UN Disability Convention
The United Nations (UN) Disability Convention says that disabled people have the right to get the support they need to make their own decisions.
What is the UN Disability Convention?
The UN Disability Convention is an agreement between different countries. It says what governments must do to make sure disabled people get the same rights as everybody else.
What does “disability” mean in the UN Disability Convention?
The UN Disability Convention covers people with:
- physical impairments
- mental distress
- intellectual impairments
- sensory impairments.
The UN Disability Convention says that people experience disability when:
- people don’t get the support they need so they can’t easily do everyday things
- society doesn’t adapt to people’s needs, so it’s difficult for them to participate fully.
What does the UN Disability Convention say about supported decision-making?
Article 12 of the UN Disability Convention says that:
- disabled people have the same right to make their own decisions as everyone else
- disabled people should have the help they need to make decisions
- if a person needs someone else to speak for them, there should be rules to do this properly.
Aotearoa New Zealand has agreed to follow the Disability Convention. This means that all New Zealanders have the right to have the support they need to make decisions.
Find out more
Read about Article 12 of the UN Disability Convention:
- UN Disability Convention summaries of articles in plain English by Disabled Persons Assembly. external
- An easy-read summary of UN Disability Convention by United Nations Enable.
- The original text of the UN Disability Convention by United Nations. external
- "Exploring Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities". A literature review for the Office for Disability Issues by Brigit Mirfin-Veitch.
- "General comment" by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- "From provisions to practice: implementing the Convention – Legal capacity and supported decision-making" by the United Nations external
- “Removing barriers” by New Zealand's Independent Monitoring Mechanism. This booklet explains the rights of disabled people to changes that support equal participation.