PROJECT COLOMBIA

Recognition of the Legal Capacity of Persons with Intellectual and psychosocial Disability

through the documentation of good practices

August 2010

Responsables Organizations

• Parents asociation that represents families and persons with intelectual disability in Colombia

• More than 400 families in Bogotá and an alliance with 10 parents organizations in different cities.

• Orientation to the families about different aspects specially referent to their children rights.

• Become aware of the social enviroment

• Promote the social Inclusion of the intelectual disabled people in our society.

ASDOWN COLOMBIA

Asdown job

1. Families

2. Change the mind in our society

3. Advocacy with parents and self advocates.

4. Inclusive education

5. Promote de Convention with parents.

• Formed by psychosocial persons, their families,trainers and persons involved with mental health.

• Developed strategies to promote mental health with persons and their families.

FUNDAMENTAL COLOMBIA

Strategic Area

• Information, comunication and education

• Organizations and network • Human Development and inclusion • Advocacy and human rigths • International and national cooperation

Organizaciones responsables del proyecto

Context

CONTEXT: Legal Capacity

• In Colombia, persons with intelectual and psychosocial disabilities are invisibles.

• Independant of their social skills and the development of moral judge to take their own decisions, they can’t be citizens.

• They can’t sign a labour contract and they are declared interdiction –unable – when they are legal age.

• We obtain in this historic moment that universities, ONGs, and the goverment take into account this topic.

• Law 1306- Legal capacity is defined by clinical diagnosis, which is contrary to the CRPD. Created without consulting people with disabilities.

Project aim

Goal of MIW project: To transform the current condition of persons with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities, whose rights to exercise their legal capacity and citizenship are not recognized in Colombia.

Objective:

-To utilize Article 12 of the CRPD to bring various stakeholders together on this topic to work towards CRPD implementation and advocacy

-To document and exchange good practices as a basis for our advocacy work.

Making it work

Steps “Making It Work”

• MIW report documenting two types of good practices on legal capacity: Interviews, success stories of individuals with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities; persons that had the opportunity to take their own decisions (to be published Fall 2010)

• Analyze the strategies used by them and and their families

• Successful legislation from other countries on legal capacity that could help to improve Colombian legislation.

• Launch of a multidisciplinary Advocacy group (“La Mesa”) on legal capacity with participation of Universities, civil society organizations, lawyers, Ministry of Social Welfare and the National Council on Disability and the organizations of persons with disabilities. This group analyses the results of the research and systematic documentation of the good practices related to the decision-making and legal capacity and formulates recommendations for policy makers.

• Generating recommendations for government officials, lawyers and others who work to draft and implement national law, and DPOs/families on how they can contribute to this work.

• Advocacy activities utilizing the good practices to work with organizations of persons with disabilities, universities and civil society. In addition to other advocacy activities, a Forum will be held in October, 2010 on the harmonization of law 1306 with respect to the CRPD, addressed to key stakeholders, senators and congressmen and to distribute the Political Statement.

Collaboration

Advocacy/Communications activitesAdvocacy/Communications activites

Policy declaration (MIW Report)Policy declaration (MIW Report)

Legal capacity concept.Legal capacity concept.

Good Practices:Inividual experiences; Legislative models (from other countries)

Good Practices:Inividual experiences; Legislative models (from other countries)

Suggestions to reform 1306 law (various stakeholders).

Suggestions to reform 1306 law (various stakeholders).

Legal Capacity

Legal Capacity

Collaboration

“Making It Work”

Asdown Colombia and Fundamental find other important allied that are interested in the transformation of the law and colaborate with the activities development. They are:

• Inclusion International• Families and persons with intellectual and psychosocial disability• PAIIS: Andes University - Action Program for equality and social

Inclusion• Foro de Colombia• Universidad Pedagógica• Universidad Católica• Saldarriaga Concha Fundation• ICBF ( Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar Familiar)• Inclusion Interamericana• Confe de Mexico• Down 21 Chile• ASDRA de Argentina