Article 23 - Social security and an adequate standard of living
Background Documents | Article 23 Background
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Working Group | References
References
• CESCR: Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
• HRC (ICCPR): Human Rights Committee
• CERD: Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
• CEDAW: Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women
• CAT: Committee Against Torture
• CRC: Committee on the Rights of the Child
Related to Draft Article 23, paragraph 1
CESCR, General Comment no. 5 (Persons with disabilities), para. 28: Social security
and income-maintenance schemes are of particular importance for persons with
disabilities. As stated in the Standard Rules, "States should ensure the
provision of adequate income support to persons with disabilities who, owing
to disability or disability-related factors, have temporarily lost or received
a reduction in their income or have been denied employment opportunities".
Such support should reflect the special needs for assistance and other expenses
often associated with disability…
Related to Draft Article 23, paragraph 1, (c)
CESCR, General Comment no. 5 (Persons with disabilities), para. 28: …In addition,
as far as possible, the support provided should also cover individuals (who
are overwhelmingly female) who undertake the care of a person with disabilities.
Such persons, including members of the families of persons with disabilities,
are often in urgent need of financial support because of their assistance role.
Related to Draft Article 23, paragraph 2
CESCR, General Comment no. 5 (Persons with disabilities), para. 33: In addition
to the need to ensure that persons with disabilities have access to adequate
food, accessible housing and other basic material needs, it is also necessary
to ensure that "support services, including assistive devices" are
available "for persons with disabilities, to assist them to increase their
level of independence in their daily living and to exercise their rights".
The right to adequate clothing also assumes a special significance in the context
of persons with disabilities who have particular clothing needs, so as to enable
them to function fully and effectively in society. Wherever possible, appropriate
personal assistance should also be provided in this connection. Such assistance
should be undertaken in a manner and spirit which fully respect the human rights
of the person(s) concerned. Similarly, as already noted by the Committee in
paragraph 8 of General Comment No. 4 (Sixth session, 1991), the right to adequate
housing includes the right to accessible housing for persons with disabilities.
CESCR, General Comment no. 4 (The right to adequate housing), para. 8(e): …Disadvantaged
groups must be accorded full and sustainable access to adequate housing resources.
Thus, such disadvantaged groups (…) the physically disabled,(…) the mentally
ill, (…) and other groups should be ensured some degree of priority consideration
in the housing sphere. Both housing law and policy should take fully into account
the special housing needs of these groups...