Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Concluding observations on the initial report of Seychelles *
I.Introduction
1.The Committee considered the initial report of Seychelles (CRPD/C/SYC/1 and Corr.1) at its 377th and 378th meetings (see CRPD/C/SR.377 and 378), held on 26 and 27 February 2018. It adopted the present concluding observations at its 389th meeting, held on 6 March 2018.
2.The Committee welcomes the initial report of Seychelles, which was prepared in accordance with the Committee’s reporting guidelines. The Committee thanks the State party for its written replies (CRPD/C/SYC/Q/1/Add.1) to the list of issues prepared by the Committee (CRPD/C/SYC/Q/1), despite the delayed submission.
3.The Committee appreciates the constructive dialogue held with the delegation of the State party, during which many issues were raised, and its open and frank attitude.
II.Positive aspects
4.The Committee commends the State party for the adoption of a number of policy measures with a view to implementing the Convention, in particular, amendments to the Social Security Act to ensure that persons with disabilities do not lose all their benefits when they take up employment and efforts to increase the numbers of persons with disabilities in employment; the Policy on Inclusion and the Action Plan on Inclusive Education and Training, adopted in September 2014 and guided by the Convention, aiming to provide children with disabilities with quality education; and efforts by the State party to collect data on disability in the 2010 national census.
5.The Committee welcomes efforts by the State party to translate the Convention into Creole and to produce related child-friendly materials.
III.Principal areas of concern and recommendations
A.General principles and obligations (arts. 1−4)
6.The Committee is seriously concerned about:
(a)The delays in the review, repeal and amendment of existing domestic legislation that is not in line with the Convention, including chapter III of the Constitution, which still promotes and defends a medical and welfare model of disability; the Civil Code; and the National Council for Disabled Persons Act (1994);
(b)The lack of a specific act or resolution for domestication of the Convention;
(c)Derogatory terminology concerning persons with disabilities in legislation and when referring to persons with disabilities;
(d)The delays in the revision of the National Policy on Disability and in the finalization of the national plan of action on disability.
7. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Expedite efforts to review all legislation and policies in order to harmonize them with the Convention;
(b) Take the legal measures necessary to explicitly and fully incorporate all provisions of the Convention into its national legislation to ensure their direct application by the courts and administrative decision-making bodies;
(c) Promote and defend a human rights model for disability and eliminate the use of all derogatory language in laws and when referring to persons with disabilities;
(d) Expedite the revision of the National Policy on Disability and the finalization of the national plan of action on disability, and allocate sufficient resources for its implementation.
8.The Committee is concerned that the State party was unable to sufficiently engage with organizations of persons with disabilities with respect to the reporting process. It is also concerned that:
(a)Existing legislation, mainly the National Council for Disabled Persons Act (1994), does not provide for the effective participation of representative organizations of persons with disabilities;
(b)The National Council for the Disabled has limited involvement and participation by persons with disabilities and that there is no permanent forum for persons with disabilities to meaningfully engage and participate in legislative and policy formulation and implementation;
(c)Representative organizations of persons with disabilities receive insufficient support to carry out their work.
9. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Amend the National Council for Disabled Persons Act (1994) to ensure that persons with disabilities, through their representative organizations, are included at all levels of legislative and policy formulation;
(b) Strengthen the involvement and effective consultation and participation of persons with disabilities in the National Council for the Disabled and adopt measures to establish an appropriate forum for organizations of persons with disabilities to meaningfully engage and participate in decision-making processes;
(c) Offer appropriate support, including financial support and partnerships, to representative organizations of persons with disabilities to carry out their work.
10.The Committee is concerned that the State party has not yet ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
11. The Committee recommends that the State party ratify the Optional Protocol without further delay.
B.Specific rights (arts. 5−30)
Equality and non-discrimination (art. 5)
12.The Committee notes with concern that:
(a)The concept of “reasonable provision” in article 36 (a) of the Constitution of the State party does not correspond to “reasonable accommodation” as enshrined in articles 2 and 5 (3) of the Convention;
(b)The legislation of the State party lacks an express prohibition of discrimination on the ground of disability, including the denial of reasonable accommodation as a form of discrimination, in all fields of life;
(c)Multiple and intersectional discrimination faced by persons with disabilities, particularly women, girls and older persons with disabilities, is not expressly recognized or prohibited;
(d)There is no mechanism to regulate and provide redress or compensation in cases of laws and practices that are discriminatory on the ground of disability.
13. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Develop a policy framework and guidance on the realization of “ reasonable provision ” in the Constitution as foreseen in articles 2 and 5 (3) of the Convention;
(b) Recognize the denial of reasonable accommodation as a form of disability-based discrimination;
(c) Explicitly recognize and prohibit multiple and intersectional discrimination;
(d) Establish an effective mechanism to monitor all aspects of compliance with anti-discrimination legislation, including effective access by persons with disabilities to seek legal remedies and ensuring sanctions against perpetrators of such discrimination.
Women with disabilities (art. 6)
14.The Committee is concerned that legislative and policy measures and action plans to support women and girls do not explicitly consider women and girls with disabilities or address intersectional discrimination against them, including those living on rural and dispersed outer islands. It is also concerned at the absence of data and research carried out on multiple and intersectional discrimination faced by women with disabilities with a view to designing adequate policy responses. It regrets the absence of any specific measures to increase the visibility of women with disabilities and ensure their full development, advancement and empowerment.
15. The Committee recommends that the State party, with reference to its general comment No. 3 (2016) on women and girls with disabilities and in view of targets 5.1, 5.2 and 5.5 of the Sustainable Development Goals:
(a) Provide adequate support for women and girls with disabilities, including those living on rural and dispersed outer islands, particularly in the fields of education, health, employment and political and public life;
(b) Mainstream the issues of women and girls with disabilities in the anti-discrimination legal provisions and policies related to women and girls;
(c) Collect data systematically on women and girls with disabilities and establish indicators that can be used to assess the impact of the measures taken to counter discrimination against them with regard to their socioeconomic and cultural participation;
(d) Adopt specific measures for the full development, advancement and empowerment of women and girls with disabilities.
Children with disabilities (art. 7)
16.The Committee notes with concern:
(a)Delays in the review of the Children Act and other child-related laws and that corporal punishment has not been prohibited in all settings;
(b)That children with disabilities do not access basic services, including education, health-care services and rehabilitation, on an equal basis with others;
(c)The absence of mechanisms for children with disabilities to freely express their opinion on matters that affect them.
17. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Expedite the revision of the Children Act and ensure the inclusion of a disability perspective in line with the Convention and a ban on corporal punishment in all settings;
(b) Implement measures, including support services and financial allocations to parents and families of children with disabilities, to ensure that, in practice, children with disabilities can exercise their rights on an equal basis with others, particularly relating to the right to access inclusive education, health-care services and rehabilitation;
(c) Develop and adopt mechanisms to ensure that children with disabilities can freely express their views on all matters affecting them.
Awareness-raising (art. 8)
18.The Committee is concerned about:
(a)The lack of a coherent national policy and strategy to address attitudinal barriers towards and stereotypes of persons with disabilities, including among parents and extended families, employers, service providers and the community as a whole;
(b)The insufficient resources, including financial resources, dedicated to raising awareness to promote the rights of persons with disabilities through accessible means, modes and formats of communication;
(c)The insufficient engagement with the media, including both public and private media, and social networks, to raise awareness and promote a positive image of persons with disabilities and their valuable contributions to society.
19. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Adopt and implement, in consultation with representative organizations of persons with disabilities, a comprehensive public awareness-raising policy and strategy, including campaigns to promote the rights of persons with disabilities, with the aim of changing attitudes towards disability and building a culture that values diversity and the participation and involvement in society of all persons with disabilities;
(b) Allocate sufficient human, technical and financial resources to raise awareness about the human rights model of disability and the Convention;
(c) Engage with the media and social networks in awareness-raising efforts.
