UN committee 'concerned' NZ Government ignoring disability rights' advice

Friday, 26 August 2022

The New Zealand IMM delegation in Geneva with friends from the International Disability Alliance.

Disabled New Zealanders do not have equal enjoyment of rights as non-disabled people, a United Nations committee has been told in Geneva.

This week, representatives from the Government and civil society (non-government organisations) presented information and responded to international experts’ questions at a two-day meeting of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) examination.

Aotearoa signed and ratified the Convention in 2008, with the last examination in Geneva being held in 2014.

The Government delegation was led by Minister for Disability Issues Poto Williams, and the International Monitoring Mechanism (IMM) represented civil society, which included the Human Rights Commission, the Ombudsman and the Disabled People’s Organisations Coalition.

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While New Zealand’s IMM chairperson Dr Jonathan Godfrey acknowledged significant progress had been made on disability issues, he said many of the 2014 examination concluding observations and some of the IMM’s recent recommendations remain “untouched or unresolved” by the Government.

The New Zealand government delegation at the UN in Geneva attending the UNCRPD Examination is led by Minister for Disability Issues Poto Williams.

“Disabled people do not have equal enjoyment of rights, nor do we have equity of outcomes,” Godfrey, who is disabled himself, said.

The minimum wage exemption still exists for disabled people, women can still be sterilised without their informed consent and the education system is still not fully inclusive of disabled children, he said.

“Our poverty levels are unacceptable – except to the New Zealand Government,” he added.

He asked the UN committee to pressure the NZ Government to “reapply to be considered a world leader in progressing the rights of disabled New Zealanders”.

One of the concluding observations from the 2014 examination recommended that “government departments, Crown entities and local authorities should collect and publish disaggregated data on people with disabilities in their annual reports”.

A video screen of Dr Esther Woodbury delivering the Human Rights Commission's opening statement at the United Nations in Geneva.

And while New Zealand does now collect more data on disability, the Human Rights Commission’s lead adviser of disability rights Dr Esther Woodbury said the numbers “further revealed deep inequalities, that must be addressed”.

“Although some legal reform is under way, nearly a decade on from this committee’s recommendations for immediate action, a number of disabled people remain subject to substitute decision-making, forced detention and treatment,” she said.

The UN committee recommended that immediate steps were taken to eliminate the use of seclusion and restraints in medical facilities, an issue that had been raised in the 2014 conclusions.

In response, Whaikaha’s Amanda Bleckmann said the Government was developing guidelines to replace seclusion and work was being done to reduce and eliminate the use of seclusion practices.

In its most recent report, the IMM stated it heard of disabled people’s essential services, such as person care and community support, being cut without due notice during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The matter was quickly elevated by Disability Rights Commissioner Paula Tesoriero when she launched an inquiry into the support of disabled people during the Omicron outbreak and called for urgency from the Government.

The IMM report states that disabled people “continue to face barriers and challenges that the non-disabled population do not experience” as the country negotiates the Covid-19 response.

In the 2014 concluding observations, the UN committee also recommended further steps be taken to increase employment levels for disabled people and that alternatives to the minimum wage exemption permits to employers of disabled people were found.

Despite the Government being aware of the discriminatory practice, Office for Disability Issues director Brian Coffey noted that there are still 800 people on the minimum wage exemption. Recent data from Stats NZ also shows that the unemployment rate of working-age disabled people is more than double compared to non-disabled people.

In the June 2022 quarter, the unemployment rate for 15 to 64-year-old disabled people was 7.9%. For non-disabled people in the same age range, the unemployment rate was 3.3%.

However, there were some areas of progress since the 2014 examination, which includes the extension of the Enabling Good Lives approach to disability supports, that is being rolled out nationally under Whaikaha.

Some forms of accessibility have also been improved since 2014.

The Marrakesh Treaty was ratified, which means copyright legislation has been lifted to help give people who are blind and visually impaired access to books in accessible formats such as Braille.

And since 2014, Able (New Zealand’s main provider of media access services) has increased captioned content by 73%, and increased audio-described content by 292%.

The Accessibility New Zealanders Bill was also signalled as progress towards equality for disabled people by the Government, despite criticisms from disability advocates.

Regarding input from disabled people on the drafting and discussion of the act, Coffey said there was “considerable involvement”.

While he acknowledged agreement isn’t always “achieved” on what might go forward, he said it was civil society that highlighted the need for accessibility legislation and that officials worked with disabled people on a regular basis.

“Disabled people do not have equal enjoyment of rights, nor do we have equity of outcomes,” said Dr Jonathan Godfrey.

Ahead of the examination, Coffey admitted that implementing recommendations “takes a while”.

“Even when you change policy, the difference in people's lives takes some time to see,” he said.

“So this has got to be more than a paper and compliance exercise. This has got to be a commitment to disabled people in New Zealand and to making a difference in their lives as much as you can through policy and legislation.”

He understands there is frustration from disabled people to see a difference in the community.

“There are complexities of public policy. And I don't really have a solution for that.”

In wrapping up the examination of New Zealand, the committee experts commended the establishment of Whaikaha - Ministry of Disabled Issues, but also questioned forced sterilisation and assisted death.

Committee chairperson and country co-rapporteur Rosemary Kayess was “very concerned” that many of the 2014 concluding observations had not been implemented, and the Government was not responding or incorporating the IMM report recommendations into its human rights work for people with disabilities.

In her closing statement, Williams said New Zealand was on a journey.

“We have made meaningful progress since our last examination, but there is still much work to do.”

Godfrey challenged the UNCRPD examination committee to develop strong concluding observations that reflect the aspirations of disabled New Zealanders.

“Equality of rights and equity of outcomes is what we’re seeking for disabled New Zealanders and people worldwide. Is that too much to expect?”

In his closing statement, Godfrey acknowledged the 1.1 million disabled New Zealanders.

“Your lives matter, your experiences matter, your voices matter, even if many of you feel like you aren’t being heard,” he said.

The UN Committee would issue its concluding observations in September.