disproportionately vulnerable to violence. People with disabilities are up to three times as likely as others to be victims of physical abuse, sexual abuse, and rape. They face multiple forms of discrimination, including on the basis of their gender and disability – making them more isolated, marginalized, and vulnerable to violence. Adults and children with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities are among the most vulnerable – with nearly four times the risk of experiencing violence.

... in Uganda, HRW found that women with disabilities who experience rape find it especially difficult to get help because of inaccessible transportation and healthcare facilities, and lack of confidential sign language interpretation.

If you are a person with a mental health or intellectual disability you are 4 times more likely to be abused. Cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment are against your human rights. Know your rights, demand your rights.

“As if We Weren’t Human”.
“My husband beat me seriously. He beat me intentionally many times, when he came home drunk. He beat me because of my disability. He said to others that I was useless, could not make love or cook.” Angela went to a local government official who advised her to stay with her husband. Four months passed and she was repeatedly beaten. Finally, she left.

This is written in Article 15 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Saturday, 25 March 2017

Convention of Rights 15: Liberty and security of person

Article 14 of the CRPD says PWDs are entitled to the share the right to liberty and security on an equal basis with other citizens. PWDs should not be deprived of liberty unlawfully, if persons are deprived of their liberty it should be in accordance with due process. Disability shall in no case justify the deprivation of liberty. Moreover, if a PWD is deprived of their liberty it should be on an equal basis with others and reasonable accommodation should be provided.

This right is one of the most ancient rights and is constantly referred to in human rights proceedings. This right ensures that PWDs can live in homes of their own choice, the same as any other person. Disability is no reason to put a PWD into an institution, however a PWD can be placed in an institution if it is for reasons other than their disability, like for instance to protect the public. This right is also for specifically protecting vulnerable PWDs from abuse.

The rights expressed in this Article are important because no one should ever be deprived of their liberty because they have mental health problems. The 2014 National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU) report Alternative Report to the UN Committee of Experts on the Implementation of the CRPD describes the situation like this:

38. The Uganda Constitution (1995) recognises liberty and security of the person and Article 28(3) (a) provides for a presumption of innocence until proven guilty. However, some laws deprive PWDS of their liberty. Section 45(5) of The Trial on Indictments Act (TIA) (1971) refers to a person with mental illness as criminal lunatic and section 82(6) allows for persons with mental illness to be kept in custody pending the ministers’ order, even if such persons are to be acquitted. In the detention facilities, there are no provisions for reasonable accommodation for PWDs.

Recommendations

39. Government should repeal all legislative provisions, including the TIA and the Magistrates’ Court Act, and the Mental Heath Treatment Act which permit disability based detention, to align with the UNCRPD.

40. Government through its structures such as Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC), in partnership with Disabled Persons Organisations (DPOs), should train the law enforcement agencies on the rights of PWDs in detention and to ensure provision of reasonable accommodation.

41. Government should come up with a programme to reintegrate people with psychosocial disabilities back into their communities.

If you are a PWD, you should never be deprived of your liberty because of your disability.

People inside Uganda's Mental health system are often deprived of their right to liberty and security of person.Inside Uganda’s Insane Mental Health System
I was at Butabika to do a story on patient conditions, which, according to former patients and staff, run the gambit from critical under-resourcing to patient abuse. “Helen,” a former patient who has been in and out of the hospital several times, was strangled by security guards with a bed sheet as a form of restraint and placed, naked, into solitary confinement for over 24 hours. A nurse told of staff beatings of patients that resulted in broken bones and a dangerous shortage of meds.

This is written in Article 14 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Friday, 24 March 2017

Convention of Rights 14: Right to access justice

Article 13 of the CRPD says PWDs have the right to access justice on an equal basis with others. That includes the provision of procedural and age appropriate help and support to facilitate the direct and indirect participation in all stages of the legal process. The same help and support should be available for PWDs acting as witnesses. All people working in the legal system should have appropriate training in working with PWDs, that includes police and prison staff.

Access to justice is a broad concept that means access to all areas of the legal system. For example if you feel you have been denied the right to work, you may wish to seek justice. If the courts fail to accommodate you, then besides being denied the right to justice, you are being denied the protection of the right to work. Again if you have been the victim of crime and you want to press charges, if you cannot access the police station, or you cannot get understandable information, or you cannot clearly communicate with the police you are being denied the right to access justice.

Other rights in the CRPD may also impact upon this right. If you cannot travel to a police station or court, you are being denied access to justice. Again a PWD who has been denied the right to education may find participation in the legal system difficult or impossible. One point becomes clear, all the rights in the CRPD are indivisible, interdependent, and interrelated.

