Women with Disabilities:
Lessons of Reinforcing the Gender Perspective
in International Norms and Standards
Part 2 of 3
What the Platform says about Women with Disabilities
The "Beijing Declaration and Platform for
Action" were adopted by the Fourth World Conference on Women on September 16, 199512 and endorsed by the General Assembly in December 1995.13 By agreeing to its adoption, the Governments present at Beijing
made a moral commitment to implement the provisions of the Declaration and Platform for
Action. This means that they have committed themselves to do what is necessary to make the
recommendations about women with disabilities real.
The Platform for Action contains over 300 separate paragraphs covering all aspects of
womens advancement. Paragraphs on women with disabilities are found throughout the
text. Knowledge of these paragraphs is a basic tool for advocacy.
The Platform for Action has six chapters:
- a mission statement,
- description of the global framework containing an analysis of how world conditions
affect women,
- brief description of twelve critical areas of concern in which priority actions are
required for advancement of women,
- detailed description of strategic objectives to address these critical areas and of the
actions necessary,
- institutional arrangements and
- financial arrangements.
In the chapter on strategic objectives, each critical area is described and then a
series of specific strategic objectives is set out. For each strategic objective,
suggested actions by Governments, non-governmental organizations and others are described.
The paragraphs on women with disability constitute what could be called the women with
disabilities platform. The relevant paragraphs of the Report of the Fourth World
Conference on Women14 are presented below:
"BEIJING DECLARATION"
Paragraph 32. Intensify efforts to ensure equal enjoyment of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms for all women and girls who face multiple barriers to their
empowerment and advancement because of such factors as their race, age, language,
ethnicity, culture, religion, or disability, or because they are indigenous people;
"PLATFORM FOR ACTION" - WOMEN WITH
DISABILITIES
Paragraph 46. The Platform for Action recognizes that women face barriers to full
equality and advancement because of such factors as their race, age, language, ethnicity,
culture, religion or disability, because they are indigenous women or because of other
status. Many women encounter specific obstacles related to their family status,
particularly as single parents; and to their socio-economic status, including their living
conditions in rural, isolated or impoverished areas. Additional barriers also exist for
refugee women, other displaced women, including internally displaced women as well as for
immigrant women and migrant women, including women migrant workers. Many women are also
particularly affected by environmental disasters, serious and infectious diseases and
various forms of violence against women.
A. Women and poverty
Strategic objective A.1. Review, adopt and maintain macroeconomic policies and
development strategies that address the needs and efforts of women in poverty
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 60. By national and international non-governmental organizations and women's
groups:
(a) Mobilize all parties involved in the development process, including academic
institutions, non-governmental organizations and grass-roots and women's groups, to
improve the effectiveness of anti-poverty programmes directed towards the poorest and most
disadvantaged groups of women, such as rural and indigenous women, female heads of
households, young women and older women, refugees and migrant women and women with
disabilities, recognizing that social development is primarily the responsibility of
Governments;
B. Education and training of women
Paragraph 71. Discrimination in girls' access to education persists in many areas,
owing to customary attitudes, early marriages and pregnancies, inadequate and
gender-biased teaching and educational materials, sexual harassment and lack of adequate
and physically and otherwise accessible schooling facilities. Girls undertake heavy
domestic work at a very early age. Girls and young women are expected to manage both
educational and domestic responsibilities, often resulting in poor scholastic performance
and early dropout from the educational system. This has long-lasting consequences for all
aspects of women's lives.
Strategic objective B.1. Ensure equal access to education.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 80. By Governments:
(a) Advance the goal of equal access to education by taking measures to eliminate
discrimination in education at all levels on the basis of gender, race, language,
religion, national origin, age or disability, or any other form of discrimination and, as
appropriate, consider establishing procedures to address grievances;
(g) Promote an educational setting that eliminates all barriers that impeded the
schooling of pregnant adolescents and young mothers, including, as appropriate, affordable
and physically accessible child-care facilities and parental education to encourage those
who are responsible for the care of their children and siblings during their school years,
to return to, or continue with and complete schooling;
Strategic objective B.2. Eradicate illiteracy among women.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 81. By Governments, national, regional and international bodies, bilateral
and multilateral donors and non-governmental organizations:
(a) Reduce the female illiteracy rate to at least half its 1990 level, with emphasis on
rural women, migrant, refugee and internally displaced women and women with disabilities;
Strategic objective B.3. Improve women's access to vocational training, science and
technology, and continuing education
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 82. By Governments, in cooperation with employers, workers and trade unions,
international and non-governmental organizations, including women's and youth
organizations, and educational institutions:
(k) Ensure access to quality education and training at all appropriate levels for adult
women with little or no education, for women with disabilities and for documented migrant,
refugee and displaced women to improve their work opportunities.
