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EUD Members News |
EUD/SINOSZ International Conference on the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities |
Dear EUD Friends,
The EUD/SINOSZ International Conference December is only some months away and will be an other important step on the road to an equal world where people with disabilities will be recognized as equal members of society that have the opportunity to contribute to the development of the community.
The EUD/SINOSZ International Conference will be held in Budapest, Hungary on 7th December 2007.
The Conference main focus will be on the public awareness and knowledge of the UN Convention and its Optional Protocol, which is one of the key elements and which is necessary for every advocate, every person with a disability, every policy maker, institution or international organization.
Since the opening for signatures on 30 March 2007, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has quickly gathered support from Member States. The 101 signatories to the treaty so far include 56 countries that have also signed the Optional Protocol. The Convention will enter into force 30 days after the 20th country ratifies the treaty, but so far only Jamaica and Hungary have taken the step of ratification.
The UN Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities estimates that the next 18 ratifications could be reached by as early as the end of this year.
It is time now for us, EUD members, to work towards the implementation of the Convention in countries around the world, with a special focus on the EUD countries.
It just takes a minute, so register now! To register, please contact Dalma Földes via http://www.sinosz.hu/ftp/dokumentumok/_jubileum/regform_english.doc.
FYI, the invitation and preliminary programme are available on http://www.sinosz.hu/ftp/dokumentumok/_jubileum/invitation_english.pdf; http://www.sinosz.hu/ftp/dokumentumok/_jubileum/conference_program_english.pdf
The International Conference is a unique and important opportunity for all members to share ideas, to strengthen and to build the cohesion among members through personal meetings, social activities, common thinking and planning in all areas.
I am sure that your experiences and knowledge would largely contribute to the success of the EUD conference.
Looking forward to seeing many of you in Budapest.
We are working together for an equal tomorrow, today! |
Source: Dalma Földes, SINOSZ International relation
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EDF News |
An open sky for disabled passengers? – EU Regulation on the rights of disabled air passengers |
Although the first provisions of the EU Regulation on the rights of disabled air passengers enter into force, the European Disability Forum warns against the legislation shortcomings.
“It took us more than three years to obtain this important piece of legislation and I would like to congratulate all those that have actively contributed to make it happen. The European Union has taken an important step forward to advance disability rights in Europe, but we need to continue to work together in order to overcome the current gaps of the Regulation ”, said Yannis VARDAKASTANIS, President of the European Disability Forum.
The overall aim of the Regulation is to guarantee equal treatment for all passengers, including ‘any person with reduced mobility or sensory impairment, intellectual disability or any other cause of disability, age, and whose situation needs appropriate attention and the adaptation to his or her particular needs of the service made available to all passengers’.
Only articles 3 (‘Prevention of refusal of carriage’) and 4 (‘Derogations, special conditions and information’) of the new Regulation enter into force today. The entire Regulation, which is directly applicable to European airports and airlines, will be totally effective in one year.
For the European Disability Forum, the umbrella organisation representing the interests of 50 million disabled people in the European Union that has lobbied the European Union in favour of the Regulation, there is still room for improvement:
“We are worried that the exceptions established in Article 4 will be used to continue discriminating disabled air passengers. If we want the Regulation to be effective, the safety reasons that allow to deny the boarding of a disabled person need to be clarified”, said VARDAKASTANIS.
According to the Regulation, an airline can still refuse the boarding of a disabled passenger due to ‘Safety reasons established by national, Community or International law’.
“We need the European Union to clearly define these exceptions and to agree on common safety reasons across Europe. Otherwise, a disabled passenger might be allowed to travel to a Member State applying certain rules, but not to come back!”, stressed the EDF President.
EDF campaign on air passengers’ rights will therefore target the adoption of common safety rules in Europe, as well as the wide dissemination of the provisions of the law. The EDF will also concentrate its efforts to improve the Regulation, as well as to obtain similar legislation for all forms of transport.
EDF President: “Disabled people have new rights and they must apply them. It is important to inform them and to encourage them to complain if these rights are violated anywhere in Europe. This will ensure better quality for all passengers, with and without disabilities”.
For more information, please visit EDF webpage:
http://www.edf-feph.org/en/policy/transport/trans_pol.htm
The text of the Regulation can be downloaded from:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2006/l_204/l_20420060726en00010009.pdf |
Source: EDF Press release
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President of the European Parliament gives his support to citizens with disabilities’ initiative “1million4disability” |
President Pöttering supports the initiative of the European Disability Forum to collect one million signatures in favour of a European disability-specific directive
The president of the European Parliament officially expressed his support for the “1million4disability” campaign just a few days after the launch of the European Commission’s online consultation on combating discrimination in Member States and at EU level. The European Disability Forum, the European platform representing the interests and defending the rights of 50 million people with disabilities in the European Union, leads this citizens’ initiative. The aim of the campaign is to collect signatures in favour of strong, comprehensive legislation that will be effective in protecting people with disabilities from discrimination in all fields of life, in line with the recently adopted UN Convention on the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities, which has been signed by the European Community.
Hans-Gert PÖTTERING has declared with regards to the “1million4disability” campaign: “ European values have their fundamental roots in the dignity of the individual. In the dignity of the individual we respect the other, make a commitment, and thus build a system based on responsibility and solidarity. In our practical political activities we should always serve the dignity of the individual, and I would like to encourage all of us to defend human dignity and human rights throughout the world.
