‘Time for dignity for those with a disability’
A LOCAL charity is celebrating UN Human Rights Day by calling for more freedom and dignity for people with disabilities, instead of pity.
The Guernsey Disability Alliance takes a different approach to the old view that saw disabled people as passive objects of kind acts or pity with no consideration of environmental conditions.
Instead it acknowledges people with disabilities as subjects of rights and it treats the barriers in society as discriminatory.
Carol Le Page, its social policy director, said the island had taken firm steps in the last year to improve equality, and further change was ahead.
‘The GDA is looking forward to a more inclusive, equal, fairer society where people are not discriminated against. Training, information and guidance will help everyone understand what they need to do, if anything, to prevent discrimination from happening at all.
‘If discrimination does occur there will be effective remedies to help everyone to ensure it does not happen again and compensate the person who has been discriminated against.’
In November, the States agreed that sexual orientation and religious belief should join disability, race and carer status in the first phase of anti-discrimination legislation.
Some deputies questioned the need for the legislation because they doubted there was a problem.
Mrs Le Page said it was key that Guernsey came into line with Jersey and the UK on inclusion and non-discrimination.
‘There were questions raised in the November States meeting about why we need discrimination legislation if we already have the Human Rights Law.
‘The answer is that the Human Rights Law only provides protection from discrimination by any public authority but not by individuals, groups, charities, clubs, private schools, employers, businesses etc.
‘The new discrimination legislation will provide protection against discrimination wider than just the civic arena and will include social, cultural, educational and commercial activities, so all areas of life can be protected against discrimination.’
