Child-Friendly Text
UN DisabilityConvention
DRAFT 13 September 2007

UNICEF
The Victor Pineda Foundation

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Contentsy Getting started
y About this document
y About the Conventiony What are your rights?
y How your rights become real in yourdaily lifey Words you may not understand2

Getting Started
This text was created to help make surethat children with and without disabilities
know about the Convention on the Rights
of Persons with Disabilities
BOX: What is a Convention? A Convention
is an agreement between countries. When acountry signs and ratifies a Convention, it
becomes a legal promise and guides theactions of the government.

The Disability Convention is anagreement to help make sure thatchildren and adults with disabilities aretreated fairly and can equally participate
in all aspects of life. The rights in theDisability Convention are not new. They
are the human rights for all children andadults. The Disability Convention isneeded to guarantee that these rights arerespected for persons with disabilities.
3BOX: What is a Disability?
A person has a disability when they havedifficulty to see, learn, walk, hear or do otheractivities. There are many types of disabilities
and some we cannot see. Changes tobuildings, rules, and attitudes are sometimes
needed to help make sure a child with adisability can play, participate and go toschool.

A school that has audio books, sign
language interpreters, and ramps is aschool that treats children withdisabilities fairly by giving them anequal chance to learn. We should all
have the chance to go to school. The
Convention helps to make thispossible.

4About this document
This document is a child-friendly
version of the Convention on theRights of Persons with Disabilities.
People from many different countries
around the world worked together todevelop this Convention. They looked
at good actions and laws that werehelping people with disabilities go toschool, get a job, and live happily intheir communities.
In the next chapters you will learn allabout your rights and what they mean
in your life. When people respect eachother’s rights it helps to create a morefair and peaceful world.

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Box: What are rights? “Rights” are things
every child should have or be able to do. Allchildren have the same rights, including kids
with disabilities. All the rights are equallyimportant.

The Convention lists the rights ofadults and children with disabilities
and establishes rules on how to put
these into practice. Every country
that joins the Convention agrees tofollow these rules.
At the end of this document, you willfind a list of words and their
meanings. It will help you tounderstand words that may be new
to you.

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About the Convention
The Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities recognizes
that every person has equal “rights”
and that the rights of each person
should be respected by everyone. It
helps to make sure that the laws andrules in a country fully protect therights of people with disabilities
including children with disabilities.
This Convention guides yourgovernment and your family on how
to help you achieve your rights. All
these rights are important and need
to be respected at all times.

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Box: Sometimes, we have to think aboutrights in terms of what you need to have an
equal chance at achieving your goals. As yougrow, you have more responsibility to makechoices and exercise your rights.

The rights that are guaranteed in theConvention for persons withdisabilities are the same humanrights that are recognized in theUniversal Declaration of Human
Rights and the Convention on theRights of the Child. These rights areintended to make sure children havewhat they need to grow, develop andlearn in safety and good health, andto reach their full potential asmembers of their community.

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What are your rights?
y Article 1
Children with disabilities have the same equal rights andfreedoms that are guaranteed for all children. Whenchildren have difficulty seeing, learning, walking or
hearing they may face barriers that other children do
not face. The equal rights of children with disabilities
should be respected and they should be treated fairly
and with dignity.

y Article 2
The meaning of some words used in theConvention:|“Communication” is the way we overcome
barriers to read, listen, speak and understand. It
may be through Braille, sign language, large print,
having someone read to us, or other helpfulmeans.

| “Language” may be spoken or signed or othernon spoken languages.
| “Discrimination on the basis of disability” occurs

when people are not treated fairly because of adisability. Children with disabilities should neverbe prevented from enjoying their equal rights.
9What are your rights?
| “Reasonable accommodation” means that if

something needs to be changed so that persons
with disabilities are able to take part, and it can bechanged within reason – it must be done.
| “Universal design” means that things aredesigned to be usable by all people, to the greatest
extent possible.

y Article 3
You have the right to:•

Dignity.
• Fairness without discrimination.
• Be included in activities.
• Be accepted, with or without disabilities, just as
you are.
• Equal opportunity, to reach your dream.
• Accessibility, to enter a public place and not be
prevented or refused.
• Equal possibility whether you’re a boy or a girl.
• Respect for your abilities and to preserve who youare.

10What are your rights?
y Article 4
There will be no laws that discriminate against
disabled kids! Children with disabilities must be
involved in decisions that affect them.
y Article 5, 6
The law says that everyone is equal. This
especially includes women and girls withdisabilities.
y Article 7Children, with or without disabilities, have
opinions and ideas and should be able to express
them. We should enjoy the full freedoms
guaranteed to all children!
y Article 8
It is wrong to label children with disabilities ortreat them unfairly. Kids with disabilities can dowonderful things. And people need to know
about it!

