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Purpose and Scope of the Convention (CRPD) Contents and Relevance of Art. 12 CRPD

Equal recognition before the law and legal capacity – implications and consequences of Art. 12 CRPD Nicosia, 12th March 2010 Ulrich Hellmann, Lebenshilfe Germany. Purpose and Scope of the Convention (CRPD) Contents and Relevance of Art. 12 CRPD Equal recognition before the law

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Purpose and Scope of the Convention (CRPD) Contents and Relevance of Art. 12 CRPD

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  1. Equal recognition before the law and legal capacity – implications and consequences of Art. 12 CRPDNicosia, 12th March 2010Ulrich Hellmann, Lebenshilfe Germany

  2. Purpose and Scope of the Convention (CRPD) • Contents and Relevance of Art. 12 CRPD • Equal recognition before the law • The concept of `legal capacity‘ • Supported decision-making vs. Substituted decision-making • Safeguards and protection • Examples of existing legal systems • Conclusions + options for change

  3. The CRPD • is a legally binding international human rights treaty • does not create or recognize new rights for persons with disabilities, but describes and clarifies obligations and legal duties of States to respect and ensure existing human rights with regard to the life situation of persons with disabilities • once a country has ratified the CRPD, the obligations established by the convention must be reflected in its national legal framework and related policies

  4. The structure of the CRPD • Preamble – not legally binding, but important principles for the interpretation of the articles of the CRPD • General Part (Articles 1 to 7) – goals and principles, definitions • Special Part (Articles 8 to 30) – specific rights and measures • Procedural Regulations (Articles 31 to 50) –Rules for the implementation of the CRPD The Optional Protocol: • Additional regulations on individual or group complaints and an inquiry procedure

  5. Purpose and scope of the CRPD • General purpose: Art.1 para. 1: The purpose of the present Convention is to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities, and to promote respect for their inherent dignity

  6. Defining disability: The CRPD describes disability in preamble e) as follows: Recognizing that disability is an evolving concept and that disability results from the interaction between persons with impairments and attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinders their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others • All persons with long-term disabilities are covered, Art. 1

  7. General Principles - Art. 3 – the values of the CRPD: • Human dignity, • Individual autonomy • Respect for difference • Non-discrimination, full and effective participation and inclusion in society (also see Art. 5 and 8), • Equality of opportunity, • Equality between men and women, respect for the evolving capacities and the rights of children with disabilities (also see Art. 6 and 7) • Accessibility (also see Art. 9)

  8. Article 12 • Art. 12 was one of the most debated regulations during the negociations for the CRPD • Art. 12 is the reaction of the UN on the inability of many States to prevent persons with disabilities from social exclusion and abuse • In many countries throughout the world legal systems of incapacitation and full guardianship for decades were used not to protect, but to exclude persons with disabilities from normal life by depriving them from all personal and procedural rights • Futhermore, traditional guardianship systems were often used to incarcerate persons with disabilities in big institutions against their will

  9. Article 12 is of fundamental importance Art. 12 is essential for the enjoyment of many other rights which are guaranteed by the Convention, for example • Art. 13 - access to justice • Art. 14 – liberty and security of the person • Art. 19 – living indepently and being included in the community • Art. 25 – acces to appropiate health service on the basis of free and informed consent • Art. 27 – access to work and employment • Art. 29 – participation in political and public life, including the right to vote and be elected For all these rights the right to self-determination is a precondition!

  10. During the negociations for the CRPD at New York, there were controversial discussions on the issue of „legal capacity“ and „decicion-making“ • The Internatonal Disability Alliance successfully showed that traditional models of incapacitation and substituted decision-making did not benefit people with disabilities in most countries • It was finally considered as a „wrong signal“ to acknowledge guardianship and only put safety-mechanisms in the CRPD • As a result, Art. 12 was designed as a paradigm shift with regard to the legal status of persons with disability

  11. Article 12 - Equal recognition before the law • States Parties reaffirm that persons with disabilities have the right to recognition everywhere as persons before the law. similar to Art. 16 of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR): „Everyone shall have the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.“ Pursuant to this provision, the individual is recognised as a potential bearer of legal rights and obligations. It gives to the human being status and capacity in the legal order. Without it, a person would not be truly free, for it would be subject to injustice and injury without legal remedy. The term „reaffirm“ shows that ths is not a new human right!

