11 September-22 October 2013 (E09213) | Closed
Instructors: Oliver Lewis and Kathryn Vandever
In this e-learning course participants will be introduced to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which is the first human rights treaty of the 21st century, and was negotiated by governments in record time. The course provides readings on the CRPD and its implementation, and the course is designed to encourage participants to apply the theory in their advocacy activities.
The course will examine the principles of the Convention and the state obligations to implement it. Substantive rights will be addressed and these include the right to legal capacity, the right to live in the community and the right to political participation. Participants will be encouraged to assess how the CRPD embodies an approach which views disability as a social construct, and ensures that the rights of people with disabilities are respected, protected and fulfilled on an equal basis with others.
The course will provide participants — staff of domestic human rights NGOs, staff and members of disabled people’s organisations and staff of national human rights institutions, among others — with information about how they can engage in domestic monitoring of implementation. The course will outline also the international mechanisms to make sure that states ensure that the rights contained in the CRPD have a positive effect for people with disabilities.