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Resolution 2039 (2015) Final version
Equality and inclusion for people with disabilities
1. There are more than 80 million
people with disabilities in Europe. Every human being is likely
to suffer some temporary or permanent impairment at some point in
his or her life. However, equality and inclusion for people with
disabilities are rarely seen as priorities. People with disabilities
are often excluded from society and are invisible to the rest of
the population. In addition to the many obstacles they face, people
with disabilities are particularly affected by the austerity measures
taken by member States.
2. The Parliamentary Assembly reasserts that it is the various
barriers encountered by people with impairments which create the
situation of disability. Measures must be taken to secure the rights
of people with disabilities to equality and full participation in
society, as enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights
(ETS No. 5), the European Social Charter (revised) (ETS No. 163)
and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities.
3. The Council of Europe Action Plan to promote the rights and
full participation of people with disabilities in society: improving
the quality of life of people with disabilities in Europe 2006-2015
must serve as a reference framework for member States. The Assembly
believes that particular attention must be paid to certain areas with
a view to moving decisively towards equal rights and inclusion for
people with disabilities.
4. The Assembly therefore calls on the Council of Europe member
States to:
4.1. ratify, if they
have not yet done so, the United Nations Convention on the Rights
of Persons with Disabilities and the Optional Protocol thereto,
and take the necessary measures to implement them;
4.2. ratify, if they have not yet done so, the revised European
Social Charter and accept in full Article 15 on the right of persons
with disabilities to independence, social integration and participation
in the life of the community;
4.3. closely consult and actively involve the organisations
representing people with disabilities in the development of policies
and measures for people with disabilities;
4.4. introduce mechanisms for evaluating national policies
and measures for people with disabilities, in particular by establishing
independent monitoring mechanisms, and ensure their sufficient funding;
4.5. allocate sufficient funding to policies and measures designed
to foster the full participation of people with disabilities in
society, in particular the accessibility of premises and services;
4.6. support people with disabilities and their families financially
to enable them to access the services and care they need, thereby
taking into account General Comment No. 2 of the Committee on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities on Article 9 of the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
5. With regard to legal capacity, the Assembly recalls Resolution 1642 (2009) on
access to rights for people with disabilities and their full and
active participation in society, and calls on member States to start
replacing substitute decision-making mechanisms by supported decision-making
mechanisms, in line with their international commitments.
6. The Assembly calls on member States to give up the culture
of institutionalisation, in particular by putting an end to the
construction and public funding of large institutions for people
with disabilities, and to give consideration to alternatives to
care in institutions, taking account of the choices of people with
disabilities.
7. The Assembly is concerned about the scale of the problem of
violence against people with disabilities, in particular women and
children, and recommends that national parliaments ensure that disability
is fully taken into account in their monitoring of the implementation
of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating
Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (CETS No. 210). The
Assembly also calls on the Council of Europe member States to:
7.1. ratify, if they have not yet
done so, the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against
Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (CETS No. 201) and the Council
of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against
Women and Domestic Violence;
7.2. take account of the specific situation of women and girls
with disabilities in their policies to combat violence against women.
8. With regard to access to employment, the Assembly encourages
member States to develop policies to foster the employment of people
with disabilities and, in particular, to:
8.1. introduce incentive, awareness-raising and support measures
for employers so as to help people with disabilities find employment
and stay in their jobs;
8.2. protect people with disabilities against discrimination
during recruitment and throughout their careers, and make specific
provision in legislation for the requirement for accessibility of
workplaces and/or working conditions, as well as for reasonable
accommodation.
9. Lastly, the Assembly calls on member States to conduct and/or
encourage awareness-raising campaigns for the public, teaching staff
and employers in order to overcome the stereotypes and prejudices surrounding
disability.