Category: Campaigns
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Mass school segregation in Flanders breaches rights of children with mental disabilities, says top European social rights body
The European Committee of Social Rights has ruled that the systematic denial of inclusive education to tens of thousands of children with disabilities in Flanders breaches their fundamental rights. Merel Coen from Ruiselede, Belgium, was denied enrolment at her local school due to her disability. Photo: Family. In a decision on a complaint under the…
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Topház: Validity acted lawfully during its visit of the institution, confirms the Hungarian data protection authority
The Hungarian Data Protection Authority has found that Validity did not breach data protection and privacy rules when it visited the Topház social care institution and published its report exposing ill-treatment and neglect against residents of the institution. (Click here for Hungarian.) The Topház Special Home is a State-run residential institution for children and adults…
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Hungarian government must suspend and redesign deinstitutionalisation projects
NGOs are demanding the suspension and redesign of deinstitutionalisation projects managed by the Hungarian government with funding from the European Commission. According to the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU), the Validity Foundation (formerly MDAC) and the European Network on Independent Living, the scheme to ‘deinstitutionalise’ 29 large institutions breaches national and international laws. The projects,…
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Bulgaria: Validity intervenes at European Court of Human Rights on voting rights of people with disabilities
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is currently examining the case of a Bulgarian man who was not allowed to vote in the parliamentary election in May 2017 due to his placement under partial guardianship. With the help of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee he has challenged his disenfranchisement before the ECtHR. Validity submitted a…
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Czech Constitutional Court confirms the right of people with disabilities to accessible and adequate social services
Yesterday, the Czech Constitutional Court ruled in favour of David Vratislav, a 24-year-old young man suing the local authorities for failing to provide him with the social services he needed. The court said that every person, including people with high support needs, has the right to receive adequate social services respecting their dignity. David Vratislav…
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The faces of mental health in Uganda
Today, Mental Health Uganda (MHU) and Validity release a new film documenting the lives and experiences of people with mental health issues across the country. Entitled “The faces of mental health in Uganda“, the film vividly depicts the social isolation and human rights violations faced by people with mental health issues on a daily basis.…
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Zambia High Court Calls for Review of Mental Health Law
Lusaka Zambia – On 17 November, Zambian disability activists from the Mental Health Users Network of Zambia (MHUNZA) and Disability Rights Watch (DRW) held a press conference on the outcome of decision of the Zambian High Court concerning the constitutionality of the 1949 Mental Disorders Act. In a Petition brought by three people with psychosocial disabilities, and…
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Preventing Child Abuse in Institutions
Robert Martin, CRPD Committee Member, talks institutionalistion, ill-treatment and human rights. Earlier this month, Validity (formerly MDAC) published a first-of-its-kind monitoring methodology for identifying and preventing abuse of children with mental disabilities in institutions – the CHARM Toolkit. The Toolkit was the product of a two-year, EC-funded project carried out together with our partners, GIP-Sofia…
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Hungary: Statement on the NGO Law
Validity (formerly MDAC) expresses its unequivocal opposition to legislation passed this month in Hungary which undermines the rule of law, freedom of association and respect for fundamental rights of independent non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in this country. The law, which directly affects Validity and many other human rights organisations operating in Hungary, comes amid a concerted government…
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Straightjackets and Seclusion
Validity (formerly MDAC) is today calling for the immediate closure of state-run institutions for people with disabilities in Hungary after an investigation of one large scale institution discovered children and adults who had been tortured and abused, including being tied to beds and restrained with makeshift straitjackets. One three-year-old was found in a caged bed,…