SALC’s Disability Rights work is integrated within its other programmatic areas and focuses on the following objectives:
- To encourage the development and reform of laws and policies in line with the requirements of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
- To raise awareness of ongoing discrimination of persons with disabilities in the criminal justice system, with a focus on persons with mental disabilities and persons with albinism.
- To ensure accountability for discrimination of persons with disabilities in healthcare services, including through complaints mechanisms.
- To ensure access to education for children with disabilities.
- To support the work towards petty offences and provide evidence to courts on how these offences impact on persons with disabilities.
On-going cases:
- Kenya: Challenge to indefinite detention of persons with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities for petty offences.
- Zambia: Challenging the denial of registration of a deaf student for tertiary studies.
- Zambia: Challenging denial of driving licenses to deaf persons.
- Zambia: Challenging denial of legal capacity for persons with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities.
- Malawi: Challenging the constitutionality of the offence of begging with deformities.
Publications:
- An exploratory study of the interaction between the criminal justice system and persons with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities (2021)
- Prosecuting sexual violence against women and girls with disabilities in Malawi (2017).
- Using the Court to protect vulnerable people: perspectives from the judiciary and legal profession (2014).
Submissions