Disability movement worried about the lack of actions in the EU’s Disability Rights Strategy
Over 100 European disability organisations are urging the European Commissioner for Equality Hadja Lahbib to update the EU Disability Rights Strategy in an open letter sent today, International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
The Strategy was launched in 2021 and runs until 2030, It has guided the Commission to important achievements such as the European Disability Card law, but there were only detailed actions until the end of this year., As of now, all planned actions have been completed or are near completion – and there has been no commitment to update it for the remainder of the Strategy’s lifespan. The organisations are extremely concerned that this will represent a complete stalling of the EU’s commitment to disability rights for the next 5 years.
The European Disability Forum had already raised the alarm when the Commission’s political guidelines failed to mention disability rights. This worry was compounded when the Equality portfolio was downgraded in the College of the Commissioners and by Commissioner Lahbib’s fleeting reference to the Strategy during her confirmation hearing, and her failure to commit to updating it when questioned.
The current (and past) Strategies have charted advances to disability rights, such as the European Disability Card legislation, the European Accessibility Act or the Accessible EU Centre. All these initiatives were outlined in the EU’s Disability Rights Strategies before they were implemented.
The need for an updated Strategy is therefore evident, with the European Disability Forum having released a proposal for actions for the next 5 years. The actions signal the need for new legislation on assistive technology, action on employment with a Disability Employment and Skills Guarantee and ensuring accessible, affordable housing with a European Fund to ensure accessibility in the new European plan on affordable housing – among others.
Organisations are now calling for a firm commitment to update the Strategy as soon as possible. This commitment needs to be secured ahead of a planned review in March by UN experts on the EU’s efforts to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Yannis Vardakastanis, President of the European Disability Forum – which initiated the letter – said:
“The Commission told us that they are not downgrading the Equality portfolio, but we need action to prove it – not only words. We look forward to meeting Commissioner Lahbib and obtaining her commitment to work together on an updated European Disability Rights Strategy, with new strong actions.”
Related documents
- “Open letter to EU’s Equality Commissioner Hadja Lahbib: keep up the momentum on disability rights!”
EDF’s campaign page “Update the EU Disability Rights Strategy”