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FYI. From: United Nations [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Saturday, 1 September 2012 6:29 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Enable Newsletter, June-August 2012 ENABLE NEWSLETTER June-August 2012 The United Nations Enable Newsletter is prepared by the Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (DSPD/DESA) with input from UN offices, agencies, funds and programmes, as well as from civil society organizations, including organizations of persons with disabilities. It is also available online at: <http://www.un.org/disabilities> http://www.un.org/disabilities. In this issue: - Status of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) - Fifth session of the Conference of States Parties to the CRPD - Highlights from the UN system - Upcoming events - Other news STATUS OF THE CONVENTION (CRPD) 119 ratifications of the Convention 153 signatories to the Convention 72 ratifications of its Optional Protocol 90 signatories to its Optional Protocol Benin ratified the Convention and its Optional Protocol on 5 July 2012 Djibouti acceded to the Convention and its Optional Protocol on 18 June 2012 Ghana ratified the Convention and its Optional Protocol on 31 July 2012 Liberia ratified the Convention on 26 July 2012 Nauru acceded to the Convention on 27 June 2012 FIFTH SESSION OF THE CONFERENCE OF STATES PARTIES The fifth session of the Conference of States Parties will be held from 12 to 14 September 2012 at UN Headquarters in New York. This year’s Conference will focus on women with disabilities, children with disabilities and technology and accessibility. Updated information now available on the United Nations Enable website includes: Provisional agenda of the Conference; List of 33 side-events; details of roundtable sessions. Prior to the convening of the Conference, a Civil Society CRPD Forum will be organized on 11 September by the International Disability Alliance (IDA) with the support of DESA. The Forum will provide an opportunity for NGOs, DPOs (organizations of persons with disabilities) and others, to coordinate their involvement in the Conference of States Parties and in the preparatory process for the High-level meeting of the General Assembly on disability and development to be held on 23 September 2013. UNICEF will host a Global Partnership Forum on Children with Disabilities in the afternoon of 14 September. More information: <http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?navid=46&pid=1595> http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?navid=46&pid=1595. HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE UN SYSTEM Online survey launched on promoting the empowerment of people An online survey on promoting the empowerment of people was launched by DSPD/DESA to help promote the priority theme selected by the Commission for Social Development for 2013 and 2014. DSPD has also piloted a new project called United Nations Social Development Network (UNSDN) to share knowledge and good practices among social development professionals worldwide on ageing, civil society, cooperatives, disability, employment, family, indigenous peoples, poverty, social integration, technology and youth. UNSDN is uniquely positioned to disseminate information and knowledge produced by the United Nations system in the area of social development, particularly on the three core issues of poverty eradication, employment generation and social integration. UNSDN will act as a major interface between DESA’s work in the area of social development and that of its partners involved in advancing the global social development agenda. More information: http://www.unsdn.org <http://www.unsdn.org/> ; Survey: <https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/empowering-people> https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/empowering-people. International Day of Persons with Disabilities, 3 December 2012 Are you preparing for 3 December 2012? The theme of this year's commemoration is: "Removing barriers to create an inclusive and accessible society for all". Barriers can take a variety of forms, including those relating to the physical environment or to information and communications technology (ICT), or those resulting from legislation or policy, or from societal attitudes or discrimination. Based on this theme, sub-themes can be selected to help remove barriers in areas such as education, employment, transportation, travel and tourism or sports. Choose your own sub-theme, so as to address a specific issue of exclusion and accessibility in your community and let us know about it. More information: <http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=1597> http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=1597. Paralympic Games are a celebration of inclusion “Paralympic athletes achieve remarkable performances and get the chance, every two years, to shine in the limelight and show the world what they are capable of,” the UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace, Wilfried Lemke, said at a ceremony inaugurating the Paralympic Wall in the Olympic Village in London. “Sport is a wonderful equalizer and a very efficient tool to ensure inclusion. It can certainly place everyone on a level playing field,” he added. The newly unveiled Paralympic Wall promotes the ratification