You are a free human being! Whatever you like you should do. If it is against law, then the law should take its on course! With regards, Vip
----- Original Message ----- From: "Taraprakash" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, December 09, 2006 1:23 AM Subject: Re: [AI] A Burning Issues(replies) > Here is a bit for those who want to work more in this field. > > Women and Girls with Disabilities > > Human Rights Watch is committed to promoting the human rights of all > persons, and is supportive of the movement toward codification of a > specific > international > human rights treaty on disability rights. We are concerned that the > current > draft of the treaty does not yet adequately protect the human rights of > women > and girls. This website and the linked documents provide background on > this > issue and suggest improvements for the treaty. > List of 3 items > . Background on Abuses of Disabled Women's and Girls' Rights > . Background on the Draft Comprehensive and Integral International > Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of > Persons with > Disabilities > . Human Rights Watch letter outlining concerns about the draft disability > treaty > list end > > Background on Abuses of Disabled Women's and Girls' Rights > > Approximately 300 million women around the world have mental and physical > disabilities. Women constitute 75 percent of the disabled people in low > and > middle > income countries. Women with disabilities comprise 10 percent of all women > worldwide. > > Women are more likely than men to become disabled during their lives, due > in > part to gender bias in the allocation of scarce resources and in access to > services. When ill, girls and women are less likely to receive medical > attention than boys and men, particularly in developing countries where > medical > care may be a considerable distance from home. They are also less likely > to > receive preventive care, such as immunizations. Due to social, cultural > and > religious factors, disabled women are less likely than men to make use of > existing social services, including residential services, and it is > estimated > that disabled women worldwide receive only 20 percent of the > rehabilitation. > A study in the Asia Pacific region found that more than 80 percent of > disabled > women had no independent means of livelihood, and thus were totally > dependent on others. According to the World Health Organization, girls > with > disabilities > may be more readily institutionalized than boys. > > Disabled women and girls face the same spectrum of human rights abuses > that > non-disabled women face, but their social isolation and dependence > magnifies > these abuses and their consequences. Women and girls with disabilities > fare > less well on most indicators of educational, professional, financial, and > social > success than their non-disabled female and disabled male counterparts. In > some countries, laws overtly discriminate against disabled women and men, > including > by barring them from marrying if they have any form of mental disability. > > Even where the laws are not discriminatory, disabled women and girls face > a > host of abuses at the hands of their families, communities, and the state. > Though > definitive data is rare, there is some evidence that disabled women and > girls face higher rates of violence and discrimination than non-disabled > women. > List of 8 items > . Disabled women's sexual and reproductive rights are grossly abused. They > experience forced sterilization; forced abortion due to discriminatory > attitudes > about their parenting abilities; and denial of information about > reproductive health and contraceptives. When seeking reproductive health > care, disabled > women often face abusive treatment at the hands of physicians who do not > understand their particular circumstances. A study in the U.S. showed that > women > with disabilities were significantly less likely to receive pelvic exams > than non-disabled women. > . Disabled women also face limitations on their rights to marry and found > a > family, and often lose of custody of their children. In some countries, it > is > almost impossible for disabled women to adopt children. > . Disabled women face high rates of violence, both at the hands of family > members and of personal assistants. Their dependence on their caregivers > makes > it even more difficult for them to pursue a remedy than for non-disabled > women. Even where shelters are available for survivors of domestic > violence, > they > are rarely accessible for disabled women. Research indicates that the > violence faced by disabled women may be more chronic and severe, and takes > some unique > forms, such as withholding of essential care and medication. It seems also > to be more prevalent: surveys conducted in Europe, North America, and > Australia > have shown that over half of disabled women have experienced physical > abuse, > compared to one-third of non-disabled women. In the United States, > children > with disabilities are almost twice as likely to experience sexual abuse as > non-disabled children. > > > (To be continued on Monday Unless the "law" stops me) > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "smriti singh" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Monday, December 04, 2006 3:54 PM > Subject: [AI] A Burning Issues(replies) > > >> Dear list members, >> >> I don't have regular access to internet, otherwise I >> would have participated fully in the discussion. >> Anyway, here are my quick comments on all the >> responses: >> >> To begin with, I feel that not much replies have come >> on the basic issue I raised. I am actually talking >> about institutions who keep visually challenged girls. >> Either they have schools for them, or they provide >> hostels. I think we all know that girls are not safe >> there. It does not mean that all the institutions run >> in the same manner. >> >> As far as one's isolation is concerned, university >> students, particularly visually challenged, are >> already isolated. So, I'm not scared of being >> isolated. I do agree that institution like Nab raise >> their problem concerning to study, but no institution >> take care about their social rights. Even for >> scholarships, some institutions do not allow girls to >> use their institutions' address. So, they have to give >> address of their friends for receiving the >> scholarship. >> >> I'm also very upset that women have not responded on >> this issue. Most of us talked about the self-defence >> and martial arts, but do we think our visually >> challenged girls have enough sex education? That is >> why they are more vulnerable. So, before teaching any >> self-defence trick, I think it is necessary for >> visually challenged women to understand what they have >> to protect themselves from. I would like to inform all >> of you that I am not thinking about this issue only >> since that NDTV report. I am thinking about this issue >> for a long time. I have worked on a project with Prof. >> Romila Thapar. For that project, we had conducted >> interviews of visually challenged girls. Besides, I >> have many visually challenged friends who are staying >> in such hostels. So we know what situation is like. I >> and Mr. Shobhan Singh have written a joint article >> about visually challenged women which was published in >> International Journal of Disability. So, it is not >> that we are unaware about laws. There are certain >> governmental law, true. But, when these NGOs for women >> go to register themselves, they are not asked what >> precautions they are going to take to ensure safety of >> those women. In other words, there are no code of >> conduct that governs these NGOs or institutions. >> >> Being an academician does not mean that one cannot >> raise social issues or one is unaware about it. I >> would like to request all access India members that, >> more than anything, it is necessary to spread >> awareness about the entire matter. >> >> With Regards, >> >> >> >> Smriti Singh >> Programme: M. Phil (English Literature) >> Room # 03 >> Sabarmati Hostel >> Jawaharlal Nehru University >> >> >> >> ____________________________________________________________________________________ >> Have a burning question? >> Go to www.Answers.yahoo.com and get answers from real people who know. >> >> To unsubscribe send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> with the subject unsubscribe. >> >> To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, >> please visit the list home page at >> >> http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > To unsubscribe send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, > please visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in To unsubscribe send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the subject unsubscribe. 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