The Hindu : National : Disability groups apprehensive of amendments to laws

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Feb 08, 2010
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

National

National

Disability groups apprehensive of amendments to laws

J. Venkatesan

NEW DELHI: Disability groups on Sunday expressed strong apprehension that the Centre was going ahead with proposed amendments/harmonisation in various laws without consulting them.

Participants at the two-day meet that concluded here on national cross-disability consultation, titled ‘Harmonisation of laws with the United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities [UNCRPD],’ felt that the government would make a shoddy job of it and compromise the real objectives if there was no effective consultation.

The Human Rights Law Network , together with the National Association of the Deaf and Deaf Way, organised the event in order to formulate the views of all the disability groups and submit its recommendations. It was pointed out that India signed the UNCRPD on March 30, 2007, and ratified it on October 3 of the same year. “In corollary to this development, the Government of India is to harmonise/amend various laws in the Budget session 2010 in sync with UNCRPD in three disability-specific laws and in 75 other laws by May 3, 2010, and submit a ‘compliance report’ to the United Nations.”

The meet said despite the magnitude of harmonisation required, the Centre had been sleeping for the last two years and did not seek any consultation with disability groups .

“Therefore, there is a strong impression within the disability sector that the government is rushing with the amendments process to the Persons with Disabilities Act 1995 in the budget session of Parliament and will do a shoddy job, as is reflected in the draft amendments document posted on the website of the Ministry of Social Justice, which does not include almost 20 Articles of the convention and is completely silent on the civil and political rights of persons with disabilities.”

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National