Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Concludes Thirty-Fourth Session After Adopting Concluding Observations on Lesotho, Liberia, Marshall Islands, Pakistan and Samoa
The Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities this afternoon closed its thirty-fourth session after adopting concluding observations on the reports of Lesotho, Liberia, Marshall Islands, Pakistan and Samoa.
Jorge Araya, Committee Secretary, presenting the Committee’s report on the thirty-fourth session, said that, in addition to State party reports, the Committee had examined six individual communications submitted for its consideration under the Optional Protocol to the Convention during the session, finding violations in two of them, declaring three inadmissible, and discontinuing one. It also finalised an inquiry report regarding Mexico, which was posted along with the observations of the State party on the Committee’s website.
He reported that the Committee continued the process of drafting general comments nine and 10 on article 11 of the Convention, and general comment 11 on article 29 of the Convention. It also decided to establish a working group to carry out preparatory work during 2026 towards the drafting of a general comment on article 32 of the Convention on international cooperation. Further, it decided to continue the preparation of guidelines on identifying and addressing intersecting forms of discrimination against women and girls with disabilities, and on disability-based violence.
Before closing the session, the Committee heard remarks from four speakers: Julia Eberl, Chair of the Committee on Victim Assistance of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, and Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Austria to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Ilya Novikov, Human Rights Associate Officer, Inter-Parliamentary Union; Juan Ignacio Pérez Bello, International Disability Alliance; and a representative of the World Federation of the Deaf.
In her closing remarks, Miyeon Kim, Committee Chairperson, said that during the session, the Committee had engaged with five States parties to the Convention and several organizations of persons with disabilities, national human rights institutions, and independent monitoring mechanisms. It had also addressed important issues, such as the impact of the liquidity crisis on its work, and planned activities related to the twentieth anniversary of the Convention. Ms. Kim then thanked all those who had made the session possible.
The programme of work and other documents related to the thirty-fourth session can be found here. Summaries of the public meetings of the Committee can be found here, while webcasts of the public meetings can be found here.
Subject to confirmation, the Committee’s thirty-fifth session is scheduled to be held in Geneva from 12 to 27 August 2026. During the session, the Committee plans to review the reports of Chile, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Qatar, Slovakia and Sri Lanka.
Presentation of the Session Report
JORGE ARAYA, Committee Secretary, presenting the report on the thirty-fourth session as adopted by the Committee, said the Committee regretted that Guinea-Bissau did not respond to any invitations to participate in a constructive dialogue with the Committee, and that Liberia did not send a delegation to the constructive dialogue, which obliged the Committee to review the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Liberia in the absence of a delegation.
The Committee examined six individual communications submitted for its consideration under the Optional Protocol to the Convention, finding violations in two of them, declaring three inadmissible, and discontinuing one. The decisions would be transmitted to the parties as soon as possible and would subsequently be made public. In addition, the Committee considered matters related to inquiries pursuant to the Optional Protocol, finalising an inquiry report regarding Mexico, which was posted along with the observations of the State party on the Committee’s website. The Committee also decided to adopt a public statement on the matter.
The Committee continued the process of drafting general comments nine and 10 on article 11 of the Convention, and general comment 11 on article 29 of the Convention. It also decided to establish a working group to carry out preparatory work during 2026 towards the drafting of a general comment on article 32 of the Convention on international cooperation, with the support of external partners. Further, it decided to continue the preparation of guidelines on identifying and addressing intersecting forms of discrimination against women and girls with disabilities, complementing general comment three, and on disability-based violence, complementing general comment five and the guidelines on deinstitutionalisation.
The Committee had decided to issue a public statement on the situation of persons with disabilities affected by the war in the Middle East, the Arab Gulf and Persian regions, and to organise panel discussions during its next session to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the Convention.
