Comments to the Federal Attorney-General’s Department on the Chair’s Text for the Draft comprehensive and integral International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities

PIAC, the NSW Disability Discrimination Legal Centre and Australian Lawyers for Human Rights have again joined together to provide comments to the Australian Government on the Working Text of the Draft Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities. The submission focuses on the definitions of disability and ‘reasonable adjustment’ in draft Article 2, on Articles 12 and 17 dealing with the right to recognition before the law, capacity and compulsory treatment, and on the monitoring mechanisms to be included in the final treaty. The submission supports a comprehensive monitoring regime that ensures the involvement of civil society in the monitoring on and reporting of compliance with the Convention. It also supports the establishment of a specialist treaty monitoring body and a Disability Advocate to assist in the development of innovative and best practice approaches to compliance.