The European Parliament has supported the call for disability-specific legislation on a number of occasions. In light of the signature of the European Communities and its Member States of the UN Convention of Persons with Disabilities, the European Parliament would like to renew its commitment to non-discrimination and equality for persons with disabilities in Europe and beyond. I therefore wholeheartedly support this initiative of the united European disability community in favour of the disability-specific directive.”
So far, the 1million4disability campaign, launched in January 2007, has gathered more than 300,000 signatures electronically and manually in the EU-29. On the 4 th October, an official gathering of disability delegations from all over Europe will take place in Brussels with the aim of demonstrating support for the adoption of improved European disability legislation.
For more information on the EDF campaign “1million4disability”:
www.1million4disability.eu |
Source: EDF Press release
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European Union News |
European Traineeship for people with disabilities (deadline: 15 October) |
The European Parliament has launched the call of applications for the third round of traineeships for people with a disability. The call of applications period is from 15 August till 15 October 2007.
The European Parliament offers several options for traineeships and study visits within its Secretariat, to provide opportunities for vocational training and for learning more about what the European Parliament is and does.
The new programmes launch and programmes descriptions texts together with the additional information and documents concerning the traineeships for people with a disability are available on the EUROPARL website:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/parliament/public/staticDisplay.do?id=147&language=EN |
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Deaf News around Europe and the World |
Markku JOKINEN re-elected as WFD President |
On Sunday, July 15th, The World Federation of the Deaf, WFD, at its 17th General Assembly in Madrid, Spain, unanimously re-elected Mr Markku JOKINEN of Finland as President of the Federation for the next four years. Mr Feliciano SOLA LIMIA continues as vice President and the rest of the WFD Board consists of:
- Mr. Colin ALLEN ( Australia)
- Ms. Deborah OYUU LYUTE ( Uganda)
- Mr. Bikash DANGOL( Nepal)
- Mr. Johan Bert WESEMANN (the Netherlands)
- Ms. Hanne B. KVITVAER ( Norway)
- Mr. Valery RUKHLEDEV ( Russia)
- Ms. Wilma Susan NEWHOUDT-DRUCHEN ( South Africa)
- Mr. Tomas HEDBERG ( Sweden)
- Mr. Joseph MURRAY ( USA)
Two of the new board members are African women.
81 members states were represented at the WFD General Assembly, which was the largest GA ever. The General Assembly approved changes to the WFD Statutes, and voted for the WFD’s legal seat to be in Helsinki, Finland. It also decided that the next WFD General Assembly and World Congress will be held in Durban, South Africa in July 2011.
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Source: www.wfdeaf.org
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World Federation of the Deaf World Congress: Don MacKAY - Breaking Down Barriers. The New United Nations Convention concerning the Rights of Disabled Persons |
On July 18th, 2007, Ambassador Don MacKAY inaugurated the Scientific Programme of the 15th World Congress of the WFD with the speech "Breaking down Barriers. The New United Nations Convention concerning the Rights of Disabled Persons".
Don MacKAY, one of the persons in charge of preparing the Universal Declaration of Rights of Disabled Persons for the United Nations and an expert in the reality of deaf persons, stressed during his intervention that the involvement of deaf persons in the negotiations prior to passing this Convention has been of vital importance, as only they know the challenges and difficulties that this collective encounter with regard to education, communication, employment and participation in cultural life.
The Convention acknowledges sign languages as languages with full rights. According to MacKAY, "the rights of disabled persons are, above all, an issue of human rights; any prejudice is in itself 'disabling'; a change in the mentality of society is inescapable, together with a clear commitment with equality and non-discrimination." |
Source: www.wfdeaf.org
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Other News |
UN Convention – Hungary ratified the convention and the optional protocol |
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol was adopted on 13 December 2006 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, and was opened for signature on 30 March 2007.
There were 82 signatories to the Convention, 44 signatories to the Optional Protocol, and 1 ratification of the Convention. This is the highest number of signatories in history to a UN Convention on its opening day. It is the first comprehensive human rights treaty of the 21st century and is the first human rights convention to be open for signature by regional integration organizations.
Since this summer, Hungary has become the fourth country to have ratified both Convention and Optional Protocol
More information: http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/conventioninfo.htm |
Source: EDF Weekly Mailing 19/2007
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Forthcoming Events/Agenda |
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Ageing Deaf – International Conference April 2008 |
Date: 22-25 April 2008
Place: Wels, Austria
Website: http://www.lebenswelt.at – “spring conference”
!! Call for papers: abstracts to be submitted by 1 st November 2007 |
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Editorial note
EUD Update is published by EUD in English with support from the European Community – the European Union against discrimination.
The information contained in this publication does not necessarily reflect the position or opinion of the European Commission, nor the official policy of EUD. The publication is for information only. Readers are invited to reproduce the information provided the source is quoted.
If you wish to receive EUD Update, please send us an email at: info@eudnet.org.
Should you wish to make any contribution or notify any e-mail address modification, please do not hesitate to contact the EUD secretariat, Fax: +32 2 289 7037, E-mail: info@eudnet.org.
Editors: Mark WHEATLEY |
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