As Barbados embarks on commemorating March the Month of the Disabled many advocates are deeply concerned, that after years of advocating for legislation to protect the rights of Persons with Disabilities (PWD), the level of commitment in Barbados to signing this human rights treaty on the 30 March 2007, appears to be sadly lacking.

The United Nation Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is a groundbreaking piece of international legislation that comprehensively addresses issues that impact on the lives of PWD.

Its formation is the result of five years of intense negotiations by Disability Advocates, Government representatives and disabled persons themselves.  All 191 Member States were invited to send delegates to the Ad Hoc meetings at United Nations head quarters in New York.

Two Persons with Disabilities represented Barbados at the last Ad Hoc meeting and were honored to be part of the historic adoption process. We along with millions from across the world celebrated the adoption of the Convention and eagerly awaited the signing by our governments.

With the White Paper on Disability in Parliament for the past five years and the setting up of the National Advisory Committee on the Rights of PWD in April 2005, advocates felt it would be a natural progression by government to fully embrace the convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Verbal commitments to our rights and dignity also made some of us feel confident that Barbados would be one of the first state parties in the region to sign the historic human rights treaty; sadly this does not appear to be the case.

The convention was adopted by State Parties in August 2006 and the UN General Assembly in December 2006, plenty of time before the signing ceremony on March 30th for countries with interest in supporting the rights of persons with disabilities to consider its contents and make the necessary preparations.

The convention on the rights of persons with disabilities does not give us more rights than any other individual. What the convention does, is ensures that Governments place the same value on the lives of persons with disabilities.

There are over 600 million persons with disabilities in the world with two thirds of them in developing countries; there are approximately 14,700 PWD in Barbados, from these figures we could see that the convention would not just protect the rights of a few. Additionally, the challenges we experience also have an impact on our families, friends and caregivers.
 
We need the nation?s support in achieving what so many have fought for and that is, basic human rights. So please support persons with disabilities in achieving what so many take for granted.

Boneta Phillips
President
Barbados Council for the Disabled