Accessibility (art. 9)
20.The Committee is concerned at the undue delay in revising legislation, including the Town and Country Planning Act, to improve accessibility in terms of the built environment, transportation, and information and communications technology. It notes with concern:
(a)The absence of a strategic plan for the implementation of accessibility standards;
(b)The insufficient involvement of representative organizations of persons with disabilities in monitoring and assessing the suitability of accessible facilities and services;
(c)The absence of a monitoring framework to evaluate compliance with accessibility standards in line with the provisions of the Convention.
21. Recalling the Committee ’ s general comment No. 2 (2014) on accessibility, the Committee recommends that the State party pay attention to the link between article 9 of the Convention and Goal 9 and targets 11.2 and 11.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals, and that it:
(a) Expedite the review of relevant laws, including the Town and Country Planning Act, to ensure that legislation is compliant with the obligations of the State party under the Convention;
(b) Adopt, in close consultation with representative organizations of persons with disabilities, a comprehensive national accessibility action plan with a set time frame, indicators, and monitoring and evaluation benchmarks to effectively implement accessibility standards covering the built environment, transportation and information and communications, with sanctions for non-compliance;
(c) Establish a framework for monitoring and enforcing the implementation of article 9 of the Convention.
Situations of risk and humanitarian emergencies (art. 11)
22.The Committee regrets the lack of inclusion of a disability perspective in the Disaster Risk Management Act (2014) and the absence of participation of persons with disabilities through their representative organizations in the design and implementation of laws, strategies and plans relating to climate change and situations of risk. It also notes with concern that information on disaster risk reduction and emergency preparedness is not accessible to all persons with disabilities.
23. The Committee recommends that the State party continue efforts to ensure the inclusion of a disability rights perspective in the Disaster Risk Management Act (2014). It also recommends that the State party, particularly through the Division of Risk and Disaster Management, consult closely with organizations of persons with disabilities to ensure that the requirements of persons with disabilities are included in the design and implementation of all disaster risk reduction and management plans and climate change adaptation, providing for a single point of contact in situations of emergency and disasters, in accordance with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015−2030 .
Equal recognition before the law (art. 12)
24.The Committee is concerned about remaining discriminatory legal provisions, draft bills and practices that restrict the rights of persons with disabilities, including in relation to entering into contracts, voting, marrying and inheriting property. It is also concerned that, contrary to the Convention, the proposed amendments to the Civil Code in the White Paper of the Ministry of Legal Affairs in relation to marriage (art. 238 (f)), capacity to inherit property (art. 725 (1)) and capacity to enter into a contract (art. 1123) provide for substituted decision-making for persons with disabilities.
25. Recalling article 12 (2) of the Convention and its general comment No. 1 (2014) on equal recognition before the law, the Committee recommends that the State party take the legal and other measures necessary to repeal and amend restrictions on the right of persons with disabilities to equal recognition before the law, including those in the draft provisions in the Civil Code Bill 2017 concerning substituted decision-making. It also recommends that the State party ensure legal capacity of persons with disabilities on an equal basis with others and that it replace substituted decision-making regimes with supported decision-making regimes that respect the autonomy, will and preferences of the person.
Access to justice (art. 13)
26.The Committee notes with concern:
(a)Obstacles to the full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in the justice system, in particular article 281 (a) of the Criminal Procedure Act which restricts the participation of jurors with a perceived or actual impairment in criminal trials;
(b)The difficulties that persons with disabilities face in their access to justice, such as the inadequate provision of legal aid, sign language interpretation and procedural accommodation;
(c)The low level of awareness among the judiciary and the insufficiency of qualified personnel trained on the rights of persons with disabilities.
27. Paying attention to article 13 of the Convention in the implementation of target 16.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals, the Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Repeal article 281 (a) of the Criminal Procedure Act to enable persons with disabilities to participate effectively in the justice system as jurors;
(b) Ensure that persons with disabilities can have effective access to justice on an equal basis with others, including through the provision of free legal aid and procedural accommodation, including by means of the Easy Read format, professional sign language interpretation and the use of Braille, and establish related safeguards to enable the participation of persons with disabilities in all legal proceedings on an equal basis with others;
(c) Build capacity and understanding about the Convention among the judiciary, lawyers and law enforcement personnel.
