SENATOR Dr Floyd Morris, the recently elected member of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, is calling on the Government to speed up implementation of the Disabilities Act (2014) to ensure that the rights of persons with disabilities (PWDs) are protected.

While acknowledging that work is ongoing to complete the relevant regulations and codes of practice to guide implementation of the law, Morris said a consistent and aggressive public education programme must precede its roll-out to help Jamaicans accept and understand that persons with disabilities have the same fundamental rights as other citizens.

Morris made this call while delivering the keynote address at a virtual lecture and panel discussion to mark Human Rights Day 2020.

The event was hosted by the United Nations in Jamaica and the European Union, with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, under the theme ‘Recover Better: Stand Up for Human Rights’.

Morris, meanwhile, commended the Government for setting aside $200 million in the 2020/2021 budget for establishment of the new Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD).

He said this was going to be critical in the roll-out of the Act, given the enhanced role that the JCPD will play as a body corporate that would directly oversee the implementation of the Act.

Noting the important role that civil society organisations have played in helping to realise the rights of persons with disabilities —of which there are 500,000 in Jamaica, Morris appealed to the international community for continuing financial support to their efforts, going forward.

“Jamaica has been classified as a middle-income country and that classification has seen resources in terms of grant funding being shifted to other poorer countries and in that process, non-governmental organisations catering to persons living with disabilities locally have been affected; because they used to get significant support as non-governmental organisations from these bilateral and multilateral institutions; and right now, every single non-governmental organisation (NGO) in Jamaica that is catering to persons with disabilities is struggling financially,” said Morris.

He highlighted a potential threat to the independence of NGOs brought on by the dwindling resources.

“The significant progress and inroads we have made in Jamaica have been largely attributed to the efforts of non-governmental organisations catering to persons with disabilities and what has been happening is that these NGOs have had to be dependent on the Government for funding support and you don’t want that to happen with NGOs because it will cause them to lose their independence,” warned Morris.

Morris pledged that in his new role as member of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, he will continue his advocacy and work to tear down the barriers and mechanism of discrimination that stand in the way of the ability of persons with disabilities to realise their full potential.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, in her opening remarks at the event, reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to promoting and protecting the fundamental rights, freedoms and dignity of all its citizens and called on all Jamaicans “to strengthen their advocacy and work for the protection of the freedoms and rights we all hold dear”.

She spoke of the impact of COVID-19 on the experience of small island developing states (SIDs) and the living conditions of the most vulnerable.

Johnson Smith stressed that, in its response, the Government has been focused on the impact of these challenges on people.

“As a Government, we never lose sight of the fact that impact on sectors means impact on people – on breadwinners, families – dependents, the vulnerable,” said Johnson Smith.

Dr Garry Conille, United Nations resident coordinator, also spoke about the impact of COVID-19 on SIDs and highlighted ways in which countries could recover better.

“By realigning our development plans to human rights principles and standing up for human rights, the world we rebuild will be more resilient and stand a better chance of leaving no one behind,” he declared.

Ambassador Marianne Van Steen, head of the EU Delegation to Jamaica, who also spoke at the event, highlighted some important lessons that the COVID-19 experience has taught people around the world, including the value of working together to solve common problems.

“We are more interconnected than ever, we cannot solve our own problems in an isolated way anymore. We have realised that we do have to work together: viruses do not stop at borders even if we close them and impose quarantines, we will only get over this if we all get over this.”

She added that if we are going to start building up a new world after COVID, “we have to do it better: with more respect for each other and more respect for our planet.”