A/72/128 their relatives. 22 Another study found a high incidence of abuse among children with disabilities by someone upon whom they were dependent for survival and well being. 23 Individuals are sometimes tied or chained up by family members 24 or left locked in isolation. 25 The ability to speak out is limited by the individual’s isolation and dependence upon the perpetrator for support, and, in many situations, there is no one to turn to for help. 6. Housing, neighbourhoods and programme design 28. Most housing and development is designed as if persons with disabilities do not exist, will not live there or deserve no consideration. Housing programmes and urban planning are rarely vetted for barrier-free design, and international development assistance for housing rarely includes requirements or resources for accessible housing. Housing funding and individual housing subsidies provided by many Governments are based on what are considered “normal” expenditures on food, housing and other necessities, without consideration of the higher expenditure requirements of persons with disabilities. Eligibility for credit or for rental contracts is usually assessed on the basis of the “normal” ratio of credit or rent to income, which would be unattainable and certainly not “normal” for persons with disabilities. 29. Inaccessible housing and programmes designed without consideration of the needs of persons with disabilities deprive society of the benefits of the full participation of persons with disabilities in all areas of life and are costly to States. Moreover, reasonable accommodation of individual needs is considerably more costly and difficult than it would be if housing were designed to be accessible or easily modified. 26 7. Natural disasters, conflict and other humanitarian situations 30. Mass displacement caused by situations of risk, including armed conflict, humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters, has catastrophic effects on persons with disabilities. In a survey by the United Nations, it was found that only 20 per cent of persons with disabilities could evacuate their living spaces immediately without difficulty in the event of an emergency and that a disproportionate number would be injured or die in the event of a disaster because their needs would not met by organized efforts. 27 Persons with disabilities who are refugees, affected by disasters or living in conflict and post-conflict situations are especially vulnerable to mass, often repeated displacement, resource shortages, limited or non -existent services and access to rehabilitation or reconstruction and a wide array of security concerns. 31. Conflict and displacement also give rise to increased numbers of persons with disabilities. In Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic and the Gaza Strip, for example , __________________ 22 23 24 25 26 27 10/23 Mental Disability Advocacy Centre and Mental Health Uganda, “They Don’t Consider Me as a Person”: Mental Health and Human Rights in Ugandan Communities (2014), p. 16. Handicap International and Save the Children, “Out from the shadows: sexual violence against children with disabilities” (London, Save the Children UK, 2011), p. 15. Available from www.savethechildren.org.uk/sites/default/files/docs/out_of_the_shadows_5.pdf . Mental Disability Advocacy Centre and Mental Health Users Network of Zambia, Human Rights and Mental Health in Zambia (2014), p. 24. Mental Disability Advocacy Centre and Mental Health Uganda, “They Don’t Consider Me as a Person”, p. 17. Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, general comment No. 2 (2014) on accessibility, para. 15. United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, “Living with disability and disasters: UNISDR 2013 survey on living with disabilities and disasters — key findings” (2014), p. 2. 17-11724

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