2018-08-12

Gaza

Gaza

On the World Youth Day, MUSAWA conducts a Workshop in Gaza about Harmonizing with the Persons with Disabilities Act

Proceeding from its principles of justice and social equality, MUSAWA- the Palestinian Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession, in cooperation with “Kon Insan’ group, conducted a workshop on harmonizing the Persons with Disabilities (PWD) Act No (4) of 1999, and the international covenant on the rights of persons with disabilities, and discussed the integration of the Covenant's provisions, that Palestine has joined, in the national legislation. 

The workshop was held on August 12, 2018, in Gaza, and it was presented by the Legal Monitoring Officer at MUSAWA, Adv. Rula Musa, with the participation of 8 participants, 5 of which were women.

The workshop discussed the obstacles that face persons with disabilities in their everyday life, throughout the discussion; the participants agreed that the surrounding environment is not suitable for the needs of the PWD, as buildings, streets, and respiration means are not adequately equipped to provide them comfort while moving from one place to another, in addition to the serious lack of training centers that aim to develop the PWD’s abilities and integrating them with the society, other than that, there is a deficiency in the national laws, as they are not up to provide comfort for the PWDs and do not end the assaults or the discrimination against them. 

The participants based their discussion and their recommendations on Palestine’s admission into the International Covenant on the rights of persons with disabilities, whose content asserts adopting major amendments to support the PWD’s right to rehabilitation, training, work, access, and employment, which is considered an important step in this direction, noting that Palestine has not yet signed the optional protocol of this international covenant, this protocol enables the PWDs, their organizations, and the different rights organizations, to account the state and the bodies that violate the rights of PWD, and the fact that Palestine has not acceded to it yet,  raised queries among the participants.   

The participants mentioned provisions from the Basic Law and the Civil Service Law, which guaranteed the Palestinians their equality before the law, regardless of the race, color, sex, religion, political opinion, or disability, and that the Palestinian Authority shall ensure their care and to provide the services of education and health and social insurance. The participants criticized the Civil Service Law No (4) of 1998, which required the employee to be free from illness and physical or mental impairment, and considered the disability as reason for ending the service of an employee, what create obstacles to the employment of PWD, despite the laws that oblige governmental and nongovernmental institutions to dedicate 5% of employment rights to the PWD, and to provide them a suitable working environment. 

After recognizing the contradiction between the provision of the international covenant on the right of PWD to rehabilitation and work, and the reality of the valid laws in Palestine, the participants agreed on several recommendations: 

1.    To reconsider the legislative measures on the PWD right to rehabilitation, training, employment, and access according to the new covenants that emanated from the international covenant. 

2.    To set an executive mechanism that ensures the immediate application of PWD right to work according to the 5% percentage as a minimum, through providing full time and part time job vacancies, and to ensure its enforcement in all governmental, private and civic institutions.  

3.    The importance of amending the strategic national plans in the field of work and employment, and harmonizing the surrounding environment, and the importance of allocating clear financial budgets and employment programs that target the PWD.  

4.    Calling the Ministry of Social Development to call the nongovernmental bodies (civic and private sectors) to coordinate and implement programs that empower and saves the PWD right to work and access. 

5.    The application of the PWD Act No (4) of 1999 on harmonizing the environment for use by persons with disabilities through the Ministry of Local Government assumption of its functions to apply that law, and through calling the Ministry of Social Affairs immediately initiate issuing disability cards as provided in the law No (4) of 1999 on the Palestinian PWD rights. 

6.    To reject the license application of the geometrical schemas submitted to municipalities that do not meet the engineering standards that meet the needs of PWD, and to impose serious fines on the Persons who have breached and to oblige them to the harmonization. 

7.    To list the design requirements of buildings and public facilities in the executive regulations of the law 4/99 of PWD. 

8.    To study the possibility of adding a permanent item on harmonizing the public facilities with the PWD needs, to the general budget, and to constantly work on revising and updating of laws and regulations to get more modern and respectful laws and regulations.

9.    To form a governmental committee to monitor the implementation of the provisions of the laws, regulations, and instructions regarding the PWD in all governmental institutions. 

10.    To agree on the definitions of the terms mentioned in the Work Law and the PWD law, and to call for extending the definition of disability, to meet the international covenant on PWD rights, when conducting any surveys that include disabilities in the Palestinian society, to provide statistics and precise data basis on the reality and the feature of PWD in Palestine. 

11.    To demand the Ministry of Social Affairs as the competent ministry, to allocate the allowances of the PWD and their families regularly and systematically without delay or disruption in violation of the PWD right to a decent life. 

12.    To call the Ministry of Health to stop charging treatment coast on the PWD, proceeding from their right to free healthcare by the law, and to call the Ministry of Transportation to put banners in the Government health facilities noting that treatment is for free for the PWD and their families. 

13.    To call the Ministry of Social Affairs to provide Sign language interpreters in the public facilities