People with intellectual disabilities or those with low literacy can benefit from voter education materials in an easy-to-read format with pictures or from door-to-door voter education campaigns where they have a chance to speak to an educator in person. Image boxes are another tool used to conduct grassroots civic and voter education. During an image box session, a trained facilitator displays a series of images designed to elicit discussion among participants on election-related topics. Figure 5: Examples of Accessible Formats Accessible format Helps people who Audio Are blind or have low vision and people with low literacy Braille Are blind or have low vision Captions Are deaf or hard-of-hearing Easy-to-read Have intellectual disabilities, low literacy or are non-native speakers of the language Electronic text used with screen reading software Are blind or have low vision; have intellectual or learning disabilities or low literacy Large print (16-20 font size) Have low vision Pictures Have intellectual disabilities, low literacy or are non-native speakers of the language Sign language Are deaf or hard of hearing Tactile Are blind or have low vision but do not know Braille and people who are deaf-blind
December 2011 – UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific– Regional Stakeholder Consultation for the High-level Intergovernmental Meeting on the Final Review of the Implementation of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003-2012 (Second Session) Goal 2: Promote participation in political processes and in decision making. The following suggestions were made for consideration: A new target on “Increase participation of self-help organizations and family advocacy groups in national, sub-national and local advocacy organizations” Include “youth with disabilities”; “persons with intellectual disabilities”; and “persons with psychosocial disabilities”; “reasonable accommodation and capacity building for persons with diverse disabilities to exercise their right to vote”; and “representative organizations of persons with disabilities and their family members” Reflect “participation of persons with disabilities in local legislative bodies and in the judicial process”; “decision making bodies in other development sectors”; the inclusion of “diverse disability groups not only in the national coordination mechanism, but also in subnational coordination mechanisms (provincial/State; and local)” Include reference to the need for election-related information materials, and procedures to be made accessible for persons with diverse disabilities, including the registration of persons with disabilities as voters Add “Inclusion of persons with disabilities and their organizations in the national election commission or equivalent body” December 2011 – Thematic study by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on participation in political and public life by persons with disabilities 68. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities heralds a new era for the political participation of persons with disabilities. Article 29 requires States parties to guarantee to persons with disabilities political rights and the opportunity to enjoy them on an equal basis with others. This provision does not foresee any reasonable restriction, nor does it allow any exception. Article 12, which recognizes that persons with disabilities enjoy legal capacity on an equal basis with others in all aspects of life, also does not provide for any exception to the principle, and only requires States parties to take appropriate measures “to provide access by persons with disabilities to the support they may require in exercising their legal capacity.”