After more than eight years at Validity, Ann Campbell leaves the organisation on 15 August 2022. The Board and staff take this opportunity to thank her for all her work and dedication to Validity and our mission to enhance equality and justice for persons with disabilities. During her time as… Read More
Joint statement welcoming the suspension of the adoption of the draft Additional Protocol to the Oviedo Convention We, organisations of persons with disabilities, non-governmental organisations, international and human rights bodies, including national human rights institutions and equality bodies, welcome the decisions taken by the Committee of Ministers of the… Read More
István, our client, is a talented tennis player who successfully competed at the 2018 Special Olympic Games and won a silver medal. But, for almost 40 years, István had been required to live in an institution for persons with disabilities. Although István has never been under guardianship, and he had… Read More
Topház Social Care Institution became widely known after Validity revealed the inhumane and horrific treatment of its residents in a 2017 report. 220 residents were subject to torture and ill-treatment in Topház. Children as well as adult residents were put in metal cage beds, routinely chemically and/or physically restrained, were underweight, and physically, mentally and emotionally neglected. Topház is a closed… Read More
The European Court of Human Rights has rejected a request from the Council of Europe’s Committee on Bioethics (DH-BIO) to provide an advisory opinion on questions related to involuntary treatment and involuntary detention of persons with psychosocial disabilities under Article 29 of the Oviedo Convention. DH-BIO’s request for… Read More
In 2019, the European Network on Independent Living – ENIL and the Validity Foundation submitted two separate complaints against the Managing Authorities in Romania and Estonia, for using European Structural and Investment Funds (ESI Funds) to build new institutions for persons with disabilities. After almost a year, the European… Read More
Easy-to-read version: Click here It is with grave concern that the COVID-19 Disability Rights Monitor (DRM) calls on governments to take immediate emergency measures to ensure that persons with disabilities have access to food, medication, and other essential supplies. Analysis by the… Read More
At the opening of the 23rd session of the CRPD Committee, on 17 August 2020, Validity’s Co-Executive Director, Steven Allen spoke on behalf of the COVID-19 Disability Rights Monitor Coordinating Group and shared some preliminary findings of the global survey, which was translated into 25 languages… Read More
Brussels, 10 August 2020 – Poland has invested over 7 million EUR of European Regional and Development Fund (ERDF) on institutional settings for persons with disabilities, in violation of international human rights law. The case represents a further example of significant levels of EU funds being used to segregate persons… Read More
Easy-to-read version: Click here The COVID-19 Disability Rights Monitor Coordinating Group express their alarm about increasing police violence against persons with disabilities in the context of the pandemic, and are calling on governments around the world to take urgent steps to prevent acts of brutality. Early… Read More
This month, the Constitutional Court of Romania declared that Article 164(1) of the Civil Code addressing ‘judicial interdiction’ for adults with disabilities is unconstitutional. Judicial interdiction is a legal term that is also known as ‘full guardianship’ or ‘plenary guardianship’ under which adults with disabilities are denied the right to… Read More
Easy-to-read version: Click here On 20 April 2020, the COVID-19 Disability Rights Monitor (DRM) launched an international survey to monitor state measures concerning persons with disabilities amid the pandemic. The initial analysis of the ongoing global survey has revealed grave and systemic violations of fundamental freedoms and human rights of persons with… Read More