Liberty and security of the person (art. 14)
28.The Committee is concerned that provisions in civil and criminal law, including the Civil Code (art. 510 (2)) and the Mental Health Act (2006), permit the involuntary hospitalization and institutionalization of persons with disabilities, including children, on the basis of their actual or perceived impairment.
29. The Committee, in accordance with its guidelines on the right to liberty and security of persons with disabilities (see A/72/55, annex I) , recommends that the State party expedite the revision of all relevant legislation to:
(a) Repeal all relevant provisions in the Mental Health Act (2006) that legitimize the involuntary hospitalization or institutionalization of persons with disabilities and to increase the availability of community-based mental health services;
(b) Repeal the Civil Code provision that explicitly deprives persons with disabilities of their liberty by involuntarily committal to mental health institutions.
30. The Committee recommends that, in the meantime, the State party ensure that persons with disabilities deprived of their liberty on the grounds of their actual or perceived impairment have access to a court of law to challenge any such action.
Freedom from exploitation, violence and abuse (art. 16)
31.The Committee notes with appreciation the work of civil society regarding the protection of groups at risk of violence, such as persons with disabilities, but regrets the lack of a policy or programme in this regard. The Committee is seriously concerned about:
(a)Violence against women and children with disabilities;
(b)The lack of the explicit incorporation of a disability perspective in all efforts to combat gender-based violence and domestic violence;
(c)The insufficiency of awareness-raising and capacity-building training programmes for relevant personnel on the prevention of violence and abuse of persons with disabilities;
(d)The lack of accessible shelters and support services for persons with disabilities who are victims of violence, particularly women and children with disabilities;
(e)The lack of training programmes for persons with disabilities to raise awareness of their rights and to know where to seek assistance.
32. The Committee recommends that the State party ensure that a disability perspective is included in all efforts to address gender-based violence and domestic violence. It recommends that the State party:
(a) Enact legislation, policies and a strategy to protect persons with disabilities, particularly women and girls, from exploitation, violence and abuse and to provide for redress mechanisms and compensation;
(b) Explicitly incorporate a disability perspective in all efforts to combat gender-based violence and domestic violence;
(c) Provide systematic training programmes for police officers, court officials, social workers, health professionals and other professionals to raise awareness about the rights of persons with disabilities and to detect and report violence against persons with disabilities;
(d) Ensure the adequate allocation of resources for support services and redress for persons with disabilities, including accessible shelters, support services and helplines available to persons with disabilities, particularly women and children, who are exposed to violence;
(e) Ensure that persons with disabilities are aware of their rights to be free from exploitation, violence and abuse and to know where to seek assistance.
Living independently and being included in the community (art. 19)
33.The Committee is concerned about:
(a)The absence of legal measures in the State party to ensure that persons with disabilities can live independently;
(b)The limited support that persons with disabilities and their families receive to enable them to exercise their right to independent living and inclusion in the community, which has resulted in cases of abandonment of persons with disabilities and their being placed in the care of the State in a residential institution;
(c)The absence of a deinstitutionalization strategy for those persons with disabilities placed in existing residential institutions.
34. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Expressly recognize in its legislation the right of persons with disabilities to choose with whom and where they wish to live;
(b) Provide sufficient support to persons with disabilities and their families to enable them to exercise their rights to independent living and to be included in the community;
(c) Urgently start the process of deinstitutionalization of those persons with disabilities still in a residential setting and increase the availability of community-based services aimed at enabling persons with disabilities to live and participate in the community.
Personal mobility (art. 20)
35.The Committee is concerned about the shortage of personal mobility equipment and qualified personnel. It is also concerned that the eligibility criteria for the provision of assistive devices for personal mobility and tax exemptions for such equipment may not be in line with the Convention, and that taxes on certain mobility equipment constitute a burden to persons with disabilities.