The CRPD says that barriers to access justice should be removed. PWDs have the right to access the courts on an equal basis with everyone else. The Human Rights Library information page Human Rights. Yes! Access to Justice says:

The duty to accommodate persons with disabilities in court and other legal proceedings, such as administrative hearings, relates to the fundamental right to be heard. Access must be provided at all stages of a judicial process and must be provided to all participants.

There are two central aspects of ensuring access to courts:

General Accessibility: The first is to develop and implement a comprehensive plan to address general accessibility concerns, including identifying and removing architectural barriers in courthouses, providing materials in alternative formats, making court websites accessible for people who use assistive technology, and installing listening systems in courtrooms.

Individualized Accessibility: The second aspect of ensuring access to courts relates to the provision of individualized accessibility to respond to an individual’s needs to ensure equality of opportunity in the administration of justice. This may include providing a sign language interpreter for a person who is deaf, a reader for a witness who is blind, or frequent breaks for a defendant who has a psychosocial disability.

If you live in Uganda and have a mental health problem you may be denied justice entirely. The 2011 post Uganda: Access to Court for People with Mental Disabilies from The Mental Disability Advocacy Centre identifies the following problems:

The use of outdated and discriminatory terminology such as "idiot", "persons of unsound mind" and "lunatic" in court papers and processes which entrench stigma;
People with intellectual or psycho-social disabilities are legally denied the right to bring or defend cases and their evidence is deemed to lack credibility or refused;
Some people with disabilities cannot navigate or understand the complex processes required to initiate or defend cases, and no support is provided to them to do so;
Rigid application of rules of procedure in a way which is likely to deny substantive access to justice;
Imposition of court fees discourages or prohibits people from claiming their rights through the courts;
People with disabilities have their cases taken over by guardians ad litem or other substitute decision-makers, without the need for their consent; and
People with disabilities are arbitrarily detained during criminal procedures, sometimes left to languish for decades in detention.

If you are a PWD you have the right to access justice on an equal basis with every other citizen in Uganda.

A lack of communication can have devastating effects on deaf women.
Recently, 93 police officers around Uganda graduated in sign language through our project. They’ve even set up a WhatsApp group so that when a deaf woman reports a crime, they can send a trained officer to support her.

This is written in Article 13 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Thursday, 23 March 2017

Convention of Rights 13: Equal recognition before the law

Article 12 of the CRPD says legally PWDs have the right to equal recognition everywhere and should be dealt with equally in all aspects of life. Appropriate measures should be taken to give access to PWDs and support in legal representation. There should be safeguards in place to prevent abuse. The safeguards should respect the rights, will and preferences of the PWD, be unbiased, proportional and tailored to a person's circumstances, apply for the shortest possible time and be subject to review by an impartial judicial body. PWDs have the right to control their own financial affairs, to own or inherit property, to control their own finances, have equal access to bank loans, mortgages and other forms of credit. PWDs should not be deprived of their property arbitrarily.

This Article is saying that legally everyone is equal. Further more, if you have a disability you are entitled to support when you access the legal system. For instance, you may be entitled to a sign language interpreter if you are deaf, or someone to support you and explain what is happening if you have a mental handicap, or you may be entitled to support through the legal process if you are not familiar with the legal system, or free legal representation if you cannot afford a lawyer.

The implementation of the CRPD in Uganda is not perfect and the Alternative Report to the UN Committee of Experts on the Implementation of the CRPD written by the National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU) has the following points and recommendations to make about Article 12:

31. Inheritance and succession laws are discriminatory on grounds of disability. These laws present PWDs to have no legal capacity to act or to make a will together with other inheritance related issues. In addition, the Succession Act (2011) has a restriction on the selection of legal domicile of persons with psychosocial and intellectual disabilities.

32. Uganda has neither a policy nor a law on mental capacity and consequently there is no provision for supported decision making for adults with intellectual or psychosocial disabilities. It is common practice for health professionals or family members to make decisions on behalf of the person.

Recommendations
33. Government should repeal the constitutional provisions and laws that do not recognise the full enjoyment and exercise of legal capacity of PWDs on equal basis with others.

34. Government should enact a law on supported decision-making and safeguards, as defined in Article 12 CRPD and CRPD Committee General Comment No 1. The ministry in charge of disability, in consultation with Disabled People Organisations (DPOs), should sensitize PWDs, family and community members, the judiciary and legislature regarding supported decision making and the full legal capacity of all PWDs.

If you are a PWD, you are legally equal to every citizen in Uganda. It is illegal for anyone to discriminate against you.

Justice centres bring free legal representation home.
The free legal aid representation in the country has been hampered by the delay in the passing of the Legal Aid Bill leaving vulnerable Ugandans unable to freely access the legal services...
Chief Justice Bart Katureebe said: “In as much as there is equality before the law, there exists unequal treatment in Uganda’s justice system. Legal aid is, therefore needed to reduce the inequality in the justice system.”

