Opening the classroom, to expand education

Learning about human rights and the right to vote of each of us

Historically and contemporaneously, persons with disabilities have been excluded from

exercising their human rights, including the right to political participation. The UN Convention

on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities responds to this circumstance and provides a holistic

solution. Emerging practices around the globe nonetheless bear out that persons with disabilities

can be successfully incorporated in all phases of an electoral process.

I

The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg, stresses that it

is not acceptable to deprive persons with disabilities of their right to vote, regardless of the

nature or severity of their disability. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons

with Disabilities is very clear on this issue, but this principle is still not respected in many

countries. The Commissioner points to positive developments which took place within the

Council of Europe in 2011, and encourages other representatives of the international human

rights community to follow suit.

The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg

At a time when election officials are struggling to convince more people to vote, advocates for

the disabled say thousands of people with autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy and other

intellectual or developmental disabilities have been systematically denied that basic right in the

nation’s largest county.

Where is the line to disqualify someone from the voting booth because of a cognitive or

developmental impairment?

The complaint by the Disability and Abuse Project argues that intellectual and developmental disabilities, including conditions such as Down syndrome, are not automatic barriers to

participating in elections. It seeks a sweeping review of voting eligibility in Los Angeles County in such cases, arguing that thousands of people with those disabilities have lost the right to vote during the last decade.

“If somebody can articulate in whatever way … that they want to vote, that they have an interest in voting, that’s the only test that should be applied nationwide,” Thomas F. Coleman, the group’s legal director, said at a news conference outside the federal courthouse, echoing a

recommendation from the American Bar Association.

At issue in the California case is access to the ballot box for adults who enter so-called limited conservatorships, legal arrangements in which parents or guardians assume the right to make

certain decisions for people who lack the ability to manage their financial and medical affairs. In the course of taking that step in court, voting rights are routinely voided, according to the advocacy group.

“Autism is a broad spectrum, and there can be low skills and there can be high skills. But what I

observed was that people tend to just dismiss it as though they have no skills,” Teresa Thompson, whose son has autism and whose case helped prompt the complaint, said in a

videotaped statement.

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For years, advocates brought attention to the obstacles to voting faced by the physically disabled. More recently, the focus has shifted to the mentally or developmentally disabled, who advocates

say have long been stigmatized in the voting process.

All but about a dozen states have some type of law limiting voting rights for individuals based on competence. But how those laws are enforced varies widely, advocates say.

New research findings published by the EU Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) suggest that full

political participation of persons with disabilities can be achieved if an adequate legal and policy framework is in place, which enables citizens with disabilities equal access to all aspects of the

political process, such as voting in elections, being members of political parties and engaging with political activities.

Nevertheless, the promotion and implementation of this right is patchy across EU Member States and further efforts are required to ensure that information and political processes are accessible.

The FRA report entitled The right to political participation for persons with disabilities: human

rights indicators outlines the current barriers and obstacles which must be overcome before the political participation of persons with disabilities is fully realised in compliance with the

requirements of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

The main challenges to address are legal. Obstacles such as restrictions on the right to vote, gaps between law and policy and a lack of engagement with persons with disabilities in policy

development are major concerns. There is also an imbalance amongst persons with disabilities: barriers to participation are more significant for those with a certain type of disability or based on the severity of their impairment.

The report reminds Member States that addressing these barriers and obstacles “as soon as

possible is essential to increasing the legitimacy of public institutions and creating more equitable and inclusive societies in which all members can participate fully.”

To facilitate this process, FRA has developed a number of human rights indicators that can help

identify the extent to which persons with disabilities participate in political activities across the EU. Indicators have been developed for following thematic areas: lifting legal and administrative barriers to political participation; raising awareness of the right to political participation of

persons with disabilities; making voting procedures, facilities and election materials more accessible; and increasing opportunities for participation in political life.

The right to political participation of persons with disabilities in the UK

Using the FRA human rights indicators, it is possible to assess the extent to which the UK has

adhered to its obligations under the CRPD as well as other significant human rights instruments such as the European Convention on Human Rights, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and

other EU Treaties.

Lifting legal and administrative barriers

In the UK, all eligible citizens, including persons living in long-term institutions, have the right to vote and can use alternative methods of voting, including proxy voting and postal voting.

However, access to voting procedures is hindered by inaccessible administrative procedures such as requesting support or assistance. In addition, there is a lack of information on how to submit a

complaint.

Making political participation more accessible

Accessibility refers not only to facilities but also to voting procedures and election materials.

In the UK, accessibility to public buildings is assured by mandatory accessibility standards for the construction and alteration of national and local authority buildings. Despite this, in 2013, an

Equality Indicators survey, conducted by the Office of Disability Issues, suggested that 32% of the disabled population reported having difficulties accessing goods and services, including access to Local Authority and Central Government services.

Information on electoral processes and election-related media also remain largely inaccessible to

persons with disabilities. In the UK, only public media providers are obliged to ensure that their broadcasts are accessible to persons with disabilities. The BBC and Channel 4 both have a public

sector equality duty to ensure that their broadcast services are accessible to persons with disabilities. However, this means that there are no legal accessibility standards for providers of internet and web-based services.

