UN disability rights experts concerned with NZ

A UN expert committee on disability rights says the New Zealand Government needs to ban unconsented sterilisation on disabled women and girls and take ‘‘urgent action’’ to amend laws that allow violence, abuse and neglect in institutions.

The committee’s advice formed part of a lengthy list of recommendations, following a two-day meeting of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities examination in Geneva last month.

Many recommendations made by the committee in its concluding observations were regurgitated recommendations from 2014 that have not been actioned.

The NZ Government and the Independent Monitoring Mechanism (IMM), representing civil society provided evidence to the examination regarding New Zealand’s adherence to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD).

While the UN committee commended the Government on the establishment of Whaikaha – Ministry for Disabled People, the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in State Care and the implementation of the Enabling Good Lives approach to disability support, it said there were still issues that needed urgent action.

The committee, made up of 18 international disability rights experts, said they were concerned with the lack of recognition that disability rights was a whole government responsibility and the lack of engagement with disabled people outside the disability portfolio.

Dr Esther Woodbury, lead adviser on disability at the Human Rights Commission as part of the IMM, said ‘‘the Government needs to respond to the UN’S recommendations’’ on living independently in the community to an

adequate standard of living, and the forced sterilisation, contraception and abortions of disabled people.

Woodbury said that while there are groups that support tāngata whaikaha Māori, they were still disproportionately affected by the poor outcomes experienced by disabled people.

She said more investment was needed around ensuring the country’s adherence to the UNCRPD via monitoring mechanisms available through the convention.

One of the criticisms in the report was the Government ‘‘not responding to or incorporating’’ the recommendations from IMM reports.

Woodbury said the Government could be working with the IMM directly on how to monitor their own progress against the recommendations.

Minister for Disability Issues Poto Williams led the Government delegation and said the feedback would go far in shaping both future Government and Whaikaha initiatives.

She said the concluding observations were a ‘‘timely directive’’ for the Government as work commenced to progress the strategic implementation and practice of the Convention.

Director at the Office for Disability Issues, Brian Coffey, representing the Government delegation, said the UN examination process in Geneva was challenging and the concluding observations were ‘‘much as we anticipated’’.

‘‘This is such an important process to get the deliberations of 18 international experts on the convention and on the rights of disabled people, that we want their responses to be a response to how things are, not how we hope things are,’’ he said.

Coffey said the establishment of Whaikaha and having a minister for disability issues in Cabinet gives him more confidence they report to the UN committee again.

This role is Public Interest Journalism funded by New Zealand on Air.

‘‘The Government needs to respond to the UN’S recommendations . . .’’ Dr Esther Woodbury, lead adviser on disability at the Human Rights Commission