This is written in Article 12 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Wednesday, 22 March 2017

Convention of Rights 12: Right to be protected

Article 11 of the CRPD says PWDs have the right to be protected in situations of risk like war, humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters.

This Article is important because PWDs are at their most vulnerable during a crisis when basic support mechanisms break down. The 2015 conference report People with disabilities in emergencies, reporting on a meeting between the International Committee of the Red Cross and Human Rights Watch noted that during a war or national emergency PWDs are vulnerable to violence and abandonment, the take home message of the conference was:

More needs to be done to ensure that people with disabilities – both mental and physical – are not left behind or forgotten during humanitarian crises.

PWDs have real difficulties taking care of their basic needs during a crisis. Catalina Devandas, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of PWDs explained:

"These are major and complex challenges, and unfortunately they are not always present in mainstream humanitarian debates".

"The increased number of humanitarian crises and natural disasters has a significant impact on the lives of persons with disabilities. But they are often excluded from initial humanitarian responses."

The vulnerability of PWDs is highlighted in the workbook Human Rights. Yes! Chapter 5: The Right to Life and Protection in Situations of Risk. During a crisis extra support is required, it is therefore important to have plans in place to ensure the personal safety of PWDs. The following is a useful checklist for disaster preparedness:

Checklist for Community Disaster Preparedness For Persons with Disabilities

Do get involved in public disaster planning in your community.

Don’t wait until a disaster, and persons with disabilities are left behind.

Do get prepared at home and then expand preparedness to public settings.

Don’t assume evacuation plans exist for persons with disabilities.

Do form an “Accessibility Committee” at work and other public places.

Don’t assume you will be evacuated with everyone else.

Do explore evacuation options with emergency managers and others.

Don’t overlook alternatives, such as evacuation chairs.

Do share the plan with all those in the building/area and then run practice evacuation drills.

Don’t wait until the disaster to raise awareness on disability issues.

Do learn about disasters and share that knowledge.

Don’t forget to check shelter accessibility and service animal provisions.

Do talk to local emergency managers about disability rights.

Don’t wait to train and educate others about the plan procedures.

Do initiate talking to managers, responders and Red Cross/Red Crescent.

Don’t forget to develop a network of supporters who can assist you.

Do remember to participate so that “Nobody is Left Behind”!

Do you have a plan for an emergency or humanitarian crisis?

A severely disabled boy crawls in the dirt near his tent at the Pagarinya refugee camp.
People with disabilities are vulnerable during war and other crises.

This is written in Article 11 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Convention of Rights 11: Right to life

Article 10 of the CRPD says every human being has the right to life. All necessary measures should be taken to ensure that PWDs enjoy the full right to life equally with other people.

This Article affirms that disability is a part of human diversity. Every human being, the CRPD says, has the right to life and PWDs have this right on an equal basis with others.

Disability is also intimately connected to the right to life. For instance, harmful cultural practices may violate the right to life; where resources are scarce, food or medical treatment may be given to boys and withheld from girls. The practice of female genital mutilation can result in death or create life threatening conditions during birth. Other practices that violate the right to life include, removing life giving treatment to newborn children with disabilities or underestimating the quality of life of PWDs resulting in the withdrawal of life saving treatments by healthcare providers. The workbook Human Rights. Yes! Part 2, the CRPD continues:

The enjoyment of the right to life by persons with disabilities is inextricably linked to the enjoyment of other human rights. For example, if a person with a disability has no access to health care or rehabilitation services, their right to life may well come under threat. Subjecting persons with disabilities to dangerous working environments or to conditions that amount to forced labour is likewise potentially life threatening.

The May 2016 report by the committee that oversees the implementation of the CRPD in Uganda, the Committee on the Rights of PWDs: Concluding observations on the initial report of Uganda, has this to say about the right to life:

18. The Committee is concerned about the violations of the right to life of persons with disabilities in some communities where myths abound that disability is a “curse” leading to harmful consequences to persons with disabilities.

19. The Committee recommends that the State party raise public awareness on the right to life of persons with disabilities and take legal action against perpetrators.

If you are a PWD the right to life is of fundamental importance to you. If people call you curse and treat you badly this is harming your right to life, you have the right to take legal action against the perpetrators.

Discarded: The Home of Hope centre in Jinja, Uganda, tries to care for abandoned children with mental health problems.
Physical and mental disabilities are perceived as a 'curse' and an embarrassment to families, who hide their children away or throw them out on the streets.

This is written in Article 10 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Monday, 20 March 2017

Convention of Rights 10: Accessibility

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities (CRPD) forms the foundation of disability rights laws in Uganda and is the model for the Persons With Disabilities Act (PWDA) 2006. The CRPD underlines and recognizes that persons with disabilities (PWDs) are entitled to all the human rights enunciated in the The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. If you are a PWD the rights in the CRPD are your rights, if you do not have a disability it is your duty to uphold and promote these rights.