36. The Committee recommends that the State party take measures to increase the availability of personal mobility equipment and build the capacity of relevant personnel. It also recommends that the State party formulate clear policy guidelines, in line with the Convention, on eligibility for assistive devices and that it exempt persons with disabilities from taxes on the personal mobility aids and assistive devices, technologies and services they require.
Freedom of expression and opinion, and access to information (art. 21)
37.The Committee is concerned about the insufficiency of studies carried out by the State party to promote the recognition of Creole sign language as an official language and about the insufficient efforts to ensure that public information is accessible to persons with disabilities, including through accessible formats such as Braille, sign language interpretation, audio description and Easy Read. It is also concerned about the lack of accessibility of information in the mass media.
38. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Formally develop Creole sign language, in collaboration with organizations of persons with disabilities and academia from other neighbouring Creole language-speaking countries, and officially recognize Creole sign language;
(b) Take measures to improve the accessibility of information and communications formats and technologies that are appropriate for persons with disabilities, including web accessibility, sign language, subtitles, Braille, Easy Read and plain language, in relation to all public services;
(c) Increase the accessibility of the mass media, particularly with respect to live broadcasting.
Respect for home and the family (art. 23)
39.The Committee is concerned about the insufficient support services available to strengthen the capacity of parents and families of children with disabilities.
40. The Committee recommends that the State party allocate sufficient resources to support parents and families of children with disabilities, especially single parents and parents with disabilities.
Education (art. 24)
41.The Committee is concerned that special, segregated education persists, despite the policy on inclusive education adopted in 2015 and contrary to the Convention and the Committee’s general comment No. 4 (2016) on the right to inclusive education. It notes with concern that:
(a)There is no legal duty to provide and monitor the provision of reasonable accommodation to students with disabilities in mainstream education;
(b)There is no mechanism to monitor accessibility standards within and outside school infrastructures and that facilities and services remain inaccessible;
(c)There is no training for pedagogical and non-pedagogical staff on the right to inclusive education;
(d)The budgetary allocation to support the policy of inclusive education is insufficient;
(e)The State party has not carried out any research on the socioeconomic and cultural benefits of inclusive education.
42. Recalling its general comment No. 4 (2016) on the right to inclusive education and Sustainable Development Goal 4, especially targets 4.5 and 4.a, the Committee urges the State party to:
(a) Introduce new legislation or amend the Education Act 2004 to bring it into line with article 24 of the Convention and its general comment No. 4, including the recognition that denial of reasonable accommodation for students with disabilities constitutes discrimination;
(b) Set up a mechanism to monitor accessibility standards both inside and outside the school environment;
(c) Ensure the adequate and continuous capacity-building and training of all schoolteachers and education personnel on inclusive education;
(d) Provide sufficient resources and continue efforts to implement its inclusive education policy and to transform its education system, ensuring that children with disabilities have the necessary support services to exercise their right to education;
(e) Carry out research on the socioeconomic and cultural benefits of the right to inclusive education as a tool to promote awareness-raising on the human rights model of disability and inclusive education.
Health (art. 25)
43.The Committee notes that health services and health information are not accessible to persons with disabilities, including services and information relating to sexual and reproductive health and rights and HIV/AIDS. It is also concerned that:
(a)Under existing legislation, the consent to medical treatment of the person with a disability can be waived and the decision can be made by a third party;
(b)Health-care professionals are not sufficiently trained on the human rights of persons with disabilities;
(c)Primary prevention of disability is misunderstood as an implementation measure of the Convention.