  12. Article 12 – the capacity to act: (2)‘States Parties shall recognize that persons with disabilities enjoy legal capacity on an equal basis with others in all aspects of life‘. Similar to Article 15 (2) of the Convention for the Elimination of Discimination aganist Women (CEDAW): „States Paries shall accord to women, in civil matters, a legal capacity identical to that of men and the same opportunities to exercise that capacity………“ Legal capacity in the sense of this provision is defined as the capacity and power to exercise rights and undertake obligations by way of one‘s own conduct (‚dynamic element‘). This concept logically presupposes the capability to be a potential holder of rights and obligations (‘static element’, Art. 12 par. 1).

  13. Article 12 – support to exercise legal capacity: (3)‘States Parties shall take appropriate measures to provide access by persons with disabilities to the support they may require in exercising their legal capacity‘. Whereasthecapacity to be a person before the law belongs to all human beings from birth to death, the capacity to act may be subject to additional requirements, for example: • Adult age (18) • the capacity to understand the meaning of one‘s actions and their consequences This provision provides for the support a person with disability might need to exercise its legal capacity. It creates a new obligation for States Parties to fulfill the enjoyment of legal capacity. There is no mention of ‚substituted decision making‘

  14. Article 12 – protection and safeguards: 4. ‚States Parties shall ensure that all measures that relate to the exercise of legal capacity provide for appropriate and effective safeguards to prevent abuse in accordance with international human rights law. Such safeguards shall ensure that measures relating to the exercise of legal capacity respect the rights, will and preferences of the person, are free of conflict of interest and undue influence, are proportional and tailored to the person’s circumstances, apply for the shortest time possible and are subject to regular review by a competent, independent and impartial authority or judicial body. The safeguards shall be proportional to the degree to which such measures affect the person’s rights and interests‘.

  15. Article 12 (4) – protection and safeguards: • The provision of Art. 12 (4) clearly refers to support measures to exercise legal capacity • „all measures“ is interpreted in a way that the safeguards of Art 12 (4) also apply to traditional guardianship measures • States Parties take the view that legal structures for substituted decision-making might still be necessary and are not prohibited by Art. 12 • Jim McLay, moderator at the 2nd States Parties Conference: ‘Art. 12 from the legal point of view is the biggest challenge of the CRPD, as no Member State of the UN has already been able to establish such support systems‘

  16. Declarations and reservations with regard to Art. 12: • Australia: understanding that the CRPD allows fully supported or substituted decision-making; • Egypt: interpreting legal capacity as the capacity to acquire rights and assume legal responsibility, but not the capacity to perform rights; • Mexico: in case of conflict between Art. 12 (2) and national law the provision which provides greatest legal protection shall prevail; • Syria: interpretation of Art. 12 (2) in the sense of the Arab Group, letter of 5th December 2006; • UK: Exerciseofsome rights related to social security payments are not yet subject of regular review (Art. 12, 4); • Canada: Plans for an interpretive declaration about the right to apply substitute decision arrangements where appropriate.

  17. 3. Examples of existing legal systems: • Austria 1984 • Germany 1992 • Italy 2004 • Hungary 2009 • British Columbia, Canada 1996

  18. Law Reform in Austria: • 1984: Replacement of full incapacitation and plenary guardianship by the new measure of ‚Sachwalterschaft‘ • A single, tailor-madetype ofguardianship according to the support-needs of the disabled person for financial and/or personal affairs, court-authorization is required for ‚important‘ decisions taken by the ‚Sachwalter‘ • Guardian (‚Sachwalter‘) is entitled to take decisions on behalf of the person • Person under guardianship is legally incompetent concerning matters covered by guardianship • 2006/2007 law reforms to strenghten alternatives to guardianship: recognition of substitute-decision-making by family members, power of attorney, living wills (advanced directives)

