On 21^st December 2010 the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on the Elimination of Discrimination against Persons Affected by Leprosy and Their Family Members.

This was submitted by the Japanese Government, with the support of 84 Member States. It encourages all who have a role in formulating and implementing policies and measures covering persons affected by leprosy, to pay due consideration to the advice outlined in the Principles and Guidelines for the Elimination of Discrimination against Persons Affected by Leprosy and Their Family Members.

 

These Principles and Guidelines state that persons affected by leprosy and their family members should not be discriminated against on the grounds of having or having had leprosy. Provisions should be made to ensure that persons affected by leprosy have an adequate standard of living and can:

 

• live within their communities as full members of them, including get married (however, those who were forcibly isolated in establishments should not be forcibly removed from them);
• participate in public, cultural and recreational activities;
• vote, stand for election and hold public office at all levels of government;
• work or if they so wish establish their own employment opportunities;
• go to school, college, university and attend training courses; and 
• have access to all the medical care they need.

Not only are States asked to remove and revise discriminatory language and derogatory usages of the term “leper” in their government publications, but also those working in the media are asked to portray persons affected by leprosy and their family members with dignified images and terminology. The Principles and Guidelines encourage awareness-raising among all sectors of society, and stress the need to avoid the use of undignifying language when referring to persons affected by leprosy or addressing them directly.

Emphasis is placed on using as many means as possible to spread knowledge about leprosy, so that people will come to understand that it is unacceptable to be discriminatory in any way towards any individual affected by this disease.

Mr Douglas Soutar, General Secretary of ILEP has noted: “Professor Shigeki Sakamoto of the UN Human Rights Advisory committee has expressed his deep appreciation of the key role played by ILEP in helping him revise the original draft of the Principles and Guidelines and we in turn welcome this landmark decision by the UN General Assembly. I would strongly encourage translation of the Principles and Guidelines into local languages so that they can now be disseminated as widely as possible and provide a practical tool for ensuring that the rights of people affected by leprosy and their families are promoted and upheld.”

Download: Resolution & Principles and Guidelines

 

 

Categories: Africa, Asia, Europe, International Collaboration, Middle East, North and Central America, Oceania, South America