C. Women and health
Paragraph 101. With the increase in life expectancy and the growing number of older
women, their health concerns require particular attention. The long-term health prospects
of women are influenced by changes at menopause, which, in combination with life-long
conditions and other factors, such as poor nutrition and lack of physical activity, may
increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Other diseases of ageing and
the interrelationships of ageing and disability among women also need particular attention
Strategic objective C.1. Increase women's access throughout the life cycle to
appropriate, affordable and quality health care, information and related services
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 106. By Governments, in collaboration with non-governmental organizations and
employers' and workers' organizations and with the support of international institutions:
(c) Design and implement, in cooperation with women and community-based organizations,
gender-sensitive health programmes, including decentralized health services, that address
the needs of women throughout their lives and take into account their multiple roles and
responsibilities, the demands on their time, the special needs of rural women and women
with disabilities and the diversity of women's needs arising from age and socio-economic
and cultural differences, among others; include women, especially local and indigenous
women, in the identification and planning of health-care priorities and programmes; and
remove all barriers to women's health services and provide a broad range of health-care
services;
(o) Ensure that girls and women of all ages with any form of disability receive
supportive services;
Strategic objective C.4. Promote research and disseminate information on women's
health.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 109. By Governments, the United Nations system, health professions, research
institutions, non-governmental organizations, donors, pharmaceutical industries and the
mass media, as appropriate:
(d) Increase financial and other support from all sources for preventive, appropriate
biomedical, behavioural, epidemiological and health service research on women's health
issues and for research on the social, economic and political causes of women's health
problems, and their consequences, including the impact of gender and age inequalities,
especially with respect to chronic and non-communicable diseases, particularly
cardiovascular diseases and conditions, cancers, reproductive tract infections and
injuries, HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, domestic violence,
occupational health, disabilities, environmentally related health problems, tropical
diseases and health aspects of ageing;
D. Violence against women
Paragraph 116. Some groups of women, such as women belonging to minority groups,
indigenous women, refugee women, women migrants, including women migrant workers, women in
poverty living in rural or remote communities, destitute women, women in institutions or
in detention, female children, women with disabilities, elderly women, displaced women,
repatriated women, women living in poverty and women in situations of armed conflict,
foreign occupation, wars of aggression, civil wars, terrorism, including hostage-taking,
are also particularly vulnerable to violence.
Strategic objective D.1. Take integrated measures to prevent and eliminate violence
against women
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 124. By Governments:
(m) Ensure that women with disabilities have access to information and services in the
field of violence against women;
Paragraph 126. By Governments, employers, trade unions, community and youth
organizations and non-governmental organizations, as appropriate:
(d) Take special measures to eliminate violence against women, particularly those in
vulnerable situations, such as young women, refugee, displaced and internally displaced
women, women with disabilities and women migrant workers, including enforcing any existing
legislation and developing, as appropriate, new legislation for women migrant workers in
both sending and receiving countries.
F. Women and the Economy
Strategic objective F.4. Strengthen women's economic capacity and commercial networks.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 175. By Governments:
(d) Support programmes that enhance the self-reliance of special groups of women, such
as young women, women with disabilities, elderly women and women belonging to racial and
ethnic minorities;
Strategic objective F.5. Eliminate occupational segregation and all forms of employment
discrimination.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 178. By Governments, employers, employees, trade unions and women's
organizations:
(f) Implement and monitor positive public and private-sector employment, equity and
positive action programmes to address systemic discrimination against women in the labour
force, in particular women with disabilities and women belonging to other disadvantaged
groups, with respect to hiring, retention and promotion, and vocational training of women
in all sectors;
(j) Ensure access to and develop special programmes to enable women with disabilities
to obtain and retain employment, and ensure access to education and training at all proper
levels, in accordance with the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for
People with Disabilities;15 adjust, to the extent possible,
working conditions in order to suit the needs of women with disabilities, who should be
secured legal protection against unfounded job loss on account of their disabilities;
G. Women in Power and Decision-making
Strategic objective G.2. Increase women's capacity to participate in decision-making
and leadership
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 195. By Governments, national bodies, the private sector, political parties,
trade unions, employers' organizations, sub-regional and regional bodies, non-governmental
and international organizations and educational institutions:
(a) Provide leadership and self-esteem training to assist women and girls, particularly
those with special needs, women with disabilities and women belonging to racial and ethnic
minorities to strengthen their self-esteem and to encourage them to take decision-making
positions;
H. Institutional Mechanisms for the Advancement of Women
Strategic objective H.3. Generate and disseminate gender-disaggregated data and
information for planning and evaluation.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 206. By national, regional and international statistical services and
relevant governmental and United Nations agencies, in cooperation with research and
documentation organizations, in their respective areas of responsibility:
(k) Improve concepts and methods of data collection on the participation of women and
men with disabilities, including their access to resources.