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What are your rights?
y Article 9
When we are grown up we can live
independently and take part in all aspects of life
without barriers to stop us from going to schoolor to work, to reach our dreams.
y Article 10
You have the right to life, it is your gift and noone, by law, can take it from you.
y Article 11
You have the right to be protected and to be safe
during a war or an emergency or a storm or
natural disaster.
y Article 12
With or without disabilities, you are equal in alllegal measures of life.
y Article 13 & 14
You have the right to have access to justice, andthe right to liberty and security.
12What are your rights?
Article 15
You have the equal right not to be tortured ortreated in a cruelly.
Article 16
You have the right to be protected from violence
and abuse, and not to be misused or mistreated.
Article 17
You have the right to have respect for yourphysical and mental abilities, just as you are.
Article 18
With or without disabilities, you have the rightto a name, a nationality and the right to know
and be cared for by your parents. You also havethe right to live where you want, in whatevercountry you wish.

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What are your rights?
Article 19
You have the right to make choices where you
wish to live, if you wish to live independently
and to be included on equal terms in thecommunity.
Article 20
You have the right to move about and beindependent. If you need help to move about,
you will get it.
Article 21
If you need to use sign languages, Braille, orother help in expressing yourself you will get it!
You have the right to express yourself andexpress your opinion. You have an equal right toinformation.
Article 22
With or without disabilities, you have the rightto privacy.
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What are your rights?
y Article 23

You have the right to live with your family,
and your government should support yourfamily to care for you. If you cannot livewith your immediate family, the government
should help provide care within the wider
family or community. When you grow up,
you also have the right to get married andhave a family.
y Article 24

You have the right to go to school andcannot be excluded from education becauseof a disability. Your government must
provide the help you need to realize thisright. For example, it must provide
appropriate ways for you to communicate,and make sure that teachers are prepared torespond to your needs.
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What are your rights?
y Article 25 & 26

You have the right to good health carewithout discrimination because of disability
and you have the right to take part in all
aspects of life and to receive help needed.
y Article 27

With or without disabilities, you have theequal right to work at a job, withoutdiscrimination.
y Article 28

You have a right to have food, clothing andaccess to housing, without discrimination.
y Article 29

With or without disabilities, you have theright to take part in politics and to serve thepublic, to vote and to be elected.
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What are your rights?
y Article 30

You have the equal right to take part in thearts, sports, games, and fun activities intheatres, museums, playgrounds, libraries
and have equal access to these places,
without discrimination.
y Article 31

You have the right to privacy and to ethicaltreatment in all matters of research andinformation collected on disabilities.
y Article 32

You have the right to expect international
cooperation in access, sharing information,and providing assistance to overcome
barriers related to disability.

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What are your rights?
y Article 33

Your government must give attention to thisConvention and make sure it is followed andthat steps are taken to keep the promise torespect the rights of all persons withdisabilities. You have the right to participate
in these efforts.
y Article 34

A special Committee on the Rights ofPersons with Disabilities will meet regularly
to make sure that the Convention isfollowed, and to answer questions and guidecountries and communities in protecting therights of persons with disabilities.

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What are your rights?
y Articles 35, 36, 37, 38 & 39

Every country that is a member or party to
the Convention will write a report to thespecial Committee telling about what they
have done to protect the rights of persons
with disabilities. The special Committee will
work with many experts and groups aroundthe world to make sure your voice is heard.
y Article 40

Regular meetings will take place whenneeded so that countries can shareexperience and ideas and help each other toprotect the rights of persons withdisabilities, and fulfill the promise of theConvention.

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What are your rights?
y Article 41

The Secretary-General of the United Nations
will keep the promises submitted byCountries when they sign the Convention ina safe and secure place.
y Article 42

Starting the 30 March 2007 all countries of
the United Nations will be able to agree withthe principals to protect the rights of persons
with disabilities by signing the Convention.
y Articles 43, 44, 45, 46, 47 & 48

Your government agrees to be bound to theprinciples once it makes the Convention
national law. Then, it is a “State party” to theConvention.

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What are your rights?
y Articles 49 & 50

All children can learn about the Convention
as it will be available in many languages andin many formats.

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How your rights become real inyour daily lifeyy

The adults in your life should help andassist you to move around,communicate, and interact with otherchildren no matter what kind of
disability or difficulty you may face.
Every child in the world looks
different and has different ideas,experience, traditions and ABILITIES.
These differences create new
possibilities, new hopes, new dreams
and new friendships. The differencesamong the people of our world are atreasure for all to appreciate andshare. Each child is part of the world
family and contributes their unique
ABILITIES. No child is excluded.

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Words you may not understandAccessibilityy Accommodationy Committeey Communicationy Communityy Conventiony Dignityy Discriminationy Languagey Ratificationy Rightsy UNICEF
y United Nations
y Universal Declaration on HumanRights
y Universal Design
y23