Statement by Mr. William Rowland

Commemorative event: Entry into Force of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Optional Protocol, New York, 12 May 2008

Dear Friends
 
The World Programme of Action Concerning Disabled Persons (1982) recommended measures to improve the lives of persons with disabilities. This was followed by the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (1993) which provided guidelines for our participation in society on the basis of equality. Each instrument spurred governments to affirmative action and gave new impetus to the disability rights movement. There is however no doubt that the coming into force of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities surpasses in significance and importance all previous such events. It is therefore with optimism, with joy, and with gratitude that we, the representatives of civil society and the global disability family, join in this historical celebration.
 

 Statement by Mr. William Rowland [WORD]