Disabled Liberation — Aotearoa, New Zealand
By Doug Hay
Doug Hay represents the organization Disabled Liberation in Aotearoa / New Zealand. Aotearoa is the indigenous (Maori) name for New Zealand. This blog post was written as a contribution to the RatifyNow CRPD Blog Swarm 2008, which is meant to celebrate and promote the international disability rights treaty called the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
Disabled Liberation – Aotearoa / New Zealand
[This image consists of the wheelchair symbol on a red background.]
A militant organisation, espousing the aspirations of the doctrines for people with disabilities / disabled people, who are today facing oppression from actions by able bodied systemic violence, and; individual bigotry of Ruling Class society.
Members ‘ethnically’ identify their impairment as a mark of liberation towards universal equality through race, class and gender struggles. Its purpose is to ensure disabled men women and children live, love and carry on the good work ‘disability’ and its culture have to offer all societies.
Disabled Liberation acts for ‘The Disability Nation’, originally formulated by Adryan Linden of Sweden – Born Muscular Dystrophy. His intention is to have Disabled stand as an independent and autonomous body. Disabled Liberation itself has advocated a Permanent Seat on The United Nations Security Council as the only member with a Veto Power. Disabled liberation has supported industrial actions of Watersiders / Teamsters; Attended protests over indigenous Maori Land Rights, and supported Disabilities Organizations in areas of access and human rights like Prostitution Law Reform
In New Zealand (Aotearoa…the Maori / Indigenous name) Disabled are not faring well in regards to International Human Rights. We have policies of foetal scanning and terminations on the grounds of recognized impairments; restricted access for our young ones to education facilities; both Marital and Employment statistics are relatively low compared to Able Bodied paradigms, due to legislation and policies introduced in the 1990’s and subsequently continued by the NZ Labour Government since 1999.
We have immigration restrictions on entry for those families with disabled kids, and this has led to the death and suffering which the NZ Government promised to stop. Also, as this regime is maintaining disability as a ‘medicalized’ issue, they continue to identify our struggles as an individual’s ability to adapt to their (Able bodied) environment.
Disabled Liberation – Aotearoa is committed to The CRPD Convention for People with Disabilities, through its challenging the New Zealand government and its institutions like Universities, Courts etc to honor its Disability Strategy, officially announced in 2004. It also puts a Cultural face on ‘Disabled’ as a political body of votes…700,000 people identified as living with a disability, and Political and Cultural bodies need to recognise ‘Us’ as Allies, not as burdens.
My name is Douglas (Doug) Hay – Born Arthrogryposis and look forward to kids born with impairments to get the same chance to live equally. The 1984 Disabled Peoples International Call for Peace is a paramount for World relations, and we look forward to getting together with you at Ratify Now.
Kia Kaha…Be Strong
Doug
Disabled Liberation – Aotearoa
Auckland New Zealand
This is just one post of many about the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Follow the link to the RatifyNow blog swarm to read the rest:
http://ratifynow.org/2008/03/29/ratifynow-crpd-blog-swarm-2008/
Learn vocabulary and feed the hungry at freerice.com
[...] Doug Hay writes on the challenges that confront indigenous disabled people in achieving human rights in New Zealand in his blog post hosted at ReunifyGally, Disabled Liberation — Aotearoa/New Zealand. [...]
RatifyNow CRPD Blog Swarm 2008! | RatifyNow.org
29 March 2008
Doug, please join us at amcsupport.org
Would love to have you!
Beverly Hanset-Burch
29 March 2008
Doug, this is Adryan Linden of the Duchennes Muscular Dystrophy-tribe. Need contact with you again! Urgent.
Adryan Linden
3 June 2008