Author: Steven Allen
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Benon Kabale’s Recognition as the 2024 Recipient of the Human Rights Watch Marca Bristo Fellowship for Courageous Leadership in Disability Rights
Validity proudly congratulates Benon Kabale, our Ugandan client and a courageous survivor of institutionalisation, on being named the 2024 recipient of the prestigious Human Rights Watch Marca Bristo Fellowship for Courageous Leadership in Disability Rights. The fellowship, established to honour the late Marca Bristo—a trailblazing disability rights advocate, founder of Access Living, and inaugural chair…
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Marking the legacy of Gábor Gombos
UPDATE We remember Gábor Gombos, who passed away on 5 June 2022. Gábor’s work shaped the Hungarian and international disability movement, and his stories, presentations, speeches, and thoughts went to the heart of his audience. The book titled ’The World – Without Cage Beds: World-Shaping Narratives by Gábor Gombos’ can be ordered here and downloaded…
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Cage Beds, Human Rights, Dignity: Commemorating the Life and Works of Gábor Gombos
In November 2023, Validity and our partners at the Bárczi Gusztáv Faculty of Special Needs Education at the Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) published a unique collection of materials commemorating the life, work and thought of Gábor Gombos, a leading figure in the Hungarian and global disability rights movements and survivor of psychiatry. Gombos, who passed…
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UKRAINE RECOVERY: Humanitarian Donors’ Obligations to Ensure Inclusion, Not Institutions for Persons with Disabilities
Today, Ukrainian OPDs and civil society called on the political leadership and all humanitarian actors dealing with the crisis in Ukraine to ensure international assistance prioritizes deinstitutionalization and inclusion in the community for all persons with disabilities, in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the UN Guidelines on…
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Romania: Victims of Ilfov Must Receive Reparations and Redress – Public Letter of Concern to the Romanian Government and International Community
The following is an open letter on behalf of the Validity Foundation to the Government of Romania and international bodies concerning recent events in Romania (list of recipients below). On 4 July 2023, the Romanian Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (Direcția de Investigare a Infracțiunilor de Criminalitate Organizată și Terorism, DIICOT) together with other…
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New Film: I am the director of my own ‘institution’ | Validity Seasonal Appeal 2022
We are delighted to announce the release of this new film, featuring Validity client István Cservenka as part of Validity’s 2022 seasonal appeal – full film below. Forced to endure decades of institutionalisation simply for having a disability in Hungary, the team at Validity have been proud to support István’s journey to independence following over…
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Ann Campbell leaves Validity
in ArticleAfter more than eight years at Validity, Ann Campbell leaves the organisation on 15 August 2022. The Board and staff take this opportunity to thank her for all her work and dedication to Validity and our mission to enhance equality and justice for persons with disabilities. During her time as Co-Executive Director, Ann has jointly…
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Joint statement on suspension of the draft Additional Protocol to the Oviedo Convention
Joint statement welcoming the suspension of the adoption of the draft Additional Protocol to the Oviedo Convention We, organisations of persons with disabilities, non-governmental organisations, international and human rights bodies, including national human rights institutions and equality bodies, welcome the decisions taken by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe that suspends the…
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Involuntary Detention and Treatment: European Court of Human Rights Rejects Request to Provide an Opinion on Interpretation of Oviedo Convention
The European Court of Human Rights has rejected a request from the Council of Europe’s Committee on Bioethics (DH-BIO) to provide an advisory opinion on questions related to involuntary treatment and involuntary detention of persons with psychosocial disabilities under Article 29 of the Oviedo Convention. DH-BIO’s request for an advisory opinion came in the midst…
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Commission Fails to Stop Romania and Estonia from Segregating Citizens with Disabilities
In 2019, the European Network on Independent Living – ENIL and the Validity Foundation submitted two separate complaints against the Managing Authorities in Romania and Estonia, for using European Structural and Investment Funds (ESI Funds) to build new institutions for persons with disabilities. After almost a year, the European Commission responded to both complaints, finding…