Brussels, 06/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 5 January, the European Union formally ratified the United Nations convention on the rights of people with disabilities. The EU has thus, for the first time, become a party to an international human rights treaty. This is welcomed by Viviane Reding, Commission Vice-President responsible for justice, fundamental rights and citizenship.
The Union signed the United Nations convention on the rights of people with disabilities on the opening day for signature, 30 March 2007. Since then, all 27 EU member states have signed, as have 120 other states worldwide. Now that the ratification procedure has been successful, the Union as a whole is the first international organisation to be officially a party to the convention (as are 16 of its member states).
The convention commits parties to ensure that people with disabilities may fully enjoy their rights on an equal footing with all other citizens. Countries that have ratified the convention, including the EU member states, must take action in the following areas: access to education, employment, transport, infrastructure and buildings open to the public, granting the right to vote, improving political participation and ensuring full legal capacity of all people with disabilities. These countries will need to periodically inform the UN committee on the rights of persons with disabilities about the measures taken to implement the convention. We would point out that the EU 2020 strategy in favour of persons with disabilities aims essentially at giving such persons the means to benefit from their rights on an equal footing with other citizens and at eliminating the obstacles that they encounter in their lives.
The president of the European Disability Forum (EDF), Yannis Vardakastanis, has highlighted the fact that “the European Union has not only achieved a major step in its history, but it is also sending a positive signal to its member states that have not yet ratified the convention. It is now time to commit to the rights of persons with disabilities”.
One in six people in the European Union - around 80 million - have a disability that ranges from mild to severe. Over one third of people aged over 75 have disabilities that restrict them to some extent. These numbers are set to rise as the EU population grows progressively older. (Com-G.B./transl.jl)