The Committee welcomed the decision of the Under-Secretary-General for the General Assembly and Conference Management to reverse a previous decision of the Department of Conference Management at the Palais des Nations not to provide international sign interpretation and remote captioning to the Committee and the Human Rights Council. It appreciated the advocacy and support provided by various parties to ensure this positive outcome, and called upon the Department of Conference Management to continue ensuring the provision of accessibility services to the Committee and other human rights mechanisms. It also called for sufficient sign language interpretation to be made available, including at least two interpreters proficient in American Sign Language.
The Committee raised concerns that cash conservation measures adopted by United Nations departments to face the liquidity crisis had a disproportionate impact on persons with disabilities and could affect the implementation of accessibility standards under the United Nations disability inclusion strategy. It called for necessary accessibility services to be implemented during its thirty-fifth session. Accessibility was not optional, but a duty.
With 193 States parties, the Convention was the second most ratified human rights treaty. However, the high rate of ratification had not been matched with the allocation of sufficient meeting time and resources to the Committee. The Committee called on Member States and all competent United Nations bodies to rectify the situation by increasing the meeting time and resources allocated to the Committee with a third session of at least three weeks’ meeting time. It also called on these bodies to grant it sufficient meeting time and resources to address its increasing backlog of initial and periodic reports pending consideration.
The Committee called upon States parties with long overdue initial reports to submit them as expeditiously as possible. It had decided to engage actively, in coordination with the treaty body capacity-building programme of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, with States parties whose initial reports were more than 10 years overdue to build capacity for reporting and to ensure the consideration of those reports in an expedited manner.
The Committee welcomed the unanimous decision of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to reject the draft Additional Protocol to the Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine, which, if adopted, would allow for the forced institutionalisation and forced treatment of persons with disabilities. It reiterated its position that the draft Additional Protocol should be withdrawn and called upon the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to reject it.
The Committee welcomed the preparatory work carried out by the open-ended intergovernmental working group established by the Human Rights Council towards a legally binding instrument on the promotion and protection of the human rights of older persons. It called upon the working group to ensure the broadest possible participation and interaction with civil society organizations, including organizations of persons with disabilities, and that the draft legally binding instrument recognised the autonomy, will and preferences of older persons and their legal agency to exercise their rights.
Statements
JULIA EBERL, Chair of the Committee on Victim Assistance of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, and Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Austria to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention was the first to recognise the rights of persons affected by anti-personnel mines. Most mine and ordinance survivors acquired permanent impairments and became persons with disabilities. Her Committee’s work aligned with the Convention, having a non-discriminatory, human rights-based approach. Since the entry into force of the Mine Ban Convention in 1999, States parties had embraced the principle that victim assistance needed to be inclusive of all persons with disabilities and integrated into broader national systems. The lessons learned in victim assistance and the experience of mine survivors significantly contributed to the drafting and negotiation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
This year marked the twentieth anniversary of this Convention, a landmark moment for the global disability rights movement. Over two decades, the Convention had transformed universal norms; inspired global, regional and national reforms; and strengthened the recognition of persons with disabilities as equal rights holders. The Committee should be congratulated for its important work and immense achievements. However, there was still a long way to go. Ms. Eberl encouraged the Committee to consider the situation of mine survivors when reviewing State parties’ reports. She welcomed the progress made on the general comment on article 11 of the Convention, which was closely related to the Mine Ban Convention’s articles on protection in situations of risk.
Ms. Eberl said there were increasing efforts by mine-affected States to implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, but challenges remained, such as limited and fragmented data, difficulties in maintaining inter-ministerial coordination, resource constraints, and persistent barriers faced by survivors, particularly in remote and conflict-affected areas. The Committee’s guidance in this regard could make a real difference.
Ms. Eberl invited the Committee to continue encouraging Member States to ensure the participation of survivors of mines and other explosive ordnance in all relevant policies and programmes; promote the integration of victim assistance to international disability strategies and action plans; encourage the development of comprehensive data systems on mines and mine survivors; and reinforce the importance of protection in situations of risk.