and implementation of the CRPD and works to further sport as a global tool for inclusion, tolerance and diversity. More information: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=42768 <http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=42768&Cr=Paralympic&Cr1> &Cr=Paralympic&Cr1=. Parlympics London 2012 August 29 – Sept 9: <http://www.paralympic.org/Events/London2012> http://www.paralympic.org/Events/London2012. OHCHR – 8th session, Committee on the rights of persons with disabilities At its forthcoming 8th session from 17 to 28 September 2012, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will examine, in public meeting, the reports of Argentina, China and Hungary. The Committee will also adopt, in a private meeting, a list of issues on Paraguay. Civil society actors can engage with the Committee and its work in several ways: 1) in the course of States reporting cycle, 2) under individual communication procedure, 3) under the inquiries mechanism. NGOs and other stakeholders do not need any accreditation or ECOSOC Consultative Status to use these opportunities. More information: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CRPD/Pages/NoteonCivilSocietyParticipation. aspx. ESCWA – Promoting the mainstreaming of disability in development The Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) published a pamphlet on “Managing change: Mainstreaming disability into the development process” in both English and Arabic. The pamphlet reviews the situation of persons with disabilities and the measures and policies being undertaken by Governments in the ESCWA region to address their proper inclusion in economic, social, and cultural life. It outlines challenges and urgent needs as well as positive initiatives. The paper also outlines global and regional frameworks on disability, and addresses the quality of available data and the national policy approaches (welfare-based versus rights-based). The pamphlet concludes with focusing on the need to strengthen the knowledge and policy frameworks in the region, and on the necessity of addressing the needs of persons with disabilities within the context of the Millennium Development Goals. More information: http://www.escwa.un.org/information/pubaction.asp?PubID=936. ESCAP – Make the Right Real! Campaign in Myanmar On 27 June 2012, the Government of Myanmar, through the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, organized, "Make the Right Real!: Promotion of the CRPD in Myanmar". The event attracted over a 100 participants, including high-ranking officials from several Government ministries, as well as representatives of organizations of persons with disabilities. The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD), the Nippon Foundation, and the Myanmar Independent Living Initiative collaborated on the event. Make the Right Real! Campaign was originally launched by ESCAP at the regional level in 2010. The event highlighted the country's commitment to harmonize the domestic legislation with the CRPD. More information: http://unescapsdd.org/make-the-right-real. ESCAP – Final Review of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons After two consecutive Asian and Pacific Decades of Disabled Persons (1993-2002 and 2003-2012), ESCAP is organizing the High-level Intergovernmental Meeting on the Final Review of the Implementation of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003-2012, in Incheon, Republic of Korea, from 29 October to 2 November 2012. The objectives of the meeting are to: undertake a final review of the progress achieved in the implementation of the Decade, including the implementation of the Biwako Millennium Framework for Action and the Biwako plus Five towards an Inclusive, Barrier-free and Rights-based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific. The Beijing Declaration adopted at the Beijing Forum on 8 June 2012 at the Beijing Forum, which recommends Governments to take 10 major actions and 14 theme-specific actions in the areas of accessibility, education, community-based rehabilitation, livelihood and social protection will also be presented at the meeting. The meeting will present a unique opportunity for Governments and other key stakeholders to accelerate the ratification and implementation of the CRPD as well as actions on disability-inclusive development. For the first time, a framework of time-bound, concrete and measurable goals, targets and indicators, “Incheon Strategy to Make the Right Real for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific” will be put forward for adoption by Governments. More information: http://www.unescap.org/sdd/. UNAIDS – Workshop focuses on disability inclusion in HIV policy At the 2012 International AIDS Conference in Washington, DC, participants at a skills-building workshop titled “HIV Policy and National Programming: How to Include the World’s Largest Minority?” urged stakeholders to address disability within AIDS policy and programming. Using tools such as a disability-inclusive National Strategic Plans framework and examples of good practice, the workshop featured high-level speakers from UNAIDS, USAID, South Africa, Rwanda, Uganda, Botswana, as well as facilitators from UNICEF, the Canadian Working Group on HIV and Rehabilitation (CWGHR) and the QuadPara Association of South Africa (QASA). The workshop discussed the importance of