PROCLAMATION ON THE FULL PARTICIPATION AND EQUALITY OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THE ASIAN AND PACIFIC REGION
1. We the government leaders of ESCAP members and associate members recognize that:
- Every day in this region people are being disabled due to malnutrition and disease, environmental hazards, natural disasters, traffic and industrial accidents, civil conflict and war.
- As a concomitant of improvements in child survival, the numbers of children surviving with disabilities are increasing.
- As more people survive to older age, the numbers of elderly people with disabilities are rising.
- The living conditions of large numbers of people with disabilities, especially those in rural areas, need to be further improved.
2. We note that in Asian and Pacific societies, minimum care and service are, to a large extent, provided for people with disabilities in the traditional family and community context. However, much more must be done to enable persons with disabilities to develop their full potential so that they may live as agents of their own destiny in the rapidly changing economic and social conditions of the region.
3. Throughout the region, the opportunities for full participation and equality for people with disabilities, especially in the fields of rehabilitation, education and employment, continue to be far less than those for their non-disabled peers. This is largely because negative social attitudes exclude persons with disabilities from an equal share in their entitlements as citizens. Such attitudes also curtail the opportunities of people with disabilities for social contact and close personal relationships with others. The social stigma associated all too often with disabilities must be eradicated.
4. The built environment throughout much of Asia and the Pacific has been designed without consideration for the special needs of persons with disabilities. Physical obstacles and social barriers prevent citizens with disabilities from participating in community and national life. The various impediments to participation and equality are especially formidable for girls and women with disabilities. With improved attitudes, increased awareness and much care, we can build social and physical environments that are accessible for all, i.e., we must work towards a society for all. In this regard, we urge the free exchange of information.
5. We take pride in the fact that in economic terms, Asia and the Pacific is the fastest growing region in the world today. We are also aware that countries in this region are at different levels of development. We resolve that economic progress will also be reflected in the efforts that we devote to this extremely vulnerable social group in our societies: people with disabilities.
6. We welcome the adoption by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific of resolution 48/3 on the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 1993-2002, as a catalyst for effective new policy initiatives and actions at national, sub-regional and regional levels aimed at systematically improving the conditions of people with disabilities, who constitute approximately one-tenth of our total population, and for harnessing their full development potential.
7. We thus proclaim and pledge our joint commitment to translating into action in our respective countries and territories the ideals and objectives of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, and confirm our continued endeavour in accordance with the United Nations Charter's affirmation of faith "... in the dignity and worth of the human person...."