Article 6 – Women with Disabilities

Authors

Roxanne Mykitiuk, Osgoode Hall Law School of York UniversityFollow
Ena Chadha

Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2018

Source Publication

I. Bantekas, D. Anastasiou & M. Stein (eds.) The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Commentary, Oxford: Oxford University Press (2018).

Abstract

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (‘CRPD’ or ‘Convention’) is a milestone achievement for women and girls with disabilities, with its inclusion of a gender-sensitive approach and Article 6, which speaks directly to gender-disability discrimination. Prior to the CRPD, most international human rights instruments failed to address both disability and gender in their provisions. Many instruments were attuned to either gender to the exclusion of disability, or disability to the exclusion of gender. The recognition of the unique experiences of gender and disability-based discrimination animates the spirit behind several of the CPRD’s provisions and, specifically, the content of ‘Article 6: Women with Disabilities’. The CRPD is the first instrument of its kind to focus on the multiple and compounding forms of discrimination experienced by women with disabilities and to mandate gender-sensitive measures in the guarantee of the human rights and fundamental freedoms set out in it. This chapter begins by canvassing the historical background and travaux préparatoires on Article 6. It then reviews the text of Article 6 and discuss the interaction between Article 6 and other, substantive articles of the CRPD. We will consider how Article 6 and related articles have been interpreted by the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (‘the CRPD Committee’) in its Concluding Observations to date and in General Comment No. 3 on Article 6. As is often the case with gender and disability achievements, the progress effectuated by Article 6 was realized after decades of work and the success, while meaningful on paper, remains to be accomplished in reality.

Repository Citation

Mykitiuk, Roxanne and Chadha, Ena, "Article 6 – Women with Disabilities" (2018). Articles & Book Chapters. 2721.
https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/scholarly_works/2721