The Disability Convention, Optional Protocol and the Independent Monitoring Mechanism

Government must uphold its end of the Disability Convention. Make New Zealand 100% inclusive and accessible.
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The Disability Convention

New Zealand signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Disability Convention) on 30 March 2007 and ratified it on 26 September 2008. The purpose of the Disability Convention is to promote, protect, and ensure universal human rights and fundamental freedoms for disabled people, and promote respect for their dignity. It recognises the right of disabled people to make free and informed decisions about their own lives. It sets out in practical terms how the rights of disabled people can be realised.

The Disability Convention places particular emphasis on reasonable accommodation: the concept of making appropriate changes or modifications to ensure disabled people have equal opportunities and rights. It also advocates universal design: the concept of designing products, environments, programmes, and services so they are usable by all people.

The principles of the Disability Convention, as specified in Article 3 are:

• respect for inherent dignity, individual autonomy, and independence of persons;
• non-discrimination;
• full and effective participation and inclusion in society;
• respect for difference and acceptance of disabled people as part of human diversity and humanity;
• equality of opportunity;
• accessibility;
• equality between men and women; and
• respect for the evolving capacities of disabled children and respect for the rights of disabled children to preserve their identities.

Six months after New Zealand signed the Disability Convention, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). New Zealand expressed its support for UNDRIP in April 2010. While the declaration itself is not binding, many of the provisions reflect obligations set out in ratified conventions or covenants. In March 2019, Cabinet gave its approval for the Minister of Māori Development to lead a process to develop a national plan of action on New Zealand’s progress towards the objectives of UNDRIP.

The Disability Convention shares some common underlying human rights principles with both Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) and UNDRIP. These include the importance of partnership, autonomy, close consultation, and full and effective participation. In monitoring the Disability Convention in New Zealand, we must also consider these intersecting rights and other relevant international conventions.

The Optional Protocol

On 4 November 2016, New Zealand ratified the Optional Protocol to the Disability Convention (the Optional Protocol). This gives disabled people who believe their rights have been denied a way to make a complaint directly to the Disability Committee. The IMM has published Making Complaints to the United Nations Disability Committee: A Guide for New Zealanders. 

Independent Monitoring Mechanism (IMM)

Article 33 of the Disability Convention requires governments to establish an independent mechanism to promote, protect and monitor its implementation. The structure of New Zealand’s IMM reflects the partnership approach underpinning the Disability Convention. The IMM partners are the Disabled People’s Organisations’ (DPO) Coalition (a body reflecting the voice of disabled people in the monitoring process), the Ombudsman, and the Human Rights Commission.

The Human Rights Commission and the Ombudsman are established by statute.

The purpose of the Human Rights Commission is to promote and protect the human rights of all New Zealanders.

The role of the Ombudsman includes:

• investigating the administrative conduct of public sector agencies;
• reviewing their decisions relating to requests for official information;
• acting as a National Preventive Mechanism under the Crimes of Torture Act 1989;
• recommending remedial action be taken where agencies have acted unfairly;
• acting as an appropriate authority under the Protected Disclosures Act 2000; and
• providing advice and guidance.

The DPO Coalition is made up of seven organisations.

• Association of Blind Citizens of New Zealand Incorporated
• Balance Aotearoa
• Deaf Aotearoa
• Disabled Persons’ Assembly New Zealand Incorporated
• Kāpō Māori Aotearoa New Zealand Incorporated
• Muscular Dystrophy Association of New Zealand Incorporated
• People First New Zealand Incorporated—Ngā Tāngata Tuatahi

This arrangement reflects Article 4(3) of the Disability Convention, which provides that all decision-making processes relating to disabled people shall actively involve disabled people through their representative organisations—effectively encompassing the expression ‘Nothing about us without us’.

The IMM has published two earlier Making Disability Rights Real reports, which are available in a number of accessible formats.