April-May 2010

We, the participants in the Pacific Rim International Forum on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities from Australia, China, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Greece, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, New Zealand, Samoa, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United States of America, and the Pacific Basin   island jurisdictions of American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), and Guam including representatives of Governments, intergovernmental organizations, and civil society organizations as well as the private sector, met at the Third International Forum on April 10th & 11th, 2010 in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA and decided to call for action by the international community at the United Nations as follows:
Having Recalled:

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which recognizes that the inherent  dignity and equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the basis of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

The United Nations Millennium Declaration, adopted in September 2000 whose eight development goals (MDGs) include eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, achievement of universal primary education, and development of a global partnership for development, should include the poorest of the poor and include all people including persons with disabilities, many of whom live in poverty;

The 2005 World Summit outcome, adopted in September 2005, which recognizes the need to guarantee the full enjoyment of the rights of persons with disabilities without discrimination;

Understanding that disability is part of the human experience; each Millennium Development  Goal must reflect the living tapestry of disability to improve global human dignity and quality of life for everyone;

Emphasizing  that The Millennium Development  Goals cannot be achieved without the full effective inclusion of persons with disabilities and their participation in all stages of the MDG process;

Reaffirming the importance of the Biwako Millennium Framework for Action towards an Inclusive, Barrier-free and Rights-based Society for Persons with Disabilities in Asia and the Pacific (BMF) which incorporated the Millennium Development Goals;

Reaffirming that the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities reinforces universal human rights of persons with disabilities in society and development and recognizes its essentiality for realization of human rights and development for all;

Deeply Concerned with the invisibility of disability and persons with disabilities in the current Millennium Development Goal processes;

Committed to educating and advocating to governments and civil society the importance of including persons with disabilities in all aspects of the MDG’s; 

Determined to support the international community in taking bold new steps forward towards achieving substantial progress in mainstreaming disability into all aspects of the on-going Millennium Development   Goal processes to achieve the following objectives:

1. Ensure a continuous effort in mainstreaming disability and empowerment of persons with disabilities in the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals;

2. Further enhance and expand coordination and cooperation within the global, regional and sub-regional cooperation frameworks in order that disability inclusion in MDGs and other international development goals benefit from initiatives in disability-inclusive MDGs.

3. Continue to promote awareness and strengthen training programmes for MDG statistics collection in the Pacific Rim on the urgent need to take action for Disability-inclusive MDGs and enhance participation of persons with disabilities, their families and communities in the Pacific Rim;

4. Facilitate the sharing of information, experiences and best practices in the attainment of Disability-Inclusive MDGs among the Pacific Rim countries and the international community and institutions;

5. Stress the importance of collaboration between UN Agencies and development partners working on the Pacific Rim countries as well as in the international community and assess current concerns which are likely to adversely affect Pacific Rim countries’ efforts to enhance human development and achieve the Millennium Development  Goals;

6. Encourage the close collaboration among the public and private sectors and civil society and develop strategies on the Millennium Development Goals particularly in the Pacific Rim countries where there has been limited progress in the implementation and realization of MDG goals and targets; 

7. Develop and implement action plans for the Disability-Inclusive Millennium Development Goals as a framework for collective actions among the Pacific Rim countries and all stakeholders   to achieve the MDGs;

8. Strengthen collaborative efforts among UN Agencies and development partners working on the Millennium Development Goals and include governments, regional intergovernmental organizations and civil society;

9. Strengthen capacity building for collection, monitoring and evaluation of disability statistics and other information concerning persons with disabilities in  economic and social development, and ensure the inclusion of disability indicators in existing monitoring and evaluation systems for the Millennium Development  Goals; and

10. Call on All the Members of the United Nations to include in the outcome document of the upcoming 2010 Millennium Development  Goal Summit, disability  as an essential component for all MDG processes, especially  monitoring and evaluation.
 
DRAFTED on the 11th day of April, two thousand ten in the English Language.

ADOPTED at Honolulu, Hawaii, United States of America on 25th day of May, two thousand ten in the English Language.
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