  19. Law Reform in Germany: • 1992: Replacement of full and partial incapacitation and plenary guardianship by the new measure of ‚Betreuung‘ • a single, tailor-made type of guardianship according to the support-needs of the disabled person • the guardian (‚Betreuer‘) is entitled to take decisions on behalf of the person • court authorization is required for ‚important‘ decisions taken by the ‚Betreuer‘ • person under ‚Betreuung‘ is not declared legally incompetent according to matters covered by guardianship, but remains competent for personal decisions whenever possible; Guardian has to obey the wishes of the disabled person • 2005/2009 law reforms to strenghten alternatives to guardianship: recognition and promotion of advanced directives, living will

  20. Law Reform in Italy: • 2004: introduction of a new measure of legal representation and support (‚amministrazione di sostegno‘) in order to promote self determination and autonomy • New measure in addition to traditional full and partial incapacitation and guardianship • The supporter is entitled by court to support and/or represent the disabled person only in specific matters where needed • The disabled person is not loosing legal capacity under this measure

  21. Law Reform in Hungary: 2009: Reform of guardianship in the Civil Code of Hungary • Abolition of plenary guardianship • Introduction of a measure of supported-decision making, based on an agreement between the disabled person and a support person • Supported-decision making does not limit legal capacity • Partial guardianship with limitation of legal capacity as a matter of last resort, including a ‚joint-decision-making mechanism‘ • Law reform is regarded as great step forward by hungarian NGO

  22. Province of British Columbia, Canada: • 1996: Representation Agreement Act • Incorporation of supported decision-making into law • An individual with disabilities can enter a ‚representation agreement‘ with a support network giving the network the authority to asist him/her in making decisions and represent him/her in certain matters • Persons with significant disabilities can enter a RA simply by demonstrating „trust“ in the designated supporters, without having to prove ‚legal capacity‘ • A community-based ‚Representation Agreement Resource Center‘ assits in developing and sustaining support networks. • The RARC provides a registry in which agreements can be posted

  23. General obligations of States Parties - Art. 4 CRPD: • undertake to ensure and promote the full realization of all human rightsand fundamental freedoms for all persons with disabilities without discrimination of any kind on the basis of disability, Art. 4 para. 1; • with regard to economic, social and cultural rights, each State Party undertakes to take measures to the maximum of ist available resources and…… with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of these rights, without prejudice to those obligations contained in the present Convention that are immediately applicable according to international law, Art. 4 para. 2;

  24. Antidiscrimination and reasonable accommodation – Art. 5: • All persons are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law • In order to promote equality and eliminate discrimination, States Parties shall take all appropriate steps to ensure that reasonable accommodation is provided • The right to equality before the law, legal capacity and protection from discrimination are human rights immediately applicable. Supported decision-making systems can be regarded as a means of ‚reasonable accommodation‘ to promote the capacity to act

  25. Inclusion Europe and the European Disability Forum have published policy-papers with regard to an adequate ‚Understanding and implementing Article 12 CRPD‘ , in order to make the paradigm shift set up by Art. 12 a reality in law Key elements are: • Promotion of self-advocacy to advance legal capacity to act • Replacement of traditional guardianship by a system of supported decision-making • Implementation of supported decision-making, including mechanisms for selection and registration of support persons • Recognizing all forms of communication of disabled persons • Implementation of safeguards for both supported persons and suppport persons to solve conflicts and prevent abuse

  26. Conclusions: • Art. 12 is essential for persons with intellectual disabilities to be able to enjoy the rights of the CRPD • It is part of States Parties obligation to respect, protect and fulfill these rights, therefore replacement of plenary guardianship by flexible alternatives is a necessary step • Making the paradigm shift from traditional guardianship to supported decision-making systems a reality will not be an immediate change, but a long-term process • Persons with intellectual disability should strongly insist on full implementation of the principles set up by Art. 12 in the near future

  27. Thank you for listening and for your participation!

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