This section provides information on international conventions and national laws, articles about these, and related documents and reports that address ways in which the rights of people living with disabilities are upheld. 

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol were adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 13 December 2006, and opened for signature on 30 March 2007.

To view the UN Convention, see http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?navid=12&pid=150

On 30 March, 81 Member States and the European Community signed the Convention, the highest number of signatures of any human rights convention on its opening day.  44 Member States signed the Optional Protocol, and 1 Member State ratified the Convention.

The Convention was negotiated during eight sessions of an Ad Hoc Committee of the General Assembly from 2002 to 2006, making it the fastest negotiated human rights treaty. The Convention aims to ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy human rights on an equal basis with others.

Many thanks to Lenore Manderson for taking the time to prepare the introduction to this section.