Jimly School workshops prioritise disability rights in public policy

People with disabilities cannot participate fully in society unless public policies accommodate their specific needs in public health, education and infrastructure services.

In 2012, AIPJ has been working with the Jimly School of Law and Government to address this issue through workshops specifically designed for legal practitioners, disabled persons organisations (DPOs), legal drafters and policy makers.

The first workshop provided training on judicial review mechanisms for laws that discriminate against people with disabilities. Ibu Sinta Nuriyah Wahid, widow of former Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid and an active speaker against discrimination said, “People with disabilities have equal rights as others and equal obligations to the state and the nation… persons with disabilities must be able to access facilities such as transportation, education, healthcare, social, cultural, political and legal services.”

A second workshop highlighted the importance of bringing the rights of people with disabilities into the mainstream of public policy. It trained legal drafters and policy makers on the specific challenges that people with disabilities face in accessing public services.

Participants included representatives from DPOs, the Ministry of Social Affairs, Ministry of Law and Human Rights, and regional justice and social service institutions. Following the training sessions participants developed a series of recommendations for government and judicial institutions on mechanisms that specifically address disability rights in public policy.