The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC) delegates have called upon electoral bodies to scrap nomination fees for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) intending to stand for political offices.
This was one of the resolutions the delegates adopted during their closed-door meeting at the on-going 64th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference at Speke Resort, Munyonyo.
The meeting was held under the theme “The role of parliaments in facilitating persons with disability as electors, candidates and legislators.”
According to the resolutions, the delegates also called upon parliaments to ensure their respective countries ratify the United Convention on Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD) and its Optional Protocol on the transparency and accountability in upholding the rights of PWDS in order to eliminate all forms of discrimination against persons with disability seeking political offices.
The other adopted resolutions included legislatures implementing disability inclusion action plans in consultation with stakeholders to enable legislators with disability effectively execute their duties, promoting a legislative agenda to promote the rights of citizens living with disability, parliaments providing a level ground for legislators with disability to access parliamentary services and others.
The others are encouraging legislators with disability to network and encouraging the population to support people living with disability in their political urge to occupy political offices.
The delegates also urged parliaments to always review all legislation enacted in respect to the interests of persons with disability, after every two or three years.
They also raised concern with the Hansard, the official record of Parliament, not being captured in forms that are not reader-friendly to some Members of Parliament like the blind. They urged parliaments to devise additional means of capturing the Hansard in a form that is reader-friendly to the blind legislators.
The resolutions follow an earlier demand by female Members of Parliament with disabilities for the amendment of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Constitution to institute an organ for addressing welfare of parliamentarians with disabilities.
Safia Nalule Juuko, Uganda’s National MP for Persons with Disabilities demanded for the establishment of a Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities Network which was recommended earlier in 2017 during the Nova Scotia, Canada Conference.
She said that if established, the Network will provide better outreach, promotion and research for increasing the representation of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in Commonwealth Parliaments.
Dennitah Ghati, the PWDs representative in the National Assembly of Kenyan demanded for the amendment of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Constitution to institute an organ for persons with disabilities in order to address their welfare.
She said that article 15 (2) of the CPA- Africa Region Constitution allows constitution of new organs hence a need for the amendment to have a provision for the Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities Network- Africa.
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