The disabled treaty and LatAm and the Caribbean

As a service to the public (so to speak) the following is a list of Latin American and Caribbean countries and what they have done regarding the "Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities". The source comes from this U.N. website and the list is written from least to most action taken by governments:

No action
Bahamas
Belize
Grenada
Haiti
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
United States of America
Venezuela

Signed convention only
Barbados
Colombia
Guyana
Uruguay

Signed convention & optional protocol
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Costa Rica
Dominican Republic
Guatemala
Paraguay

Ratified convention
Cuba
Honduras
Jamaica
Nicaragua

Ratified convention & protocol
Ecuador
El Salvador
Mexico
Panama
Peru

What observations can I draw from this? Here are five quick points:

1. Just over one-quarter of states have yet to sign the convention. I expected a lower figure though I see that most of those countries are small and/or developing.
2. Of that list of countries who haven't signed two stick out: the U.S. and Venezuela. From the get go it was obvious that the U.S. would not sign to the treaty despite participating during several Ad Hoc committee sessions. Venezuela does surprise me since they seemed to be active during Ad Hoc committee sessions and their government has placed such a strong emphasis on social services.
3. The Colombian delegation was one of the most passive ones during the Ad Hoc committee sessions I attended. (I'll explain why another time; all that I will say for now is that I was not proud of their attention to distractions). Thus, imagine my shock when I find that they at least signed the convention.
4. The five countries that ratified the convention & protocol where very active during the Ad Hoc committee meetings not only through their government representatives but also via NGOs.
5. Fun facts: Jamaica was the first country to ratify the treaty in March 2007 while Ecuador's ratification last month allowed the treaty to go into effect.
   

Could more countries from the region ratify the treaty? I honestly don't know though that can certainly change in the upcoming months.

Lousy Smarch Weather

If there’s one thing that annoys me is when my best laid plans became thwarted despite my best intentions.

Today I was supposed to head to a special ceremony at the U.N. commemorating the entry into force of an international treaty for disabled people. I touched on the convention briefly the other day, and expressed my pride and joy that such an accord could come to fruition. My hope was that I could attend today’s event and be one of numerous disabled individuals present and showing support to what can hopefully be a new era for the disabled.

Alas, it was not to be since I was unable to make it to Manhattan.

The fault lies with the crummy weather today. I don’t mind if it’s cold and today was a bit nippy. However, 30 MPH winds along with 45 MPH gusts are dangerous for those in wheelchair with a high center of gravity like mine. Worse still was the steady rainfall which made commuting a pain in that it was a perfect day for delays and late pickups on the Access-A-Ride system.

In the end, I stayed at home doing some cleaning and organizing of paperwork. I was feeling a little too crabby to do any meaningful work.

At least there’s a bright side; I’ll try tomorrow to catch the archived webcast of the ceremony despite my having more pressing matters to attend to. Furthermore, I’m going to accompany my mom and one of my brothers on Wednesday to his medical appointment. That should give me the chance to enjoy some time with them outside of the sometimes claustrophobic confines of the apartment.

A little fresh air never hurts!

A New Era for PWD

As I mentioned on Saturday, an international treaty for disabled people took effect on that day. Thus culminated the efforts of hundreds of people who dedicated lots of time and energy to creating the accord and the beginning of a new hope for disabled individuals around the world.

I had the good fortune of attending several of the conferences of the ad hoc committee which worked diligently and (for the most part) in good faith to create the treaty. The sessions were marathon events taking two weeks at a time roughly twice a year and convened government representatives along with members of numerous NGOs. My role was mostly an observational one; showing up to workshops, gathering notes, and talking to different people. It was a refreshing look at how group efforts can (usually) work and it provided me some valuable insight into the inner working of the U.N. bureaucracy.

Next Monday there will be a special ceremony commemorating the entry into force of the treaty for disabled people. I may see some familiar faces during the event, though to be perfectly frank with you that isn’t my primary concern. My main issue is that the pact can lead to significant strides for the disabled, especially in underdeveloped nations.

Disabled people receive the stigma of being complainers who are wholly uncomfortable with the world and whine solely for our benefit. That may be the case for a small amount but I’ve found that what we, the disabled, really want is the opportunity to perform to the best of our ability. It may involve asking for some help but in the end we are empowered and given the chance to reach our goals.

I suppose the best and most succinct way to say it is by using the title of a book written by the late (and missed) Henry Viscardi, Jr. – Give Us the Tools

A New Era for the Disabled

Today an international treaty aimed at improving the lives of disabled people around the world went into effect. I will discuss this in further detail on Monday, but not without mentioning that I sincerely hope that the convention can help those achieve the equality that they so richly deserve. It may not have a huge impact for my generation though I have faith that it will for future generations to come.

(Video link):

My Five (Final Part)

Crap, I forgot all about finishing this series. I’ll be as brief as possible since I have more immediate matters to worry about such as my stress test Wednesday morning.

Part One here.

Part Two here.

Wednesday June 6^th

That day was relatively simple and mild-mannered until I received a phone call from my former U.N. supervisor after I finished a quick lunch. We talked for quite a while about many things; chiefly the work I did for her roughly two years plus. The main point of the discussion was that she offered me a fantastic deal to return to the report I finished last year and expand on it. The most exciting part was the possibility that it could be published by year’s end! Though I anticipated taking it easy in the autumn and find employment, the U.N. work takes precedence over that.

Now I split most of my time doing thesis work, U.N. re-research, and a spot of blogging here. Yes I have to work twice as much as I had planned for the next six months, but I have faith and hope that great rewards will emerge from great sacrifices.

Thursday June 7^th

I’ll confess that the day was somewhat uneventful; I went to go see my primary physician (he who has the uncanny knack of arguing with my mom every time they should meet. Thankfully, my appointment went well).

To be honest, the most notable part of the day was going out to lunch with mom since we walked nearly a mile in Long island city to chow down at a tiny Colombian joint. The place was full of so many lovely delicacies (e.g. empanadas, rotisserie chicken, three types of homemade soup) that it was hard to pick something small to eat. In the end I had a chorizo, arepa, and small coffee which all hit the spot.

Unfortunately, my camera was out of power which is why the only photo of that day is the one above. Hastily taken, it was snapped as I was showing my mom some pastries I found on the counter.

Now I have this stress test in about 12 hours to preoccupy my mind though I’m not overly worried about it. I just hope it works out and will eventually indicate my heart function.