Development of a U.N. Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities

Resolution of the National Council on Disability
on
The Development of a U.N. Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities

Whereas the United States is built upon a strong tradition of civil liberties and fundamental freedoms designed to empower all its citizens to reach their full potential; and

Whereas embodied in the freedom philosophy is the standard that all people, including people with disabilities, have a right to equal access to public goods and services, and to social, recreational and employment opportunities; and

Whereas those principles have been codified in the Americans with Disabilities Act, which is recognized worldwide as the most progressive and comprehensive disability legislation to date: and

Whereas people with disabilities in many countries do not have the advantage of national legal protection of their rights, and, furthermore, are faced with social practices and cultural mores that promote isolation, exclusion and even forced institutionalization or incarceration; and

Whereas compliance with the U.N. Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, the principal international instrument designed to protect the human rights of people with disabilities, is voluntary and thus provides little incentive to improve human rights practices and weak recourse when violations occur; and

Whereas the United Nations has adopted legally binding international conventions to protect against violations of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of other historically disadvantaged populations (such as women, refugees, etc), and is currently considering proposal to develop a Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities;

Be it resolved that the National Council on Disability (NCD) declares its support for the development of an International Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, and

Be it further resolved that the NCD calls on the President, Congress and the Department of State to use the United States' position of influence and leadership to promote on an international scale the principles of inclusion and reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities that it strives to implement for its own citizens.

September 19, 2001