Human Rights and Persons with Disabilities

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is an international human rights treaty of the United Nations intended to protect the rights and dignity of people with disabilities.

It was ratified by the United Nations General Assembly in 2008.

Parties to the Convention are required to promote, protect, and ensure the full enjoyment of human rights by people with disabilities and ensure that they enjoy full equality under the law.

Canada became a signatory to the CRDP in 2010.

Human Rights for Persons with Disabilities in Canada

In 2019 the parliament of Canada passed the Accessible Canada Act.

The Accessible Canada Act provides for the development of accessibility standards and gives the Government of Canada the authority to work with stakeholders and persons with disabilities to create new accessibility regulations that will apply to sectors within the federal jurisdiction, such as banking, telecommunications, transportation industries, and the Government of Canada itself.

This act sets out requirements for organizations to follow in order to identify, remove, and prevent barriers to accessibility. It also puts in place compliance and enforcement measures, as well as an accessibility complaints mechanism.

The purpose of the bill is to make Canada barrier-free in areas under federal jurisdiction.

The bill outlines how to identify and remove accessibility barriers and prevent new barriers, under federal rule, including in:

1. built environments (buildings and public spaces)
2. employment (job opportunities and employment policies and practices)
3. information and communication technologies (digital content and technologies used to access it)
4. procurement of goods and services
5. delivering programs and services; and
6. transportation (by air as well as by rail, ferry and bus carriers that operate across a provincial or international border)

The principles of the bill are meant to guide its future interpretation. They are rooted in the understanding that barriers to accessibility are at the heart of inequalities between Canadians with and without disabilities. The principles are consistent with Canadian and international law and communicate the goals of the bill. The main principles are:

1. inherent dignity
2. equal opportunity
3. barrier-free government
4. autonomy
5. inclusive design
6. meaningful involvement