Today, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Regional Office for Central Asia (ROCA) and the Nationwide Movement “Yuksalish” are holding an Expert Discussion on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in Uzbekistan.
Этот пресс релиз также доступен на русском языке
The expert discussion addressed priorities for Uzbekistan following the ratification of the CRPD. During the event national and international experts including a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, representatives of the national human rights institutions, civil society, and individual experts discussed the essential steps to be taken for effective implementation of obligations under the CRPD. Participants will develop recommendations on the key priorities for protection of the rights guaranteed under the Convention.
“Full realization of the rights of persons with disabilities requires the creation of equal opportunities and an inclusive social environment. Having ratified the CRPD, Uzbekistan expressed its readiness to assume these obligations, which is welcomed by the EU. We highly appreciate the state efforts in this direction and are happy to cooperate with the ICJ on the implementation of such an important international treaty in Uzbekistan” – said H.E. Charlotte Adriaen, Ambassador of the European Union in Uzbekistan.
“Ratification of the CRPD by Uzbekistan is a welcome step towards greater protection of the rights of persons with disabilities through the implementation of international human rights law. Now that Uzbekistan has demonstrated its good intention and ratified the Convention, it should swiftly move to implement it, both in law and in practice ”, said Róisín Pillay, Director of the ICJ Europe and Centra Asia Programme.
“The ratification of the Convention is an important step indeed; it shows the government’s commitment before an international community to enhance its system, law and practice to make all parts of the life of persons with disabilities in Uzbekistan much better, inclusive and nondiscriminatory. At the same time, this step requires many other efforts from various parties – executive, legislative and judicial powers, civil society, business community, international organisations and individuals.”, said Ryszard Komenda, Regional Representative of the UN Human Rights Office for Central Asia.
“The recent ratification by Uzbekistan of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an important step that reflects the inclusiveness of reforms in the country and opens up broad possibilities for the implementation of national legislation and effective mechanisms for social and legal protection and support of persons with disabilities in accordance with international standards. Holding this International public discussion right now will serve as an important platform for us to exchange international experience in effectively implementing of the upcoming tasks in the field of protecting the rights of persons with disabilities in Uzbekistan with the involvement of representatives of civil society and other stakeholders.”, said Bobur Bekmurodov, Chairman of the Nationwide Movement “Yuksalish”.
The event is organised within the framework of the Project “Enhancing the Quality of Uzbekistan’s Application of international Law (EQUAL)” funded by the EU Delegation in Uzbekistan and implemented by the ICJ. The main objective of the EQUAL project is to promote, by supporting civil society, equal protection of ESC rights for groups particularly vulnerable to discrimination in Uzbekistan.
Background
Expert discussions are a forum for national and international experts to exchange their views on various approaches to the best application of international law and standards by increasing the participation of civil society institutions in this process. In particular, experts discuss how to increase the access of people vulnerable to discrimination to basic human rights, including ESC rights. This time the rights of persons with disabilities are at the centre of the discussion.
Uzbekistan ratified the CRPD in June 2021.
This is the seventh expert discussion that follows the other six expert discussions within the framework of the ACCESS (Advancing Civil Society in Promoting ESC Rights Standards) project realized in Uzbekistan in 2017-2021.
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