44. The Committee recommends that the State party continue improving the accessibility of timely and quality health-care services for persons with disabilities, including in the areas of sexual and reproductive health and rights and HIV/AIDS prevention and care. It also recommends that the State party:
(a) Ensure that all medical treatments and interventions are undertaken with the free, prior and informed consent of the person with a disability concerned;
(b) Carry out accessible public health campaigns directed at persons with disabilities;
(c) Provide the services for persons with disabilities that are required by their specific disabilities as well as other services designed to minimize and prevent further disabilities, including among children;
(d) Ensure that personnel in hospitals and health-care centres receive regular and compulsory training on the rights of persons with disabilities, including on the individual right to free and informed consent, sexual and reproductive health and rights, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections;
(e) Take into account article 25 of the Convention while implementing targets 3.7 and 3.8 of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Work and employment (art. 27)
45.The Committee is concerned about:
(a)The meaning of “reasonable provision” in article 36 (a) of the Constitution, which is not the same as “reasonable accommodation” in the Convention and is unclear, and that denial of reasonable accommodation in the workplace is not a recognized form of discrimination and is not sanctioned by the law;
(b)The lack of a designated body for monitoring and sanctioning non-compliance with the Employment Act and the 2013 policy on elimination of discrimination against persons with disabilities at work;
(c)The absence of official data on persons with disabilities employed in the public and private sectors;
(d)The insufficient opportunities for persons with disabilities to join and remain in the workforce.
46. The Committee recommends that the State party pay attention to the links between article 27 of the Convention and target 8.5 of the Sustainable Development Goals, and that it :
(a) Revise the meaning of “ reasonable provision ” and ensure that it is in line with the Convention, and specify the legal obligation to provide reasonable accommodation in the workplace and adopt measures to ensure the effective monitoring of its implementation, with appropriate remedies for the denial of requests for such accommodation;
(b) Designate an entity for monitoring and sanctioning non-compliance with the Employment Act and the 2013 policy on elimination of discrimination against persons with disabilities at work;
(c) Collect disaggregated data on the number of persons with disabilities in the public and private sectors;
(d) Adopt measures to increase the number of employed persons with disabilities, particularly women, to promote employment opportunities in the open labour market, in self-employment and in entrepreneurship.
Adequate standard of living and social protection (art. 28)
47.The Committee is concerned that the assessment and eligibility criteria for access to social protection and poverty reduction programmes for children and adults with disabilities, particularly women, girls and older persons, are not based on the human rights model of disability. It notes with concern that persons with disabilities use personal finances to cover the additional financial costs resulting from disability, including the costs of duties, taxes and other charges on imported assisted devices for living independently.
48. The Committee recommends that the State party review the legislation on the provision of benefits to persons with disabilities, with genuine participation by representative organizations of persons with disabilities, to ensure that the assessment and eligibility criteria for social protection and poverty reduction programmes are in line with the Convention and the human rights model of disability. It also recommends that the State party take measures to ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy the same living standards as persons without disabilities on comparable incomes.
Participation in political and public life (art. 29)
49.The Committee is concerned about:
(a)The low level of participation of persons with disabilities in public and political life;
(b)The lack of information in accessible formats on the electoral processes;
(c)The inaccessibility of registration, polling stations and voting procedures.
50. The Committee recommends that the State party take the necessary measures to ensure the right of all persons with disabilities to participate in political and public life, including electoral matters. It recommends that the State party:
(a) Adopt specific steps to increase the participation and effective representation of persons with disabilities, particularly women, in political and public decision-making positions;
(b) Provide information about electoral processes in accessible formats;
(c) Remove all physical and other barriers from, and provide reasonable accommodation throughout, the whole electoral process.
Participation in cultural life, recreation, leisure and sport (art. 30)
51.The Committee notes the brilliant performance of athletes with disabilities at the regional and international levels and the excellent performance of artists with disabilities. However, the Committee is concerned about:
(a)The lack of inclusive leisure, recreation and sports activities;
(b)The fact that the State party has not yet acceded to the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled;
(c)The absence of systematic policies and practices for the promotion of accessibility in the tourism sector.
52. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Promote inclusive leisure, recreation and sports activities;
(b) Accede to the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled as soon as possible;
(c) Ensure that tourism policies and practices are accessible to and inclusive of persons with disabilities, and disseminate the World Tourism Organization Recommendations on Accessible Tourism to all travel agencies and tourism agencies.