I. Human Rights of Women
Paragraph 225. Many women face additional barriers to the enjoyment of their human
rights because of such factors as their race, language, ethnicity, culture, religion,
disability or socio-economic class or because they are indigenous people, migrants,
including women migrant workers, displaced women or refugees. They may also be
disadvantaged and marginalized by a general lack of knowledge and recognition of their
human rights as well as by the obstacles they meet in gaining access to information and
recourse mechanisms in cases of violation of their rights.
Paragraph 226. The factors that cause the flight of refugee women, other displaced
women in need of international protection and internally displaced women may be different
from those affecting men. These women continue to be vulnerable to abuses of their human
rights during and after their flight.
Strategic objective I.2. Ensure equality and non-discrimination under the law and in
practice.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 232. By Governments:
(p) Strengthen and encourage the implementation of the recommendations contained in the
Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, paying
special attention to ensure non-discrimination and equal enjoyment of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms by women and girls with disabilities, including their access to
information and services in the field of violence against women, as well as their active
participation in and economic contribution to all aspects of society;
Strategic objective I.3. Achieve legal literacy
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 233. By Governments and non-governmental organizations, the United Nations
and other international organizations, as appropriate:
(a) Translate, whenever possible, into local and indigenous languages and into
alternative formats appropriate for persons with disabilities and persons at lower levels
of literacy, publicize and disseminate laws and information relating to the equal status
and human rights of all women, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention
against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the
Declaration on the Right to Development and the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence
against Women, as well as the outcomes of relevant United Nations conferences and summits
and national reports to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women;
(b) Publicize and disseminate such information in easily understandable formats and
alternative formats appropriate for persons with disabilities, and persons at low levels
of literacy;
L. The girl child
Paragraph 259. The Convention on the Rights of the Child recognizes that "States
Parties shall respect and ensure the rights set forth in the present Convention to each
child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind, irrespective of the
child's or his or her parent's or legal guardian's race, colour, sex, language, religion,
political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, property, disability, birth
or status" (article 2, para. 1).16 However, in many countries
available indicators show that the girl child is discriminated against from the earliest
stages of life, through her childhood and into adulthood. In some areas of the world, men
outnumber women by 5 in every 100. The reasons for the discrepancy include, among other
things, harmful attitudes and practices, such as female genital mutilation, son preference
-which results in female infanticide and prenatal sex selection - early marriage,
including child marriage, violence against women, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse,
discrimination against girls in food allocation and other practices related to health and
well-being. As a result, fewer girls than boys survive into adulthood.
Paragraph 270. The girl child with disabilities faces additional barriers and needs to
be ensured non-discrimination and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental
freedoms in accordance with the United Nations Standard Rules on the Equalization of
Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities.17
Paragraph 272. All barriers must therefore be eliminated to enable girls without
exception to develop their full potential and skills through equal access to education and
training, nutrition, physical and mental health care and related information.
Strategic objective L.4. Eliminate discrimination against girls in education, skills
development and training.
Actions to be taken
Paragraph 278. By Governments and international and non-governmental organizations:
(d) Facilitate the equal provision of appropriate services and devices to girls with
disabilities and provide their families with related support services, as appropriate.
Paragraph 280. By Governments and international and non-governmental organizations:
(c) Ensure access to appropriate education and skills-training for girl children with
disabilities for their full participation in life;
12 Report of the Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing, 4-15
September 1995, United Nations Publication, Sales No. E.96.IV.13, available at gopher://gopher.un.org/00/conf/fwcw/off/a--20.en.
13 General Assembly resolution 50/42 of 8 December 1995.
14 The full text in English (126 pages), as well as in French and Spanish, is available
at gopher://gopher.un.org/00/conf/fwcw/off/a--20.en.
15 General Assembly resolution 48/96, annex.
16 General Assembly resolution 44/25, annex.
17 General Assembly resolution 48/96, annex. |