Notably, the research findings suggest that a disparity exists between information that is provided according to the type of disability. For example, there has been an increase in the availability of subtitling for people with hearing impairments; however, there is less availability

of audio description for those with visual impairments. This gap creates an inequity in the access to information.

Scope, in their 2010 report Polls Apart, outlined their findings following a survey of polling

stations from the 2010 General Election. The main barriers encountered by persons with disabilities included:

a) The absence of a tactile voting device to help visually impaired voters vote independently;

b) The absence of a large print version of the ballot paper;

c) The absence of level access into the polling station, including an adequate ramp when

required.

d) The absence of a low level polling booth

e) The absence of registration documents and a polling card that were easy to read and understand.

Increasing rights awareness

Raising awareness is essential to overcome the legal and administrative barriers stated above, as well as guaranteeing access of persons with disabilities to the electoral process by providing

information.

Increasing awareness of the right to political participation of persons with disabilities can be achieved using a two pronged approach: i) by ensuring that public officials are well informed on

disability equality and the duty to provide reasonable accommodation and ii) by ensuring that persons with disabilities are aware of their right to vote and participate in political activities.

In the UK, training of election authorities and officials is not a legal requirement, but there is

nevertheless the provision of training materials and instructions on how to ensure non-discrimination on the ground of disability and accessibility in voting procedures.

The role of disabled persons’ organisations (DPOs) is key to ensuring that persons with disabilities are aware of their right to political participation, therefore it is essential that they are

consulted when law and policies are being developed.

Mechanisms have been established, in the UK, to ensure that systematic consultation with DPOs occurs. This includes guidance issued to government departments about the need to involve

disabled persons in the development of government policy and strategy.

Increasing opportunities for participation in political life

It is also necessary to increase the capacity of political parties and media organisations to make information and campaign materials more accessible. In the UK, none of the main political

parties have provided an alternative version to their European Manifesto 2014. In the 2010 general election, of the main political parties, only the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats produced alternative formats of their General Election Manifestos (including Easy Read, Audio

and Large Print). Labour and the Conservatives produced a Manifesto available for download, but no links to alternative formats.

Overall, the FRA findings suggest that to improve the political participation of persons with

disabilities, it is necessary to provide more accessible information and processes, including support and reasonable adjustments

II

Good laws but illegal practice in institutions for people with a disability

CROATIA

Primjer Dobre prakse

U udruzi Radost održana edukacija o biračkom pravu osoba s

intelektualnim teškoćama

16 Svibanj 2013

Plod intezivne suradnje udruge Radost iz Ploča, Udruge za samozastupanje i Gonga, između

ostalog, jest i zanimljiva edukacija koja se održala u prostorijama udruge Radost. „Ljudi su

dobili pravo glasa, što je osnovni i temeljni preduvjet uključivanja u javni život “, rekao je

Damjan Janjušević iz udruge za samozastupanje, koja je radila na ovom ostvarivanju biračkog

prava osoba s poteškoćama.

Članak 24 Konvencije o pravima osoba s invaliditetom kaže da osobe s intelektualnim teškoćama još ne mogu sudjelovati u programima cjeloživotnog učenja, a 16 000 ljudi bilo je u

potpunosti zakinuto za osnovno ljudsko pravo -biračko pravo i ravnopravan život u zajednici.

Udruga Radost je članica mreže od 12 lokalnih grupa za samozastupanje u Hrvatskoj i aktivno sudjeluje u ostvarivanju prava osoba s intelektualnim teškoćama.Kroz rad sa samozastupnicima

iz Radosti, Dajana Boras-Durmić kaže, najvažnija je upravo inkluzija u društvo i mogućnost

informiranja o pravima koja imaju. Katarina Matijašević, koja također kroz radionice uči Radosne kako da se čuje i njihov glas, izrazila je zadovoljstvo postignutim rezultatima koje su

postigli kroz druženja.

U ugodnoj atmosferi članovi udruge predavačima su prepričavali svoja iskustva s izbora za Europski parlament. Predsjednica udruge Radost, gđa. Nada Boras ovom prilikom istaknula je

važnost ovakvih edukacija pomoću kojih ovi divni ljudi uče da mogu govoriti u svoje ime i donositi odluke o vlastitom životu. U listopadu ove godine Hrvatska je domaćin Europske konferencije samozastupnika „Čujte naše glasove“, na kojoj će prisustvovati i samozastupnici iz

Ploča, iz udruge Radost.

Samobor, 23.01.2015.

Links:

1. Submit signatures Croatian Parliament

https://www.facebook.com/UImeObitelji/app_109849065805705

2. sign up and start changes in https://www.facebook.com/UImeObitelji/app_109849065805705

3. Disabled and Looking For Love

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofzxzBRpKFM

4. Voting and Civic Involvement: Access for people with cognitive disabilities

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70Sp7Ul2d1U

5. Human rights advocate Thomas Hammarberg on disability rights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62LpYWHOLQY

6. Dominic Grieve QC MP on European Convention on Human Rights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Awf15ahfHUo