News

Two days before the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (3 December), the European Disability Forum (EDF) met with Presidents and top politicians of the main Political Groups in the European Parliament. Josef Weidenholzer (S&D Group Vice-President), Sabine Verheyen (EPP Coordinator in the Committee on Culture and Education), Syed Kamall (President of the ECR Group), Gabriele Zimmer (President of the GUE/NGL Group) and Ulrike Lunacek (Vice-President of the European Parliament, Greens/EFA) renewed the commitment of their Political Groups to support the rights of persons with disabilities in Europe, three years after the first high level meeting with EDF.

They all signed a declaration to take up a series of important initiatives in order to ensure the full inclusion of persons with disabilities and the enforcement of their rights. The declaration reflects their commitment to support:

• The adoption of a comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation.
• The adoption of a overarching and comprehensive EU strategy 2020-2030 for the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
• Investment promoting social inclusion of persons with disabilities, even in times of budgetary constraints.
• The adoption of a strong and ambitious European Accessibility Act.
• The organisation of the 4th European Parliament of Persons with Disabilities in 2017.
• Making the 2019 European elections fully accessible to persons with disabilities.
• Mainstreaming the rights of persons with disabilities systematically in the EU refugee and migration legal framework and policy work.
• The protection of the rights of women and girls with disabilities and the swift ratification of the Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, including the banning of forced sterilisation in EU Member States.