C.Specific obligations (arts. 31–33)
Statistics and data collection (art. 31)
53.The Committee notes with concern that the approximate number of persons with disabilities identified in the 2010 census is much lower than the global World Health Organization estimate of 15 per cent of the population. It is also concerned at the lack of updated comprehensive and reliable statistical data and information about the situation of persons with disabilities, which is not disaggregated by sex or age, resulting in difficulties for the development of appropriate public policies.
54. In view of target 17.18 of the Sustainable Development Goals, the Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Establish systematic data - collection and reporting procedures under the National Institute of Statistics;
(b) Systematically collect data on disability in accordance with the Convention, such as by including the short set of questions on disability designed by the Washington Group on Disability Statistics;
(c) Develop evidence-based policies to respond to the situation of persons with disabilities, in collaboration with their representative organizations.
International cooperation (art. 32)
55.The Committee is concerned about the lack of a systematic and institutionalized approach to incorporating the Convention into its development cooperation initiatives, including programmes for the national implementation and monitoring of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and in the context of small island developing States. It is also concerned about the absence of evaluation mechanisms to measure the impact of development cooperation on persons with disabilities and the lack of information about the effective involvement of organizations of persons with disabilities as development cooperation partners.
56. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Adopt a development policy in line with the Convention that incorporates its principles and values into all the development cooperation policies and programmes of the State party;
(b) Mainstream disability in the national implementation and monitoring of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals;
(c) Adopt measures to ensure the effective participation of persons with disabilities through their representative organizations in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of programmes and projects developed in international cooperation efforts and in the context of small island developing States.
National implementation and monitoring (art. 33)
57.The Committee is concerned that:
(a)The State party has not yet designated the focal point and/or a coordinating mechanism for the implementation of the Convention and that the role of the National Council for Disabled Persons is mostly relegated to advocacy;
(b)The National Human Rights Commission set up in 2012 and the Office of the Ombudsman do not comply with the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles);
(c)The independent monitoring mechanism has not been designated or established;
(d)Persons with disabilities, through their representative organizations, are not fully involved in processes relating to monitoring the implementation of the Convention.
58. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Designate one or more focal points for the implementation of legislation and policies which are in conformity with the provisions of the Convention;
(b) Adopt measures, including providing sufficient resources, to ensure that the mandate of the National Human Rights Commission is separate from, but complements, that of the Office of the Ombudsman and that the national human rights institution complies with the Paris Principles;
(c) Designate an independent monitoring mechanism in conformity with the Paris Principles and the Committee ’ s guidelines on independent monitoring frameworks and their participation in the work of the Committee (see CRPD/C/1/Rev.1, annex);
(d) Ensure that persons with disabilities and their representative organizations participate fully in the framework monitoring the implementation of the Convention, as required by article 33 (3).
IV.Follow-up
Dissemination of information
59. The Committee emphasizes the importance of all the recommendations contained in the present concluding recommendations and would like to draw the attention of the State party to the recommendation contained in paragraph 7 on general obligations, on which urgent measures must be taken.
60. The Committee requests the State party to implement the recommendations contained in the present concluding observations. It recommends that the State party transmit the concluding observations for consideration and action to members of the Government and parliament, officials in relevant ministries, the judiciary and members of relevant professional groups, such as education, medical and legal professionals, as well as to local authorities, the private sector and the media, using modern social communication strategies.
61. The Committee strongly encourages the State party to involve civil society organizations, in particular organizations of persons with disabilities, in the preparation of its periodic report.
62. The Committee requests that the State party disseminate the present concluding observations widely, including to non-governmental organizations and organizations of persons with disabilities, and to persons with disabilities themselves and members of their families, in national and minority languages, including sign language, and in accessible formats, and to make them available on the government website on human rights.
Next periodic report
63. The Committee requests the State party to submit its combined second to fourth periodic reports by 2 November 2023 and to include in them information on the implementation of the recommendations made in the present concluding observations. The Committee also requests the State party to consider submitting the above-mentioned report under the Committee ’ s simplified reporting procedure, according to which the Committee prepares a list of issues at least one year prior to the due date set for the report of a State party. The replies of a State party to such a list of issues constitute its report.