The Disability Information and Resource Centre

In many parts of the world, women rely on access to a range of methods to control their fertility, including voluntary sterilisation. However, too often, sterilisation is not a choice. Women with disabilities are particularly vulnerable to forced sterilisations performed under the auspices of legitimate medical care. The practice of forced sterilisation is part of a broader pattern of denial of the human rights of women and girls with disabilities. This denial also includes systematic exclusion from comprehensive reproductive and sexual health care, limited voluntary contraceptive choices, a focus on menstrual suppression, poorly managed pregnancy and birth, involuntary abortion, and the denial of rights to parenting. These practices are framed within traditional social attitudes that characterize disability as a personal tragedy or a matter for medical management and rehabilitation. The difficulty some women with disabilities may have in understanding or communicating what was done to them increases their vulnerability to forced sterilisation. A further aggravating factor is the widespread practice of legal guardians or others making life-altering decisions for persons with disabilities, including consenting to sterilisation on their behalf.

This briefing paper has been jointly prepared by Women With Disabilities Australia (WWDA), Human Rights Watch (HRW), the Open Society Foundations, and the International Disability Alliance (IDA) as part of the Global Campaign to Stop Torture in Health Care. The paper gives a background to the issue of forced sterilisation, outlines various international human rights standards that prohibit forced sterilisation, and offers several recommendations for improving laws, policies, and professional guidelines governing sterilisation practices.

The paper can be downloaded from WWDA’s website in both PDF and Word formats:

PDF format: http://www.wwda.org.au/Sterilization_Disability_Briefing_Paper_October2011.pdf

Word format: http://www.wwda.org.au/Sterilization_Disability_Briefing_Paper_October2011.doc

Below you will find the podcast and documents from the disability forum “Disability in Darkness?”, held at DIRC on July 7th and presented by Professor Richard Bruggemann.

Documents from the Forum

• DIRC Disability Forum: Disability in Darkness?
• From Darkness to Light: A Historical Note on South Australia’s Services for the Developmentally Disabled 1961-1971 by W.A. Cramond and N.C.C. Kent

Disability Forum dates for the rest of the year can be found here.

The Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:38:36 — 112.8MB)

This workshop demonstrates how you can advocate for your own rights

The National Ethnic Disability Alliance (NEDA) is facilitating workshops on human rights of people from non English speaking background (NESB) with disability.

Date: Friday 17 June 2011, 10.30am – 3.10pm

Location:

Julia Farr Association – McLeod Room
104 Greenhill Road UNLEY SA 5061

For full details click here.

The Minister for Health tabled the Health & Community Services Complaints Commissioner (HCSCC) Charter of Health and Community Services Rights in both houses of the South Australian Parliament on 8 March 2011. If no amendments are made the HCSCC Charter will become effective from 19 May 2011.

To build awareness HCSCC is developing a Charter Champions Network.

HCSCC Charter Champions will:

• play a key role in the successful promotion of the HCSCC Charter of Health and Community Services Rights
• be part of a network to build awareness about HCSCC Charter principles and rights within their group, work unit or agency
• work within their group, work unit or agency to bring the HCSCC Charter principles and rights to life.
• promote complaints resolution taking into account the HCSCC Charter principles and rights.

An HCSCC Charter Champion will have a strong commitment to upholding the rights of service users. Charter Champions will also recognise that people seeking or receiving care, and people providing care, need to work together to ensure safe, high quality services and the best possible outcomes.

For more information on the HCSCC Charter of Rights and the Charter Champions Network click here.

Tuesday 22 March 2011 was International World Water Day.

Water is a basic requirement for life, but urbanisation and a growing global population means water is becoming a limited, precious commodity.

Often those living in poverty with a disability are hardest hit, without access to clean drinking water.

World Water Day 2011 is focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.

For more information and resources visit the Australian Disability+Development Consortium.

University of South Australia School of Education Oration

Presented by the Hon. Catherine Branson QC, President of the Australian Human Rights Commission and Human Rights Commissioner

Thursday 24th March 2011, 6.00-8.00pm

UniSA City East Campus

This presentation will examine what is meant by human rights education and how it can play a pivotal role in creating a fairer, more inclusive and more respectful Australia. It will highlight examples of education that go beyond providing knowledge about human rights, to also imparting the skills needed to promote, defend and apply human rights in daily life – education that develops attitudes and behaviours, which foster our shared human rights values.

To find out more, go to http://www.eoc.sa.gov.au/eo-resources/events/role-human-rights-education.

Australia ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 17 July 2008. The Convention entered into force for Australia on 16 August 2008. The Attorney‑General’s Department’s (AGD) initial report under the Convention is due on 16 August 2010. The draft report has been prepared by the AGD in consultation with Commonwealth agencies, and State and Territory Governments.

The Attorney‑General’s Department is now seeking public comment on the draft report.

You can access the draft report in HTML, PDF and Word formats.

Under the guidelines on reporting issued by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Australia is required to limit the report to 60 pages, excluding annexes. A copy of the reporting guidelines can be found on the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities page on the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights website. As a result of this page, there is limited capacity to be able to expand on the material provided in the report. However, the AGD will endeavour to address any comment or concerns raised during the public consultation process in the final report.

Non-government organisations (NGOs) and the public will also have the opportunity to submit information on Australia’s implementation of the Convention directly to the CRPD Committee before Australia appears before them to answer questions about the report. This appearance has yet to be scheduled, but is expected to take place during 2011.

Please limit submissions to 10 pages, and indicate which paragraphs of the report you are commenting on.

Please send any comments to crpdreport@ag.gov.au by 6 August 2010. Due to the need to finalise the report, this deadline cannot be extended.

You are invited to attend an interactive Human Rights Forum on whether Australia needs a Human Rights Act.

Saturday 22 May 2010

1:45pm for a 2pm start

Elder Hall
University of Adelaide
North Terrace

Speakers supporting: Julian Burnside AO QC; The Hon. Catherine Branson QC; and Senator Anne McEwen.

Speakers against: The Hon. George Brandis SC; Dr Paul Kelly; and Prof. James Allan.

Damien Carrick will be moderating the Forum and broadcasting it on The Law Report.

The Forum is generously supported by the Law Foundation and the University of Adelaide Law School.

Admittance is FREE and there is no need to RSVP.

All enquiries can be made to Emma Riggs on 0400 518 670 or emma.riggs@gmail.com.

Leading disability organisations have partnered to form a project group which is compiling a Shadow Report on Australia’s implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

The overall aim of the report is to make recommendations to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and to determine the extent to which Australia has implemented its obligations under the CRPD.

The project group would like people with experience with disability to complete a survey outlining their experiences. The survey, as well as further information  can be found here.

You can also view the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities.

The release of the Shadow Report outlining the information collated, including recommendations, is expected prior to the Federal Government submitting its Progress Report to the United Nations in August 2010.

Unicef have released a publication entitled “It’s About Ability – An explanation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”.

Aimed at children, the book explains the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It’s main purpose is to empower children, with and without disabilities, to play their part in challenging discrimination and promoting the Convention’s principles.

Further information, including a pdf and audio version of the book, can be found on the unicef web site.