including people with disabilities in the development of national strategic plans; upholding their human rights and ensuring that countries have policies that promote zero tolerance for discrimination on the basis of disability. It also urged national HIV responses to reflect the recommendations set out in the CRPD. Participants highlighted the need to build the capacity of persons with disabilities to advocate on their own behalf and be an integral part of national programmes both in policy development and programme implementation. More information: http://www.unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/featurestories/2012/july/2012 0723disabilityaids2012/. ILO – Employers make the case for hiring persons with disabilities On 11 June, the ILO’s Bureau for Employers’ Activities held a special session to bring awareness to the ILO Global Business and Disability Network and the business case for hiring persons with disabilities as part of the International Labour Conference. The session was attended by over a 100 people, including employers’ representatives, business leaders and ILO staff. As well as presenting best practices on integrating workers with disabilities into their workplaces and business activities, the session provided opportunities for organizations to join the Network. More information: http://www.ilo.org/skills/pubs/WCMS_183673/lang--en/index.htm. WHO launches Wheelchair service training package The wheelchair is one of the most commonly used assistive devices. It is estimated that 70 million people require wheelchairs worldwide, yet only 5% to15% of people have access. In partnership with USAID, WHO released the “Wheelchair Service Training Package: Basic Level” whose main purpose is to develop the minimum skills and knowledge required by personnel involved in wheelchair service delivery. More information: <http://www.who.int/disabilities/media/news/2012/30_06/en/index.html> http://www.who.int/disabilities/media/news/2012/30_06/en/index.html. Adults and children with disabilities at much higher risk of violence Children with disabilities are almost four times more likely to experience violence than non-disabled children, according to a systematic review published in the medical journal The Lancet in July. Another systematic review on violence against adults with disabilities, published earlier this year, found that overall they are 1.5 times more likely to be a victim of violence than those without a disability, while adults with mental health conditions are at nearly four times the risk of experiencing violence. Factors which place persons with disabilities at higher risk of violence include stigma, discrimination, and ignorance about disability, as well as a lack of social support for those who care for them. More information: <http://who.int/disabilities/violence/en/index.html> http://who.int/disabilities/violence/en/index.html. Call for papers on violence and disability In 2013, the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, in association with WHO, will publish a special issue on the topic of violence against persons with disabilities. Papers are invited from academics, practitioners and others, on all forms of interpersonal violence and any type of disability. Deadline for submissions: 2 November. More information: <http://who.int/violence_injury_prevention/media/news/2012/26_06/en/index.ht ml> http://who.int/violence_injury_prevention/media/news/2012/26_06/en/index.htm l. First ever Pacific CBR Forum convened The first-ever Pacific Community-based Rehabilitation (CBR) Forum took place in Fiji from 12-15 June 2012. The Forum, jointly hosted by WHO, the Pacific Disability Forum, and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, gathered more than 50 participants from disabled people's organizations (DPOs), service providers and government from across the Pacific. It increased knowledge of CBR, strengthened partnerships between government and DPOs, and developed a regional Pacific plan of action for CBR. More information: <http://who.int/disabilities/media/news/2012/15_06/en/index.html> http://who.int/disabilities/media/news/2012/15_06/en/index.html. WTO – World Summit on destinations for all The World Tourism Organization’s Global Code of Ethics for Tourism (UNWTO, 1999) states "Tourism activities should respect the equality of men and women; they should promote human rights and, more particularly, the individual rights of the most vulnerable groups, notably children, the elderly, the handicapped, ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples.” The objective of this World Summit entitled “Destinations for All - Tourism, Culture and Transportation for people with restricted physical ability”, is to lead international sector-based associations operating in the tourism, culture and transportation fields, in a process to identify the actions they will take in order to sigificantly facilitate travel for people with disabilities. This World Summit is expected to generate accessibility benchmarks and standards uniform across tourist establishments, attractions and transportation services. The steering committee for the summit comprises of representatives of World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), World Centre of Excellence for Destinations (CED), European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT) and other key partners. More information: <http://keroul.qc.ca/en/summit/> http://keroul.qc.ca/en/summit/. UPCOMING EVENTS IN 2012 (We welcome information from the general public on major international disability events for possible inclusion in the list below.) 