December 3 is the International Day of Persons with Disability!

Dignity and justice for all of us is the theme of this year’s International Day for Persons with Disabilities, as well as for the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

2008 is a significant year in the international human rights movement :

• entry into force on 3 May of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol, legally binding instruments which set out the legal obligations of States to promote and protect the rights of persons with disabilities,
• the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).

Around 10 per cent of the world’s population, or 650 million people, live with disabilities. The Convention promotes and protects the human rights of persons with disabilities in civil, cultural, economic, political, and social life.

Eighty per cent of persons with disabilities – more than 400 million people – live in poor countries and there is a strong link between disability and poverty.

We use this day to celebrate the achievements and recognize the challenges that lay ahead of us. I hope you will join us in our celebration, and support us in our work!