By IDA

 - October 23, 2017

IN THIS EDITION:

  1. Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities
  2. Activities in the past week
  3. Upcoming Activities
  4. IDA Intellectual production
  5. Other news

1. STAKEHOLDER GROUP OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

  • THE STAKEHOLDERS GROUP OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES BULLETIN: The Stakeholders Group of Persons with Disabilities (SGPwD) has released its first High-level Political Forum (HLPF) Bulletin on the 1 October 2017. The monthly bulletin will share information on the preparatory work toward the 2018 HLPF and related processes. It will provide information about opportunities that the UN shares at the global level and how persons with disabilities can engage practically in these activities. The Bulletin is structured along the themes of the thematic working groups, as established in 2016 and 2017, and will invite volunteers to carry out specific tasks on behalf of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities. Thus, working groups will be maintained and mainstreamed through the bulletin and there will be an open transparent engagement opportunity for all to participate. The HLPF Bulletin will be mainstreaming the work of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities in accordance with A/RES/67/290 paragraph 16.  If you have information to share or would like to get in touch with us, please email Dr. Orsolya Bartha, (obartha [at] ida-secretariat.org), Dr. Elizabeth Lockwood (elizabeth.lockwood [at] cbm.org) and Megan Smith (msmith [at] ida-secretariat.org).

2. ACTIVITIES IN THE PAST WEEK

  • UNIVERSAL PERIODIC REVIEW: The  Universal Periodic Review (UPR)pre-sessionsmeetings were held between Civil Society Organizations, national human rights institutions and Permanent Missions to discuss the human rights situation of States to be reviewed during the 28th Session of the UPR (timetable available here). The event took place between the 10-13 October 2017 at the Palais des Nations. IDA has been technically supporting delegations of Disabled persons' organization from Japan, Guatemala, Sri Lanka, Gabon and Pakistan to attend and participate in those meetings. In addition, IDA has provided financial support for a representative of the Pro-blind group from Guatemala. The Japanese DPO, representing persons with psychosocial disabilities in Japan, had bilateral meetings with five states. The representative from Guatemala met with eight states.  More information available on IDA’s website.
  • HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: On 28 September 2017, the Human Rights Council (HRC) approved the Resolution on Mental Health and Human Rights. The Resolution was proposed by the Permanent Missions of Brazil and Portugal, with the support of 59 co-sponsors to date. The International Disability Alliance (IDA) was present during all the informal consultations and supported the UN member states with technical advice, following expert guidance from its member - the World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry (WNUSP), and also from supporting organization TCI - Asia. More information available on IDA’s website.  Two HRC resolutions related to the 2030 Agenda were also adopted without a vote, on 29 September 2017: “The full enjoyment of human rights by all women and girls and the systematic mainstreaming of a gender perspective into the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” and “Promoting international cooperation to support national human rights follow-up systems, processes and related mechanisms, and their contribution to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”.
  • HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE: The Human Rights Committee opened its 121 Session on 16 October 2017. It will be reviewing Australia, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominican Republic, Jordan, Mauritius and Romania. To view the provisional agenda please click here. Public meetings will be webcasted live by the UN Office of Geneva at http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/.
  • HIGH-LEVEL POLITICAL FORUM: Based on the contributions of DPOs from several countries, the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities was able to compile a Global Report - a case study of 14 countries - on the engagement of persons with disabilities in the SDG implementation. The report, available here, intends to provide DPOs with a model on how to engage with their governments. Please note this is a live working paper and as such we continue to add information. A final version will be released in December 2017.

