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<font size=3><b>Support Human Rights for Prisoners with
Disabilities!<br>
</b> <br>
<b>Why Prison Activists should support ratification the UN Convention on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)<br>
</b>Anyone who has ever been in prison or supported someone inside knows
that prisons in the US are inhumane and often profoundly disabling.
Whether due to no healthcare or bad healthcare, violence, stress, poor
food and housing conditions, or aging inside, many people become disabled
while in prison. Others who go in with a chronic illness or disability
get worse…or do not survive prison at all.<br>
<b>What is the CRPD?<br>
</b>The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is
an international treaty that asserts the human and civil rights of people
with disabilities (PWDs) and the obligations of governments to promote,
protect and ensure those rights. The United Nations General Assembly
adopted the Convention in December 2006 and in March 2007 nations of the
world began to sign this new treaty. As with any international law, such
as the Geneva Conventions on the treatment of political prisoners, each
individual country must sign and ratify it for it to become binding. But
even for nations that do not sign on, these treaties are looked to as
international standards to be respected. As such, international laws such
as the CRPD can become important tools for activists to fight for the
rights of our people.<br>
<b> <br>
There are 8 guiding principles for the CRPD:</b>
<ol>
<li>Respect for the inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the
freedom to make one's own choices, and independence of PWDs
<li>Non-discrimination
<li>Full and effective participation and inclusion in all aspects of
society
<li>Respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as
part of human diversity and humanity
<li>Equality of opportunity
<li>Accessibility
<li>Equality between men and women
<li>Respect for the evolving capacities of children with disabilities and
respect for the right of children with disabilities to preserve their
identities
</ol><b>What You Can Do<br>
</b>In 2008 in prisons throughout the US, prisoners with disabilities are
routinely denied access to prison programs and appropriate and necessary
treatments, forcibly restrained or medicated against their will, among
other human rights violations. We, former prisoners and prison activists,
urge you and your organizations to support efforts to get the US
Government to ratify this new convention. We believe it can be an
important tool for demanding humane conditions and protecting human
rights for prisoners with disabilities, and for holding prisons
accountable for violations of these rights. <b>Sign and distribute the
petition to Zalmay Mamozy Khalilzad, the Permanent US Ambassador to the
United Nations.<br>
For more information:<br>
UN Convention- Full text</b>:<b>
<a href="http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?navid=12&pid=150">
www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?navid=12&pid=150</a><br>
<br>
CCWP, 1540 Market Street #490, SF, CA 94102.
<a href="http://www.wpmenprisoners.org">www.wpmenprisoners.org</a>.
415-255-7036 ext.4<br>
<br>
Stop Force, c/o Hazen, 340 Hudson Ave., Albany NY 12210.
<a href="http://www.stopforce.org">www.stopforce.org</a>
315-528-3385</b> <br><br>
<br><br>
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