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Back to: First Session of the Ad Hoc Committee
Documents of the First Session

Promoting the rights of persons with disabilities: Full participation and equality in social life and development

The rights of individuals with disabilities are grounded in a broad human rights framework based on the United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, international covenants on human rights and related and other human rights instruments.

More recently, the issues concerning promoting the rights of persons with disabilities with a broad human rights framework and the context of the political economy of development were discussed by the General Assembly in connection with its consideration of the third quinquennial review and appraisal of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons. On the basis of its considerations of the review and analysis of development policies and strategies from a development perspective, in its resolution 52/82, the General Assembly reaffirmed its commitment to the need to adopt and implement effective public policies and programmes to promote the rights of persons with disabilities.

This commitment was reiterated in the subsequent sessions of the General Assembly (A/RES/54/121 and A/RES/56/115). At its fifty-sixth session, the General Assembly adopted the resolution 56/168, establishing the Ad Hoc Committee "to consider proposals for a comprehensive and integral international convention to promote and protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities, based on the holistic approach in the work done in the fields of social development, human rights and non-discrimination and taking into account the recommendations of the Commission on Human Rights and the Commission for Social Development. " The first meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee took place from 29 July to 9 August 2002, United Nations Headquarters at New York.