Persons with disabilities are of course covered by the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights and also by other conventions. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities does not create any new rights but aims to promote, protect and ensure the fundamental rights and freedoms of persons with disabilities. It has been added to remove the obstacles that prevent people with disabilities from exercising their human rights. The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities shows in areas where measures are needed to enable people with disabilities to exercise their rights fully and on equal terms.

The convention as a tool

The convention has been of crucial importance to the entire global disability movement and has influenced MyRight's work in a positive direction. We run all our activities, including activities, seminars and meetings, based on the convention.

In the countries outside Sweden where MyRight has country offices, we engage together with the disability movement to make the articles of the convention a reality. After the convention has been adopted by a country, society is required to begin to adapt to its requirements.

It is the responsibility of the states to ensure that the rights are complied with and upheld. The UN has a committee that monitors the countries' compliance with the convention. All countries that have adopted the Convention must regularly submit a report to the Committee outlining compliance with the Convention. The Committee then submits its assessment with recommendations to the countries.

MyRight supports its partners and is an active force for people with disabilities, and their organizations, to participate in making society accessible in line with the convention. This is done partly by forming groups, regional committees and in various ways monitoring compliance with the Convention and the committee's recommendations, and partly by engaging in dialogue with governments when writing their national reports and by contributing to alternative civil society reports to the UN. The aim is always to strengthen the voice and increase participation in societal development for people with disabilities. The advocacy work takes place both nationally and at UN level.

Examples of results from MyRight's work with the convention:

• an amended law (eg Disability Inclusive Constitution in Nepal) which establishes rights for people with disabilities
• UN documents have been translated into the country's own language (including in Bosnia and Herzegovina).
• children now have the right to instruction in sign language or braille / Braille in Nepal
• Disability organizations have conducted surveys on how accessible healthcare and school are for people with disabilities. The results of the surveys have been used in alternative reports (including in Tanzania).
• MyRight and our partner organizations have been involved in the alternative report (including in Bolivia, Bosnia, Rwanda and Tanzania).
• training of activists in how to write an alternative report and participate in the process (for example, attend meetings, contribute facts from their own surveys and present the alternative report to the UN Convention Committee in Geneva)
• Disability organizations have themselves begun to monitor compliance with the Convention in a country (eg Bolivia)

Efforts based on the convention change the lives of many. Read more about MyRight's work under the tab "Rights-based work".

Here you can read the convention and find more information

• The Convention in Swedish (Government website)
• The Convention is easy to read (Government website)
• The Convention in Sign Language (MFD website)
• The Convention in Different Languages (UN website)
• MFD's poster about the convention, can be downloaded in Swedish and English, and to order in 14 languages
•MyRight's website About rights-based work