On 5 December 2012, the US Senate, led by republican opposition, rejected the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The Senate vote fell short of the two thirds majority required with 61 votes in favour and 38 opposed.
The CRPD requires member countries to prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities and support their dignity, autonomy, and full participation in society. The Convention was inspired in part by the Americans with Disabilities Act and its core protections and legal standards align with US disability law.
Democratic support for the convention was led by Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Senator John Kerry. A number of republicans voted to approve the treaty including 89-year-old Bob Dole, who was disabled during World War II and Senator John McCain, who also suffered disabling injuries in Vietnam. The treaty was also widely backed by the disabilities community and veterans groups.
Opponents of the Convention argued that giving an international entity advocacy powers for disabled people could pose a threat to U.S. national sovereignty. Senator Mike Lee, leading the opposition, warned that the treaty could lead to the state, rather than parents, determining what were in the best interests of disabled children, and that language in the treaty guaranteeing the disabled equal rights to reproductive health care could lead to abortions.
White House Press Secretary, Jay Carney, said that the administration remained "disappointed" with the outcome. In a press release, he stated that ratification would require no changes to US law since the US already leads in promoting rights of persons with disabilities. It would however put US in a position to extend across the globe the rights enjoyed by people with disabilities in the US.
The Senate may choose to take up the treaty again in the future when a new congress convenes.
Bulletin readers may remember that Ireland signed the CRPD in 2007 but has yet to ratify the Convention. Following the recommendation of the United Nations Universal Periodic Review group in April 2012, Ireland pledged to ratify the Convention “as soon as possible”. As of December 2012 however, it is not clear when the Convention will be ratified and implemented into domestic law.
Click here to read a White House press release.
Click here to read a Human Rights Watch article.
Click here to read a BBC news article.
Meanwhile in China, landmark mental health legislation was recently passed which sets out for the first time the rights of the mentally disabled and addresses abuses within the system including involuntary incarceration.
Under the new legislation, mentally disabled persons can no longer be involuntarily detained unless they are a danger to themselves or others. The legislation also provides for judicial remedies where a patient’s rights have been violated.