Statement by the delegation of Ukraine at 10th session of the Conference of States Parties to the CRPD

Statement by the delegation of Ukraine at 10th session of the Conference of States Parties to the CRPD

Mr. President,

More than 6 % of Ukrainian citizens which is more than 2,7 ml people are people with disabilities. Ukrainians get disabilities not only congenitally, due to different health disorders or different events in their life but also due to the absolutely barbarous war which Ukraine suffers since 2014.

Passed in the year 2006 and put into practice in Ukraine in 2009 United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is and will be the ground-breaking document to determine the movement vector for governmental bodies and nongovernmental institutions all over the world to provide rights and legal interests of people with disabilities in all spheres of their lives.

Despite the Russian Federation aggression against Ukraine, we make our best to meet all our commitments concerning the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

External aggression in Donbas and temporarily occupation of Ukrainian Crimea challenged Ukrainian government, civil society and all Ukrainians as this war affected people with disabilities most of all: they are ordinary civilians with disabilities, 60 thousand internally displaced people with disabilities, wounded servicemen who gained disabilities. Military actions affected not only social and economic situation in Ukraine, reduced social budgetary provisions, but also caused total violation of human rights of people with disabilities.

In the described situation NGOs of people with disabilities managed to consolidate influence on the governmental policy to promote protection of people with disabilities rights. Now we have hundreds of such NGOs and among them there are some organizations which contribute a lot to change legislation and to control its implementation and here I should mention National Assembly of People with Disabilities which has consultative status in ECOSOC.

“Nothing for us without us!” — is a fundamental principle for civil society activity in the field of human rights and disability, supported by the President of Ukraine, the Government and Parliament.

We are grateful to the UN for fruitful cooperation rendered towards the rights of people with disabilities in Ukraine, in particular while Ukraine’s presentation of the first National Report on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of persons with disabilities. To implement recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Ukraine has adopted respective Action Plan.

One should note that the position of the Commissioner of the President of Ukraine for the Rights of Disabled Persons introduced in Ukraine in 2015. This decision is a result of Ukraine’s implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and prove of the government commitments in protecting their rights.

Practical steps of the Convention implementation are also included in the Action Plan for implementation of the National Strategy on human rights. Among others, it envisages the implementation of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health.

I shall note that one of the positive factors proving changes in the legal status of Ukrainian citizens with disabilities, is a phenomenal achievement of Ukrainian Paralympic team, which gained last year a third place in Rio Paralympic Games.

At the outset, we believe that today’s event — is another, extremely important opportunity to hear different views and approaches to solving problems related to protections for people with disabilities. Experience and best practice will be the basis for further effective action towards creating appropriate living conditions of Ukrainian citizens with disabilities in accordance with the standards of the international community.

Thank you.