Governance key to push rights of person with disability

Globally, there are more than a billion people with disabilities and there are many ‘missing millions’ who are not counted as they are not aware of their status as persons with disabilities due to lack of awareness and governance not being inclusive at the national and sub-national level. This has led to deprivation of certain human rights that are guaranteed to persons with disabilities and in their exclusion from the mainstream of development. Keeping in view the failure of the Millennium Development Goals to effectively address the human rights of persons with disabilities within the development framework, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 2030 Agenda have mandated that ‘no one is left behind’. In fact, human rights are central to the SDGs as they complement each other. Human rights are the drivers of development and it is impossible to achieve sustainable development without ensuring human dignity, especially of vulnerable groups such as persons with disabilities.

According to the 2001 Census of India, persons with disabilities constitute 2.21% of the total population, of which 56% are male and 44% are female. This is in contrast to the WHO World Report on Disability, which estimates that about 15% of the population in any developing country experiences some form of disability. The World Bank estimates India’s population with disability to be around 4-8% of the total population. The lack of accurate data itself indicates the need for ‘good governance’ that should encourage relevant authorities to collect reliable and disaggregated data on persons with disabilities.

Good governance begins with parliamentary and state legislature’s oversight on how policies and legislations impacting persons with disabilities are being implemented and monitored. The Right of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 (RPwD Act), provides representation for three members of parliament, of whom two shall be from the Lok Sabha and one from Rajya Sabha, in the Central Advisory Board of Disability.

Similarly, each of the states have to provide representation for two members of the Legislative Assembly and one from the Legislative Council within the State Advisory Board. The Act provides for the annual report of the Chief Commissioner and the State Commissioners for disabilities that is submitted to the central and state governments respectively to be laid before either Parliament or the state legislatures so that the representatives have an insight into the implementation of the legislation. The purpose behind these provisions is to ensure that Parliament and state legislatures have oversight over how governments address human rights of persons with disabilities.

Yet, rarely do the legislatures in India debate on issues concerning the human rights of persons with disabilities.

Majority of persons with disability live in rural areas. The district, as well as the taluk/tehsil administrations, are the first points of contact for them to access socio-economic and developmental programmes. Physical, informational and attitudinal barriers often tend to cause hardship for persons with disabilities in accessing development schemes and programmes and makes them less resilient to the vulnerabilities they face in their daily lives. It is vital that persons with disabilities have provision for fast-track services so that they are ‘not left behind’.

The Government of Karnataka had previously initiated innovative methods of ensuring good governance for persons with disabilities by identifying the deputy commissioner of the district as the nodal officer and some of the offices frequented by persons with disabilities had designated ‘grievance officers’, such as in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, to resolve issues expeditiously. With a view to protect persons with disabilities from becoming victims of corruption, anti-corruption hoardings were put up with a clear message to people to contact the State Disability Commissioner on a dedicated number in the event of any complaint of demand for a bribe.

The RPwD Act provides for appointment of a Chief Commissioner for Disabilities and State Commissioners who are empowered to identify and inquire suo motu or otherwise into any policies, laws or programmes that are inconsistent with the provisions of the Act. They may also look into deprivation of rights of persons with disabilities guaranteed to them and take up the matter with the appropriate authorities in their jurisdiction. In doing so, the Chief Commissioner and the State Commissioners are vested with the powers of the Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908 while trying a suit. The Act also bestows powers to the Executive Magistrate of the area where any act of abuse, violence and exploitation of persons with disabilities is reported to take action under the law.

Unfortunately, the impact of these ombudsman institutions is disproportionate to the actual level of intervention that is required to promote and protect the rights of citizens with disabilities.

Participation is the essence of good governance and it is important to involve persons with disabilities in all decision-making processes that impact them. Article 48 of the RPwD Act provides for social audit involving persons with disabilities to ensure development schemes and programmes are implemented in their best interest. Last but not the least, if the RPwD Act, which was enacted to give effect to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, has to become a legislation that truly upholds the human rights and dignity of persons with disabilities, there is a need to raise awareness about the various provisions of the Act among both the duty-bearers and the rights-holders. Currently, awareness about the national disability law in India is abysmally low, leading to lack of effective implementation and protection of the rights of citizens with disabilities.

(The writer is Head of Advocacy, Leprosy Mission International, London)