ARTICLE - DISABILITY RIGHTS

THE RIGHT OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION, ENSHRINED IN THE LAW OF MARCH 13, 2012
(Haiti Libre) -

A result of intense work between the public sector, international agencies, organizations of civil society, and the organized sector of persons with disabilities, the law on the integration of Disabled Persons, adopted Tuesday, March 13 by the Senate is a great step for people with disabilities in the country.

Gérald Oriol Jr., Secretary of State for the Integration of Disabled Persons, described this vote "as an historic act", and sent special thanks to the National Associative Network for the Integration of Disabled Persons (RANIPH), which has been the bearer of the idea to the law, to the entire team of the former administration; especially to Dr. Michel A. Pean, and to the Organization of American States and USAID for their support from the start, that facilitated the development and submission of the bill to the parliament; especially to Ms. Carolina Hernandez Ramirez.

"This is a remedial gesture for disabled persons too long marginalized in the society. Indeed, this law comes to rehabilitate people with disabilities in their integrity. This is an important legal tool that protects the poor person in their rights," declared Gérald Oriol Jr., who stressed that the Office of the Secretary of State for Integration of Persons with Disabilities (BSEIPH) now has a legal backing for its action, and now has a legal framework to be used to foster the effective integration of citizens living with disabilities.

For his part, Jean Chevalier Sanon, the President and Secretary General of the Federation of Haitian Associations and Institutions of Disabled People of Haiti, this law "recognizes the right of persons with disabilities to the social inclusion within the national activities,". For him, in addition to requiring the Government to release financial provisions for the development of impaired people, the law gives them authority to demand what they deserve, that is to say "their place in society."

Indeed, this law puts the state and the company to facing to their responsibilities towards people with disabilities, by focusing on the satisfaction of essential needs, such as primary education, health care, housing, and the appropriate physical environment, and insists on the necessity to ensure to impaired people the access to buildings open to the public; with adequate transport facilities, for information; on employment and adapted work.

An important aspect of this law, is that it prohibits any discrimination against persons with disabilities in the employment sector. It even makes an injunction to the State to integrate people with disabilities into public service, and to the institutions of the private sector with more than 20 employees, the obligation to reserve a quota of 2% for people with disabilities in its workforce.

However, concrete actions should be considered, for this legislation does remain a dead letter. For Jean Chevalier Sanon, the leaders of the community of disabled people should organize public meetings to publicize the law. This action must be accompanied by a strengthening of the mechanism of the law. "It is necessary to force the accessibility to public and private institutions."

"The application of this law is of great significance, because it takes into account all aspects of the person's life: housing, transportation, education and vocational training, employment, sport and leisure, and access to justice among others," says the Secretary of State; who claims to be very aware of the immense work that remains to be done before the promise of this law is fulfilled. "A whole set of tools should be used to draw attention to the prerogatives of the law, and to ensure that it is taken into account in public policy" ; to make accessible to all this law, disabled or not. The Secretary of State thinks that it will be necessary also to translate and publish it in Creole, transcribe it into Braille, and also make it available on audio.