Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai, head of the Vietnamese mission in Geneva (Photo: VNA)Geneva (VNA) - The UnitedNations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) looked into the rights of people withdisabilities in the context of climate change during its 44th session in Geneva on July 8.
This is an initiative from Vietnam, thePhilippines, and Bangladesh, who co-authored the council’s annual resolution onclimate change and human rights.
Delegates shared views on the adverseand unequal impact of climate change on human rights, especially people withdisabilities - the most vulnerable group in a crisis like the ongoing COVID-19pandemic.
The majority of those with disabilities live in poverty andthis is one of the key components affecting the exposure of persons withdisabilities to the impacts of climate change. Others are discrimination andstigma.
Intersecting factors related to gender, age, ethnicity,geography, migration, religion and sex can put persons with disabilities ateven higher risk, they said.
They proposed integrating the rights ofdisabled people into the compilation and implementation of policies andinitiatives against climate change, thus ensuring their voice is heard in theseprocesses.
On behalf of ASEAN, Ambassador Le ThiTuyet Mai, head of the Vietnamese mission in Geneva, told the meeting about thebloc’s efforts in and commitment to fighting climate change.
She said protecting and promoting the rightsof people with disabilities is a persistent priority of ASEAN, as reflectedthrough the ASEAN Vision 2025 and the 2025 ASEAN Enabling Masterplan onMainstreaming the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
ASEAN always attaches importance tointernational cooperation on climate change response and hopes that countrieswill make strong financial commitments to this in 2020.
ASEAN also hopes that the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 26) to the UN FrameworkConference on Climate Change in Glasgow in 2021will be a success.
Vietnam, thePhilippines, and Bangladesh plan to introduce a resolution on human rights andclimate change, focusing on the rights of the elderly, to the council duringthe meeting for consideration./.
VNA
