United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities
This section has information on New Zealand's involvement with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and how it is being implemented.
Introduction
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is the first United Nations human rights treaty of the 21st century. It does not create new rights for disabled people. Instead, it builds on conventional understandings of what is required to implement existing human rights as they relate to disabled people.
The Convention makes it explicit that States must ensure the full realisation of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all disabled people, on an equal basis with others, and without discrimination of any kind on the basis of disability. This is already a feature of New Zealand law.
New Zealand was a leader in negotiations on the Convention. We modelled the spirit of participation with disabled people through consultation on the evolving Convention text, and involvement of disability sector representatives in our delegations to the United Nations. This involvement of the disability sector has continued to be practiced by the government. We were able to use our experiences with implementing the New Zealand Disability Strategy to inform our contributions to the Convention process.
New Zealand signed the Convention at the United Nations on 30 March 2007, and ratified on 26 September 2008.
The Convention will:
- provide greater impetus and support for implementation of the New Zealand Disability Strategy. The Convention provides practical guidance on the implementation of the rights of disabled people, both immediately in the text and over time through the regular periodic reporting process to the United Nations
- assist government agencies to analyse and improve, where necessary, the current mechanisms for promotion and monitoring of policy that impact on disabled people. It will also help to ensure that mainstream services are inclusive of disabled people and delivered in non-discriminatory ways.
What the Convention will do
Despite the significant progress achieved through the New Zealand Disability Strategy, there remain many barriers experienced by disabled people in New Zealand that prevent their full participation in society
The Convention will provide a new impetus and practical focus to removing these barriers. It will reinvigorate activity to implement the New Zealand Disability Strategy and the commitment to ensuring full rights of citizenship for disabled people.
All new legislation and policy will need to be consistent with the Convention, or New Zealand will be in breach of its obligations and subject to criticism by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Government agencies will find the specific measures of the Convention useful to analyse and improve, where necessary, the current mechanisms for implementing policy that impacts on disabled people. It will also help to ensure that mainstream services are inclusive of disabled people and delivered in non-discriminatory ways.
Like the New Zealand Disability Strategy, the Convention covers all areas of life, all ages and life stages. In doing so, it has obligations on government and the private sector. However, it is the government that is accountable to the United Nations, and government agencies need to take leadership in encouraging action by the private sector.
As an international legal framework, the Convention is able to be referred to by Courts in their decision making, where appropriate.
Update on implementation
The Convention's article 33 requires a focal point in government with responsibility for implementation of the Convention and facilitating action. It further says that States should maintain, strengthen, designate or establish a framework, including one or more independent mechanisms to promote, protect and monitor implementation of the Convention. It requires civil society (principally disabled people's organisations) to participate in the monitoring process.
Article 35 requires reporting by State parties to the United Nations committee set up under the Convention. The first report is due two years after the Convention enters into force for New Zealand (that is 2010), and then at least every four years thereafter.
The Office for Disability Issues has been the government focal point on disability since its establishment in 2002. The Office currently acts as the national focal point on the Convention to implement article 33.
Current work priorities
The Office is developing options for the framework. There has been some consultation with disabled people's organisation already. We will report to the Minister for Disability Issues in 2009 with some options.
Visits and meetings
On 15 December 2008, we held a workshop in Wellington with disabled people's organisations and others to talk about the Disability Rights Promotion International project. Professor Marcia Rioux, project co-director, talked about how the project involved disabled people's organisations to monitor the rights of disabled people. This workshop will inform the government's thinking on the framework.
On 19 and 20 February 2009, Professor Gerard Quinn visited New Zealand to talk with disabled people's organisations (in Wellington and Auckland) and government officials about key actions to implement the Convention. In particular, Professor Quinn talked about frameworks to promote, protect and monitor the Convention. His visited was organised by the Human Rights Commission and funded by the Asia Pacific Forum of Human Rights Institutions. The Office organised a meeting with government agencies involved with human rights treaties to meet and talk with Professor Quinn.
United Nations
2nd Conference of States Parties
In September 2009, the 2nd Conference of States Parties to the Convention was held at the United Nations in New York. The theme of this Conference was "legislative measures to implement the Convention."
New Zealand was represented at the Conference by Jan Scown (Director, Office for Disability Issues); and Gary Williams (Chief Executive, DPA), along with Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials based at the New Zealand Mission to the United Nations in New York.
As Vice President of the Conference Bureau, New Zealand was asked to host associated events, and continue our leadership role with the Convention to date.
United Nations Human Rights Council
In 2008, New Zealand responded to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights asking States to contribute to their thematic study on key legal measures for ratification and effective implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This issue was discussed at the United Nations Human Rights Council meeting in March 2009, and is the start of an ongoing annual interactive discussion focused on the rights of disabled people.
At the 2009 meeting, States were requested to report on measures being taken to implement the Convention's article 33 on national implementation and monitoring.