Article 9 of the CRPD says that PWDs should be enabled to take part in all aspects of social life on an equal basis with other people. That means providing access to buildings like Schools, hospitals, houses, work spaces, transport, indoor and outdoor facilities. Access also means being able to access information, communication, electronic services and emergency services. All measures should also be taken to:

Promote, develop, monitor and implement minimum access standards.
Ensure private entities that provide services to the public are accessible in all areas.
Provide training for people involved on accessibility.
Provide signs in braille and other easily understandable forms.
Provide intermediaries to act as sign language interpreters, readers and guides to make access more easy.
Promote other forms of assistance to support PWDs and ensure their access to information.
Promote access to information using new technology including the internet.
Promote design, development, promotion and distribution of new technology so that it becomes cheap and easy to use.

Accessibility is one of the guiding principles of the CRPD, it has ramifications in throughout the Convention. Access is important for PWDs because access means equality and non discrimination.

Providing access is about making rights accessible, for instance accessible buildings mean that PWDs can access education, medical facilities or employment. Access may also be about changing attitudes through training that provides insights and understanding into disability thus removing stigma and prejudice. Or access maybe as simple as giving the ability to customize a computer screen (changing text and background colours or font sizes for instance) or the ability to use a cell phone as a magnifying glass or to receive text messages in an emergency.

Uganda's accessibility standards are a major contribution to providing barrier free access, The Right to Equal Access: Uganda’s Accessibility Standards says:

Recognised by the Zero Project as an Innovative Policy on Accessibility in 2014, Uganda’s Accessibility Standards are an important start in advocating and enforcing an accessible environment for all persons, including persons with disabilities.

In 2007, a Ugandan ministerial report found that 95% of the buildings in Kampala were not accessible, despite the fact that several laws emphasised the need to have an accessible physical environment, such as the Persons with Disabilities Act and National Policy on Disability, both of 2006...

Uganda is among the first sub-Saharan countries to have developed their own ‘Accessibility Standards’.

Uganda’s Accessibility Standards are an important start to advocating and enforcing an accessible environment for all persons, including those with disabilities.

By providing a series of practical and detailed maps for construction planners, the Accessibility Standards are a blueprint and tool for measurement, assessment and advice.

In addition to a National Accessibility Audit Committee, committees in several districts were set up to enforce compliance.

If you are a PWD, accessibility means being able to access your rights.

Uganda’s mandatory accessibility standards.
In many countries in the Global South, accessibility standards do not exist. In the few countries where they exist, they are very often not legally binding, not enforced and not monitored. Uganda is among the first sub-Saharan countries to have developed their own accessibility standards. Uganda’s standards are mandatory for school construction projects.

"We call upon all stakeholders in the construction industry to play their part in making Uganda a barrier-free society by implementing these standards."
Apollo Mukasa, Uganda National Action on Physical Disability.

This is written in Article 9 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

Sunday, 19 March 2017

Convention of Rights 9: Know your rights

Article 8 of the CRPD says the government is responsible for promoting the rights of PWDs through maintaining public awareness and promoting positive perceptions of the skills and abilities of PWDs through:

Raising awareness of the rights of PWDs throughout the whole of society, including the family.
Combating stereotypes and prejudice about disability and also those based on gender and age.
Promoting awareness of the abilities of PWDs.
Making employers aware of the skills PWDs can bring to their work.
Making educators aware of the rights of PWDs at all ages.
Ensuring the media presents PWDs in a positive light, consistent with the aims of this Convention.
Promoting awareness training about PWDs and their rights.

The 2016 National Union of Disabled Persons Uganda (NUDIPU) report on the Implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Uganda makes the following observation:

We are not aware of any government campaigns whatsoever with regard to creating awareness as contemplated under Article 8 of the CRPD, in particular no campaigns or awareness raising to promote the positive image of persons with disabilities. Any and all initiatives we are aware of in this regard have been initiated and sustained by Disabled Peoples Organisations (DPOs). A constant claim in this regard on the part of Government is the lack of resources. However, we note that robust awareness-raising campaigns are regularly conducted with regard to the rights of among others, women and children, and persons living with HIV (PLHIV). Although some awareness has been undertaken by the Ministry of Health with regard to the prevention of immunizable diseases, including Polio, this is grounded more in terms of public health concerns than in the advancement of the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities.

If you are a PWD you should know your rights. Furthermore, everyone should be aware of your rights. Everyone has a duty to inform and educate on the rights of PWDs.

If the government isn't doing anything to inform you of your rights, what is the solution? Watch this video and find out:

Rights are not the responsibility of 1 person, they are the responsibility of everyone.

The biggest challenge is making individuals aware of their rights.

This is written in Article 8 of the CRPD in the following way:

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.

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