Dissemination of good practice on implementing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities

Lithuania ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on May 28th, 2010. Nevertheless the ensurance of those rights have not gone far yet. Special attention and enforcement is needed on Art. 12, 21, 26  and 19 of the Convention as people with intelectual disabilities have no equal recognition before the law and many times are excluded from the rest of society.
Due to the specifics of disability - mental disorders – people with intelectual disabilities many times are not capable to access  primary and secondary legal help aid, they are not able to stand for themselves as well as speak for themselves.
As a result, this remains to be an important reason for total deprivation of people with intelectual disabilities. This also denies an access to the social and independent life which is protected under Art 19 of CPRD.
2012 organisation „Viltis“ is planning to continue working on the implementation of Convention. In our work we are highlighting the main principles of the Convention - respect for inherent dignity, non-discrimination, full and effective participation and inclusion in sočiety, equality between men and women, equality of opportunity, accessibility, respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human diversity and humanity. The most attention will be drawn to the implementation of the articles 5, 7, 8, 12, 19, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 28, 30, 32, 33 of the Convention, putting all efforts to enable people with intectual disabilities to excercise their rights.
Therefore doing this organisation „Viltis” would like to gain some good practice and experience on self-advocacy of disabled people from the country-partner, as well as organise self-advocasy courses for people with intelectual disabilities, their carers, parents, teachers and social workers, who work with them.
Self-advocacy program is mostly focused to teach people with inteclectual disabilities to speak for themselves, to learn how to chose their living conditions, know their rights and duties, call for respect, gain new skills like managing their money, participate in meetings, etc.
Organisation „Viltis” been helding self-advocacy programs since 2006,. Nevertheless theres still many things to accomplish in this area, because organisation barely gets support to gather experience and adopt some good practice from other foreign countries.