3. UPCOMING ACTIVITIES

  • HIGH-LEVEL POLITICAL FORUM: The Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities will hold a call in late November to provide additional information and a dialogue to exchange on Voluntary National Reviews. Call details will be shared in the next newsletter
  • ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC: A High-level Intergovernmental Meeting on the Midpoint Review of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities will take place in Beijing, China between 27 November – 1 December 2017. The event is organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) in cooperation with the Government of China. The objectives of the Meeting are: 1) to undertake a midpoint review of the progress made in the implementation of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013-2022 and the Incheon Strategy to “Make the Right Real” for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific; 2) to discuss the future policy direction for building disability-inclusive societies in Asia and the Pacific, bearing in mind the synergies between the Incheon Strategy and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. IDA has been invited to attend the meeting as an observer. 
  • INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION: The 4th Annual Meeting of the International Labour Office (ILO) Global Business and Disability Network will take place on the 23October 2017, at the ILO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. This year’s annual meeting will highlight the importance of digital accessibility for business success, showcase how skills gaps can be addressed by promoting disability-inclusive practices and provide a rare opportunity to exchange experiences and network among disability champions from the private sector.
  • EUROPEAN DISABILITY FORUM, CRPD WORKSHOP: A technical workshop on strengthening engagement with the CRPD Committee will be held in Brussels, Belgium, from 17-18 October 2018. The event is organized by the European Disability Forum (EDF) and the United Nations Human Rights Regional Office for Europe (OHCHR), and it is co-financed by IDA. Participants include rights-holders and DPOs. The objectives of the workshop are to increase understanding of the treaty body system and other international human rights mechanisms and to increase awareness of how rights holders, DPOs and CSOs can engage with the CRPD Committee, including drafting alternative reports and replies to list of issues, monitoring the implementation of Concluding Observations and filing individual complaints. IDA’s Treaty Body Unit will be co-facilitating the workshop and providing the closing remarks.
  • IAEG- SDGs: On 13-14 November 2017, the 6th Statistical Meeting of the Inter Agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-SDGs) will take place in Manama, Bahrain. The event will be hosted by the Bahrain Center for Strategic, International and Energy Study (DERASAT) and the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD). The aim of the meeting is, inter alia, to review the tier statuses of the SDG indicators, based on the documentation submitted by indicator custodian agencies, to discuss the proposed guidelines on data flows and global data reporting and review progress made on the methodological development of tier III indicators. IDA will be represented by Senior Adviser on the 2030 Agenda.
  • MENTAL HEALTH: The Trieste Conference on mental health will take place on the 15-18 November 2017 in Trieste. It is organised by the Department of Mental Health of the Italian region of Trieste and supported by World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry (WNUSP), as part of the “No One Left Behind” grant of DFID. Wishing to continue the reflection undertaken during the one-day meeting in Galway held in June 2017, the conference aims to frame a global strategy to promote CRPD complaint policies for inclusion of persons with psychosocial disabilities. To discuss how to deinstitutionalize mental health services in Europe, the conference is bringing together several lead activists members of WNUSP and Beyond.
  • UNIVERSAL PERIODIC REVIEWS: In the lead-up of the 28th Session of the Universal Periodic Reviews (UPR), which will take place from 6 to 17 November 2017, IDA is providing support to DPOs from Guatemala and Japan in engaging in the pre-session of the UPR of their country, by organizing meetings and providing technical support in advocating with Member States who will provide recommendations during the UPR review. IDA has also been providing full substantive support in the drafting of the report of the Japanese DPO.
  • SPECIAL PROCEDURE: An expert group meeting on older persons with disabilities will take place on 25 - 26 October 2017, at the UN Headquarters in New York. The meeting is jointly convened by the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities and the UN Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons. The aim of the expert group meeting is to discuss the intersectionality between disability and ageing in the exercise of autonomy and independence, and to explore the potential of international and regional human rights instruments to ensure their access to accessible, appropriate and affordable community-based support services.  The main findings of the Expert Meeting will inform the next thematic report to the Human Rights Council of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities (March 2018), as well as the work of the Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons. 
  • SDGs IMPLEMETATION: A Partners for Review meeting will be held from 24 – 25 October in Kampala, Uganda, hosted by Uganda’s Office of the Prime Minister. The meeting will bring together government representatives, stakeholders from civil society, the private sector and academia involved in national review and monitoring processes in their countries. The meeting will discuss Sustainable Development Goals implementation review mechanisms, with an intention to foster a new culture of review and to create a transnational multi-stakeholder network for a robust review process.  

4. IDA INTELLECTUAL PRODUCTION

  • GLOBAL REPORT ON CASE STUDY ON THE ENGAGEMENT OF ORGANISATIONS OF DPOS IN THE VOLUNTARY NATIONAL REVIEWS: The Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities was able to compile a Global Report - a case study of 14 countries - on the engagement of persons with disabilities in the SDG implementation. The report intends to be useful for DPOs as a model on how to engage with their governments. Please note this is a live working paper and as such, information continues to be added. A final version will be released in December 2017, although a sneak peek is available here. 

5. OTHER NEWS

  • A2I: On the occasion ofWhite Cane Safety Day, a2i has developed an article on its initiatives for empowering the persons with visual disabilities and other kinds of disabilities. The article, available on a2i’s website, has also been published in Dhaka Tribune, Canpan Blog, and Duskin Leadership training in Japan.
  • CALL FOR PARTICIPATION: Accessibility apps crowdsource are useful tools in providing an overview of accessibility. Participate in the effort byrating the accessibility public places in your own community at:  http://www.axsmap.com/.