10-12 September: 5th International Urban Design Conference Melbourne, Victoria: http://urbandesignaustralia.com.au <http://urbandesignaustralia.com.au/> . 12 to 14 September: 5th Conference of States Parties to the CRPD (See item above) 17 to 21 September: TRANSED 2012 The 13th International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled Persons (TRANSED 2012) will be held in New Delhi, India. More information: http://www.transed2012.in <http://www.transed2012.in/> . 17 to 28 September: 8th session of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (See item above) 24 to 27 September: RI Arab Region’s 5th International Conference Rehabilitation International (RI) will convene this Conference under the theme: “Together for a better life for all: Including persons with disabilities in development”. The Conference will be held in Doha, Qatar. More information: [log in to unmask] 10 October: World Mental Health Day World Mental Health Day raises public awareness about mental health issues. The day promotes open discussion of mental disorders, and investments in prevention, promotion and treatment services. The treatment gap for mental, neurological and substance use disorders is formidable especially in poor resource countries. More information: <http://www.who.int/mediacentre/events/annual/world_mental_health_day/en/ind ex.html> http://www.who.int/mediacentre/events/annual/world_mental_health_day/en/inde x.html. 23-25 October: 12th meeting of the Washington Group on Disability Statistics The meeting of the Washington Group (WG) will be held at UNCC in Bangkok and hosted by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). The meeting will discuss: i) the results from further analyses of data collected from countries using the WG Short measure questions, and country experiences; ii) additional work on extended set on functioning; iii) methodological issues facing the WG including the development of questions for children, and the issue of designing questions for the measurement of environmental barriers and participation; iv) summary of the country reports, and an update on other Washington Group and collaborative activities; v) WG governance issues; vi) objectives of the 13th meeting; and vii) next steps. More information: http://www.unescap.org/stat/disability/WG-Oct2012/index.asp 25 to 28 October: Inclusion International Global Inclusion Conference The Inclusion International Conference will be held in Washington, DC, where participants will discuss the implications of Article 19 of the CRPD: Living independently and being included in the community. Inclusion International’s two-year Campaign to promote Article19 will culminate at this Conference with the launch of a global report. More information: http://ww.thearc.org <http://ww.thearc.org/> and http://www.inclusion-international.org <http://www.inclusion-international.org/> . 29 October to 2 November: Rehabilitation International World Congress The Rehabilitation International (RI) World Congress, held every four years, seeks to provide a forum for the exchange of experience and information on research and practice regarding various disability issues on international and regional levels to promote the implementation of the CRPD. More information at http://www.riincheon2012.org/ 8 to 18 November: WBU/ICEVI General Assemblies World Blind Union (WBU) and International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment (ICEVI) will convene joint General Assemblies and associated events in Bangkok, Thailand. Events include: African Union of the Blind General Assembly, WBU Diversity Forum, WBU General Assembly, ICEVI General Assembly and events, and joint programme days between WBU and ICEVI. More information: http://www.wbu-icevi2012.org <http://www.wbu-icevi2012.org/> . 26 to 28 November: 1st CBR World Congress The first Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) World Congress entitled: “CBR: The Key to Realising CRPD” will be held in Agra, India. More information: www.cbrglobal.org <http://www.cbrglobal.org/> or http://www.apcdfoundation.org/ecafe/en/node/12322. 4 to 5 December: International Congress on Social Diversity The event will be held at the School of Economics and Business Sciences of the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain and include disability as a key theme. More information: http://icsd2012.com/en/index.html. UPCOMING EVENTS IN 2013 23 September 2013: High-level meeting on disability and development The UN General Assembly adopted resolution 66/124 of 27 February 2012, deciding to convene a one-day high-level meeting of the General Assembly on disability at the level of Heads of State and Government on 23 September 2013, the Monday before the start of the General Debate of the sixty-eighth session of the General Assembly. More information: <http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=1590> http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=1590. 