The United Nations Convention on the right and dignities for persons with disability

Abstract

This article seeks to chronicle the political history and intellectual antecedence of disability policy and practice in the past 30 years, which culminated in the successful negotiation of the United Nations (UN) Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities, that came into force in May 2008. It therefore analyses the raison d’être that underpins the UN Convention, as well as providing a brief description of the substantive issues that the Convention addresses. The article also analyses some of the perceived challenges with regard to the implementation of the UN Convention, by drawing upon the substantive findings of two Disability Scoping Studies in Zimbabwe and Nigeria, funded by the UK’s Department for International Development. Reference is also made to contemporary debates within mainstream development studies discourse, particularly the efficacy of “rights-based approaches” to development, which have a direct bearing on the extent to which the UN Convention will be successfully implemented. The article concludes by arguing that the UN Convention is a necessary but not sufficient instrument for the enforcement of disability rights and should not be perceived as a panacea that will end disability discrimination. Such legislation can and should make such discrimination illegal. However, it is very difficult indeed to implement, for it is extremely difficult to enforce. Notwithstanding the UN Convention’s acknowledged seminal importance, other deep-seated, endemic policy-orientated challenges will need to be addressed in order for this ideal to become an objective reality.

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