Jasour – News Desk
Effective access to support is a fundamental element for individuals in need of care and assistance to enjoy a wide range of human rights, including the right to independent living and community inclusion. The support provided to individuals with disabilities, tailored to their specific needs, must be regarded as a guaranteed right. Individuals with disabilities have the right to choose services and providers based on their unique requirements and personal preferences.
This was highlighted in a report by Volker Türk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, on international care and support standards in the field of human rights. The report was presented to the 58th session of the Human Rights Council, continuing until April 4.
Traditional care systems often reflect discriminatory practices and stereotypes based on factors such as disability and age, neglecting the necessity to ensure the autonomy and independence of persons with disabilities, children, youth, and the elderly. These systems often institutionalize forms of care.
According to the report, care and support systems must recognize the roles and rights of all individuals in providing and seeking care and support, respect their autonomy and decision-making capacity, consider their gender-based experiences, and adopt a comprehensive life-cycle approach to ensure consistent enjoyment of human rights throughout their lives.
The High Commissioner stated that current care systems are rooted in and perpetuate gender inequality. Women and girls, including young women, the elderly, and women and girls with disabilities, bear the majority of the caregiving and support burdens, often at the expense of their own rights and well-being. They also face gender inequality when they themselves require care and support.
Children, including children with disabilities, have the right to protection, care, and the rights to life, survival, and development without discrimination. At the same time, children have the right to have their views respected in accordance with their age and maturity, with their best interests given primary consideration in all child-related decisions. Children with disabilities may require care in early childhood and, as their capabilities develop, transition to controlling the support they receive.
The High Commissioner emphasized the need to ensure that all rights holders, in all their diversity, can meaningfully and equally participate in every stage of transforming care and support systems, including needs and risk assessments, design, decision-making, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, and remediation.
The report stressed that the right to independent living and community inclusion must equip persons with disabilities with all the necessary means to exercise freedom of choice, control their lives, make decisions about their lives, and fully participate and integrate into all areas of life on an equal footing with others.
