Convention of Rights 13: Equal recognition before the law

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 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.