Indigenous persons with disabilities and other experts on indigenous peoples and persons with disabilities met in Madrid, from 20 to 21 November 2012, to work on a report that will be presented to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) during its next session in May 2013.
The report will pay special attention to the challenges faced by indigenous persons with disabilities (IPWD) in enjoying their human rights and in being included in development processes. The report explores how the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples provide a framework for the protection of the rights of indigenous persons with disabilities.
In the expert meeting, organized by the UNPFII, the International Disability Alliance (IDA) and the Disability Rights Advocacy Fund (DRAF); experts also discussed how to increase visibility of this issue in the UN system as a way of supporting the work at national level. “The 2013 High Level Meeting on Disability and Development and the 2014 World Conference on Indigenous Peoples provide an unique opportunity to ensure an increased attention to the rights of IPWD in the post-MDGs process, and for that reason it is imperative that indigenous persons with disabilities and their organizations actively participate in these meetings,” stated Myrna Cunningham, member of the UNPFII and co-facilitator of the expert meeting.
The UNPFII requested this report, as a result of the participation of a delegation of IPWD at its May 2012 session. The delegation, supported by the DRAF with AusAID funding, presented their challenges at the plenary sessions and in a side event, in which the recommendation of a specific study on the situation of IPWD was made. This led to the UNPFII to appoint two of its members, Ms. Myrna Cunningham and Mr. Paul Kanyinke Sena to draft a report in consultation with IPWD and their representative organizations.
The Disability Rights Advocacy Fund’ representative, Catalina Devandas, said “We are pleased to have initiated this process to promote self-representation of an extremely marginalized group, we call on all relevant stakeholders to increase funding to build the rights advocacy skills of organizations of IPWD ”.
The Chair of the International Disability Alliance Yannis Vardakastanis highlighted: “IDA is committed to this initiative which needs to be led by IPWD and which will require the support of the mainstream indigenous peoples and disability rights movements.”
