A letter to the Editor of the Irish Times
A letter to the Editor of the Irish Times from CBM Ireland CEO Sarah O'Toole
Sir,
It is welcome news to see Minister Fitzgerald at Ireland’s recent UPR review committing the government to ratifying the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) by the end of this year. Ireland has signed the convention, and it is now the last remaining EU Member
State to ratify it.
The CRPD promotes, protects and ensures the equal rights of people with disabilities, and obliges States to treat people with disabilities as ‘subjects’ with full legal capacity as distinct from ‘objects’ to be managed and cared for. In addition to protecting the rights of people with disabilities here in Ireland, the Convention requires the Irish government to ensure that the development aid it spends overseas is inclusive of people with disabilities.
In practical terms, this means that Irish funded overseas development programmes in areas such as health, education and emergency response must ensure that people with disabilities are included and benefit from such programmes.
This year marks the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the CRPD by the UN. By ratifying the Convention, the Irish government is signalling its commitment to a disability inclusive society and to upholding the rights of people with disabilities both at home and in Ireland’s overseas development
work.
Yours, etc.
Sarah O’Toole
CEO, CBM Ireland
Monaghan
