Canada has signed the convention, but our election laws eliminated
discrimination on the basis of disability any years ago. In Canada there is
no "test" for voting other than citizenship and residency. In Ontario we
have made accessible and inclusive elections a priority as part of a
campaign for an Ontarians with Disabilities Act which finally passed two
years ago. We worked Elections Ontario, the government body responsible for
elections, and developed materials as well as a quick response team if
problems were reported on election day. The closest we came to having to
litigate involved providing sign language interpreters to voters who are
deaf. in the late 1990s we went to vote with two students who were deaf and
took an interpreter. We presented a bill which was initially refused, but
then paid when legal action was threatened. Now they are provided. Our
election law also requires election locations to be accessible. Voting
sites are set up in long-term care and other facilities where people may
have difficulty voting. There is also the ability to appoint a proxy to
vote for people who cannot get out. Nothing is perfect ao and there is
still work to be done, primarily on the campaigns themselves (holding them
in accessible locations, providing campaign material in alternative media.
As an aside, one of the advocacy lessons we learned was that by making an
"accessible campaign" a priority and getting people with disabilities
engaged we got alot more media attention than we would have by focussing
solely on the issues. For the example, when the Ontario Minister
responsible for disability attended an election debate in an inaccessible
location people with disabilities were outside the location with media
cameras.
Good luck
--------------------------------------------------
From: "marcus Redley" <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 8:54 AM
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: citizens with intellectual disabilities their voting rights & the
UN Convention...
> A request for a help:
>
> Article 29 of the UN Convention On the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
> guarantees people
> with disabilities the same political rights and opportunities as others.
> Voting procedures, facilities
> and materials have to be appropriate and accessible to disabled voters.
> Furthermore, disabled
> voters are entitled to the services of an assistant and an environment
> that encourages their
> participation in public affairs.
>
> Many democracies that are signatories to this UN Convention will have had
> in place regulations
> that disenfranchised adults with intellectual disabilities. This was the
> case in England and
> Wales until the passing of the Electoral Administration Act 2006. Having
> signed the UN
> Convention On the Rights of Persons with Disabilities there will be,
> consequently, countries that
> have recently reformed their electoral laws are in the process of
> reforming them.
>
> I would greatly appreciate it if readers of the Disability Research List
> could take the time to inform
> me if their country has signed this UN Convention and has, or has not,
> taken action to reform its
> electoral laws.
>
> Thank you
>
> Marcus Redley
> Learning Disability Research Group
> University of Cambridge
>
> e-mail: [log in to unmask]
>
> ________________End of message________________
>
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