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“No One Represents Us” Lack of access to political participation for people with disabilities in Iraq

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
September 2021

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This report documents that Iraqi authorities have failed to secure electoral rights for Iraqis with disabilities. People with disabilities are often effectively denied their right to vote due to discriminatory legislation and inaccessible polling places and significant legislative and political obstacles to running for office.

Between January and August, Human Rights Watch interviewed 14 people with disabilities as well as activists, authorities, and the staff of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC).

While the Iraqi government has not collected any reliable statistics on the number of people with disabilities, in 2019, the United Nation’s Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities said that Iraq, plagued by decades of violence and war, has one of the world’s largest populations of people with disabilities.

Cluster Munition Monitor 2019

INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN TO BAN LANDMINES – CLUSTER MUNITION COALITION (ICBL-CMC)
August 2019

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Cluster Munition Monitor covers cluster munition ban policy, use, production, transfers, and stockpiling in every country in the world, and also contains information on cluster munition contamination and clearance activities, as well as casualties and victim assistance. Its principal frame of reference is the Convention on Cluster Munitions, although other relevant international law is reviewed, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The report focuses on calendar year 2018, with information included into August 2019 where possible. Sections are: cluster munition ban policy; contamination and clearance; casualties; victim assistance; and status of the convention

Invisible victims of sexual violence. Access to justice for women and girls with disabilities in India

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
April 2018

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This report is based on 17 cases of sexual violence against women and girls with disabilities in eight Indian states. It comes five years after The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 (the 2013 amendments) were adopted in India. It follows Human Rights Watch’s November 2017 report “Everyone Blames Me”: Barriers to Justice and Support Services for Sexual Assault Survivors in India, which found that rape survivors still face significant barriers obtaining justice and critical support services because legal and other reforms have not been fully realised.

This report finds that while the 2013 amendments have made significant progress in responding to the widespread challenges that victims of sexual violence endure, they have yet to properly develop and implement support for survivors with disabilities in the form of trainings and reforms throughout the criminal justice system. It highlights gaps in enforcement and calls for concrete measures to address the needs of women and girls with disabilities seeking justice for abuse. 

Cluster Munition Monitor 2017

INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN TO BAN LANDMINES – CLUSTER MUNITION COALITION (ICBL-CMC)
August 2017

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Cluster Munition Monitor covers cluster munition ban policy, use, production, transfers, and stockpiling in every country in the world, and also contains information on cluster munition contamination and clearance activities, as well as casualties and victim assistance. Its principal frame of reference is the Convention on Cluster Munitions, although other relevant international law is reviewed, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The report focuses on calendar year 2016, with information included into July 2017 where possible. Sections are: cluster munition ban policy; contamination and clearance; casualties; victim assistance; and status of the convention

 

Treated worse than animals : abuses against women and girls with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities in institutions in India

SHARMA, Kriti
December 2014

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This in-depth, illustrated report on the abuses of female patients with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities at institutions in India found that patients experience widespread neglect and abuses of their rights, including denial of legal capacity, a lack of community-based support and services, verbal and physical violence as well as involuntary treatment and admission. It recommends that “India undertake urgent reforms to guarantee the legal capacity of people with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities and take steps to shift from institutional to community-based care and services for people with disabilities”, with specific recommendations for central and state government level, national and state commissions and international donors

 

Note: Easy-to-read version, summary and video also available

Treated worse than animals : abuses against women and girls with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities in institutions in India : summary and key recommendations

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH (HRW)
December 2014

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This illustrated summary presents the key findings and recommendations of the full report which found that female patients with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities at institutions in India experience widespread neglect and abuses of their rights, including denial of legal capacity, a lack of community-based support and services, verbal and physical violence as well as involuntary treatment and admission. It recommends that “India undertake urgent reforms to guarantee the legal capacity of people with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities and take steps to shift from institutional to community-based care and services for people with disabilities”, with specific recommendations for central and state government level, national and state commissions and international donors

 

Note: Full report, summary report and video also available

Women institutionalised against their will in India

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH (HRW)
December 2014

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This short video highlights the situation of female patients with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities at institutions in India. In conjunction with the report by Human Rights Watch, it calls for the better treatment of women and girls in institutions and increased de-institutionalization

 

Note: Full report, summary and easy-to-read version also available

World report 2014 : events of 2013

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
2014

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This report is Human Rights Watch’s 24th annual review of human rights practices around the globe. It summarises key humanitarian rights issues in more than 90 countries and territories worldwide, drawing on events through November 2013. It presents extensive investigative work that Human Rights Watch undertook in close partnership with human rights activists on the ground.  The report is divided into three main parts: an essay section, photo essays, and country-specific chapters

Barriers everywhere : accessibility for people with disabilities in Russia

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH (HRW)
2013

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"This report is based on 123 interviews with people with disabilities and their families in 6 cities across Russia. It documents the everyday hurdles people with disabilities meet when going to government offices, shops, healthcare centers, and places of employment, and accessing public transportation"
Note: an easy-read version and two short films are available from the link provided

"I want to be a citizen just like any other" : barriers to political participation for people with disabilities in Peru

BARRIGA, Shantha Rau
et al
2012

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"This report documents legal, physical, communication and attitudinal barriers experienced by people with different disabilities in exercising their right to political participation just like others in society. It also examines how restrictions on legal capacity impact the ability of people with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities in particular to enjoy a range of rights, including the right to own or inherit property, be employed or legally represent their children"
Note: This report is available in pdf, word and easy-read formats

"As if we weren’t human" : discrimination and violence against women with disabilities in northern Uganda

BARRIGA, Shantha Rau KWON, Soo-Ryun
August 2010

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After 20 years of displacement and war in northern Uganda, this research report presents information about the situation of women who acquired their disabilities due to the war or who already had disabilities before the war. The report presents interviews from women with disabilities, their family members, international agencies and NGOs, and analyses their responses given the context that Uganda is a signatory to international treaties, such as the CRPD. The report concludes by making recommendations to the government of Uganda

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