EDF welcomes the proposal of the European Commission to revise the Victims’ Rights Directive, including by further protecting the rights of victims with disabilities.
We propose the following amendments to further improve the Directive in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ratified by the EU and all its Member States:
- Article 5a(3): include measures for reporting crimes in closed settings and institutions where persons with disabilities may be living
- Article 22, new paragraph 3a: remove the broad reference to the “mental health issue” of the offender, in order to avoid bias and stigmatisation linked to mental health and psychosocial disabilities
- New Article 26c: include a reference to procedural accommodation to be granted upon the request of victims with disabilities to ensure their inclusion in the justice process
- Article 28: require the collection of data disaggregated by the disability of the victims, in order to effectively implement and monitor the directive when it comes to victims with disabilities
- Edits recitals 6 and 16 to mirror the proposals made in articles 5a(3) and 26c