Caracas Declaration issued by RIADIS
The First Ibero-American Conference, composed of representatives of Non Governmental Organizations of Persons with Disabilities and their Families, gathered in Caracas on October 14 through 18, 2002.
Stating that
- The highest proportion of people with disabilities in our countries is found the most poverty stricken and lowest income areas.
- There is an urgent need to improve the quality of life of persons with disabilities by achieving better health levels, creating integrated systems to ensure that such services be universally available and at no charge to persons with disabilities and their families, protecting them with an equal opportunity of social security, integrating them in education, sports and through accessibility to society, to strengthen citizens' participation and to benefit from their effective contribution to community life.
- In more than a few countries, social and age related groups are not treated equally in the social, health and education programs, because they exclude women, children, adolescents and old persons.
- "We want a society which is based on equity, justice, equality, and interdependence, to ensure a better quality or life for all, without any type of discrimination, and which accepts diversity as a foundation of social life".
- We aspire to a society in which the respect for human dignity and the humanity of all persons are its fundamental values.
- It is necessary that governments enact policies that ensure the fulfillment and real and effective exercise of the human rights of persons with disabilities.
- Actions undertaken by the governments of our countries with respect to the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with DisabilitiesŸ approved by the United Nations General Assembly on December 20, 1993.
- We have evidenced that the majority of the Latin American Governments have not ratified at the Secretariat of the Organization of American States, with due approval of their Parliaments, the Inter-American Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities.
- We have evidenced that there is a need for more cooperation from the National Councils and the corresponding government disability related agencies and with the Organizations of Persons with Disabilities. The participation of these organizations in said agencies is still restricted.
- It is necessary to strengthen and to increase the range of action of the Organization of Persons with Disabilities in all of our countries, in order to better achieve goals to meet social needs and to increase the presence of this sector of the population of persons with disabilities and their families in the actions resulting from the social policies of governments.
WE AGREE TO
- Create the Ibero-American Network of Non Governmental organization of Persons with Disabilities and their Families as an instrument to promote. Organize. and coordinate to the necessary actions to convert the social struggles of the human rights and disability movements of Ibero-America into national policies toward full citizenship of Persons with Disabilities.
- DECLARE the year 2004 as YEAR OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES as an attempt of achieve the effective compliance with the Standard Rules for the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities and full compliance with the Inter-American Convention on All Forma of Discrimination of Against Persons with Disabilities, we call upon Governments and Parliaments of Latin America to duly and promptly ratify these instruments in their territories and the region.
- EXHORT governments that have not ratified the Inter-American Convention on All Forms of Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities, to do so by depositing the ratification instruments at the General Secretariat of the OAS.
- SUGGEST to the governments of all our countries the Members of the Committee for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination by Reasons of Disability, contemplated on Section 1 of Article 6, the representatives thereof should be persons directly involved with the disability movement in their countries, otherwise, appoint persons representing governmental agencies in the field of disability.
- PROCLAIM our full support to the initiative of the Government of Mexico requesting that the General Assembly of the United Nations adopt an International Convention on Human and Respect for the Dignity of Persons with Disabilities.
- CALL upon the governments of our countries to express adherence to the General Secretariat of the United Nations and to the High Commissioner Office for Human Rights for the International Convention on Human Rights and Respect for the Dignity of Persons with Disabilities, proposed by the government of Mexico.
In Caracas, October 18, 2002.
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