Refugees with Disabilities: A Human Rights Perspective

Abstract

This paper will provide a preliminary survey of the evolution and positioning of disability rights as human rights and the discrepancy between Canadian resettlement policies with regard to refugees and Canada's rhetoric with regard to persons with disabilities. Some of the activities of the disability rights movements are outlined and significant achievements at the international level through the United Nations are examined. Similar to the women's human rights movement, disability rights are also emerging from the margins towards the mainstream of human rights discourse. Canada's legislation and policies towards persons with disabilities have mirrored these developments in providing protection. However, for refugees with disabilities the benefits seem minimal. In fact, while proclaiming the rhetoric of disability rights to its own citizens, Canada has implemented policies which are discriminatory towards refugees with disabilities. Canada's overseas resettlement selection criteria is at odds with its domestic and international positions regarding the human rights of persons with disabilities.