ILYA NOVIKOV, Human Rights Associate Officer, Inter-Parliamentary Union, said the Inter-Parliamentary Union was mobilising and building the capacity of parliaments worldwide to protect, respect and fulfil human rights, including the rights of persons with disabilities. It had chosen human rights as its priority theme for 2026 and was launching a global campaign to mobilise parliamentarians, drive meaningful institutional reforms, and reinforce parliamentary engagement in upholding human rights, including the rights of persons with disabilities.
Earlier this month, it organised an online roundtable entitled “Towards inclusive parliaments for persons with disabilities”, which brought together parliamentarians, United Nations experts, and representatives of organizations of persons with disabilities to share good practices and real-life examples of effective actions to make their parliaments inclusive for persons with disabilities and ensure that their rights were effectively respected. The roundtable concluded with key recommendations on ensuring the participation of persons with disabilities and representative organizations in legislative processes; establishing dedicated parliamentary mechanisms or committees on disability; and promoting representation of persons with disabilities in parliament through quotas or reserved seats. These recommendations could inform the Committee’s efforts to elaborate a general comment on the right of persons with disabilities to participate in political and public life.
The Inter-Parliamentary Union commended the Committee’s working group on women and girls with disabilities and its upcoming guidelines on intersectional discrimination against women and girls with disabilities. It would develop advocacy tools for parliamentarians on ensuring more diverse representation of women in parliaments, including women with disabilities, by building on existing practices and lessons learned. It was also engaged in data collection regarding the participation of persons with disabilities in parliament, including information on reserved seats and quotas for parliamentarians with disabilities. Further, it was preparing a resolution on parliamentary strategies to promote the rights and empowerment of people living with disabilities, which was due to be adopted at the October 2026 Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly.
JUAN IGNACIO PÉREZ BELLO, International Disability Alliance, said the Alliance congratulated all persons involved in the realisation of the session, particularly considering uncertainty regarding accessibility services in the lead-up to the session. Accessibility was essential for the functioning of the Committee and all environments that welcomed persons with disabilities. The Alliance called for accessibility services and sign language interpretation to be provided in future sessions of the Committee. The Alliance regretted the lack of engagement with the Committee by Guinea-Bissau and Liberia but welcomed that the Committee had decided to review the report of Liberia in the absence of a delegation. The organization looked forward to the Committee’s concluding observations, its upcoming general comments, and to continuing its close partnership with the Committee. In closing, Mr. Pérez Bello expressed solidarity with all persons with disabilities currently being affected by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
World Federation of the Deaf said recent developments regarding accessibility within the United Nations system were a reminder that accessibility and reasonable accommodation were not optional, but legal obligations under the Convention. The World Federation welcomed the decision to restore accessibility measures for the review of State party reports during this session, including International Sign interpretation, captioning, and Braille. This step ensured that deaf people and other persons with disabilities could follow and engage in the work of the Committee. Advocacy by the Committee, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and deaf and disability organizations and communities around the world had contributed to this positive development.
However, further work remained. National sign language interpretation during State party reviews needed to be maintained to ensure that deaf communities could participate meaningfully in the review of their own countries. Adequate reasonable accommodation also needed to be consistently and fully provided to deaf Committee Experts, and accessibility within the United Nations system needed to be protected and strengthened, including through the full implementation of the Convention and the United Nations disability inclusion strategy.
The World Federation raised concerns about the situation of deaf people affected by the military escalation and unrest across the Middle East, citing reports of deaf people facing violence, displacement, and loss of access to information and services. It reminded all affected countries of their obligations under article 11 of the Convention and urged the Committee to remain attentive to the protection of deaf people in conflict settings.
Closing Statement
MIYEON KIM, Committee Chairperson, said that during the session, the Committee had engaged with five States parties to the Convention and several organizations of persons with disabilities, national human rights institutions, and independent monitoring mechanisms. It had also addressed important issues, such as the impact of the liquidity crisis on its work and planned activities related to the twentieth anniversary of the Convention. Ms. Kim then thanked all those who had made the session possible.
___________
Produced by the United Nations Information Service in Geneva for use of the media;
not an official record. English and French versions of our releases are different as they are the product of two separate coverage teams that work independently.
CRPD26.007E