16 to 18 October: 2nd International Conference of the WFD The 2nd Conference of the World Federation of the Deaf (WD) will be held in Sydney, Australia under the theme: “Equality for Deaf People”. More information: http://www.wfdsydney2013.com <http://www.wfdsydney2013.com/> . OTHER NEWS (DISCLAIMER: The information below is provided by civil society organizations and others for informational purposes only. This does not constitute endorsement of, or an approval by, the United Nations of any of the products, services, or opinions of the organization or individual. The United Nations bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality or content of their statements and opinions.) Making Development Inclusive: Mainstreaming event series The International Disability and Development Consortium (IDDC) will organize a high-level panel on “Inclusive Microfinance” during the 2012 European Development Days to be held in Brussels from 16 – 17 October 2012. This will be a joint event with the European Microfinance Platform (E-MFP), United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), and International Finance Corporation (IFC) from the World Bank group. Persons with disabilities often lack information about how to access financial services and experience prejudices that prevent them from approaching microfinance institutions (MFIs). More information: http://www.iddcconsortium.net/joomla/index.php/component/content/article/38- news-and-events/910-inclusive-microfinance-on-the-agenda-at-the-european-dev elopment-days "Show Me Inclusion" creative competition The EU-funded project End Exclusion - lead by IDDC member LIGHT FOR THE WORLD - has recently launched a second teaser spot for "Show Me Inclusion". This is a creative competition that gives young people the opportunity to stand up and get creative about the inclusion of persons with disabilities. Deadline for submissions: 16 September 2012. More information: http://www.iddcconsortium.net/joomla/index.php/home/38-news-and-events/867-i nvitation-to-participate-in-show-me-inclusion-creative-competition. CRPD monitoring workshop in Paraguay The International Disability Alliance (IDA) held a workshop in Asunción (Paraguay) from 21-23 June 2012 to meet with national DPOs in order to inform them about the CRPD Committee reporting guidelines and to start the process of drafting a parallel report to the CRPD Committee. The workshop was attended by 25 participants from different National DPOs. As a result of this workshop a coalition of national DPOs from Paraguay drafted and presented a parallel report to the CRPD Committee in early July. More information: http://www.internationaldisabilityalliance.org <http://www.internationaldisabilityalliance.org/> . Global networks on youth and women with disabilities launched Disabled Peoples International (DPI) has launched its Global Youth Network (GYN) and Global Women Network (GWN) with a view to highlight their specific issues. The GYN would also help groom younger leaders. The GWN has two wings: DPI Woman of Substance network for established women leaders. The other is the Emerging Young Women Leaders Network. More information: http://www.dpi.org <http://www.dpi.org/> . Ending the cycle of poverty and disability in developing countries “End the Cycle” is a campaign run by IDDC member CBM Australia that promotes the human rights and empowerment of people with disabilities living in developing countries. The campaign seeks to raise awareness of the cycle of poverty and disability, by giving people with disabilities an avenue to tell their own stories in their own words. More information: <http://www.iddcconsortium.net/joomla/index.php/home/38-news-and-events/921- end-the-cycle-of-poverty-and-disability> http://www.iddcconsortium.net/joomla/index.php/home/38-news-and-events/921-e nd-the-cycle-of-poverty-and-disability. World Down Syndrome Congress 2012 The 11th World Down Syndrome Congress (WDSC 2012) was held from 14-18 August 2012 in Cape Town, South Africa. The WDSC 2012 included, the Indaba of Persons with Down Syndrome, Down Syndrome Medical Interest Group Meeting, and the Post Congress Workshops on Education and Employment. The theme of WDSC 2012 was the “Big Five” - Rights, Health, Social Participation, Education and Eemployment. More information: http://www.wdsc2012.org.za. CONTACT INFORMATION Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Division for Social Policy and Development (DSPD) United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) 2 UN Plaza, DC2-1306, New York, NY 10017, USA. Website: http://www.un.org/disabilities Email: [log in to unmask] Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/United-Nations-Enable/196545623691523 Twitter: http://twitter.com/UN_Enable If you do not wish to receive future messages from us, please click on this link to remove your name from our list: http://esamail.un.org/u?id=4470492.536141f514000b760710307ae079b5f7 <http://esamail.un.org/u?id=4470492.536141f514000b760710307ae079b5f7&o=76390 22&n=T&[log in to unmask]&l=enable_news> &o=7639022&n=T&[log in to unmask]&l=enable_news. = ________________End of message________________ This Disability-Research Discussion list is managed by the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds (www.leeds.ac.uk/disability-studies). Enquiries about list administration should be sent to [log in to unmask] Archives and tools are located at: www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/disability-research.html You can VIEW, POST, JOIN and LEAVE the list by logging in to this web page.