RES/32/23 Protection of the family: role of the family in supporting the protection and promotion of human rights of persons with disabilities

GE.16-12309(E)



Human Rights Council Thirty-second session

Agenda item 3

Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council on 1 July 2016

32/23. Protection of the family: role of the family in supporting the

protection and promotion of human rights of persons with

disabilities

The Human Rights Council,

Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Reaffirming the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Vienna Declaration and

Programme of Action, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the Programme

of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, and recalling

the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on

Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and other relevant human rights

instruments, including the Declaration on the Right to Development,

Recalling Human Rights Council resolutions on protection of the family, including

its most recent, resolution 29/22, adopted on 3 July 2015,

Recalling also all General Assembly resolutions concerning the proclamation of,

preparations for and observance and commemoration of the International Year of the

Family and its tenth and twentieth anniversaries,

Reaffirming that the family, as the fundamental group of society and the natural

environment for the growth and well-being of all its members, and particularly children,

should be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can fully assume its

responsibilities within the community,

Affirming that everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health

and well-being of himself or herself and of his or her family,

Noting with concern that the contribution of the family in society and in the

achievement of development goals continues to be underemphasized, and recognizing the

potential of this contribution to national development and to the achievement of major

objectives of every society and of the United Nations,

Noting that 2016 marks the tenth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of

Persons with Disabilities, welcoming the fact that, to date, 163 States and one regional

integration organization have ratified or acceded to the Convention, and calling upon States

that have not yet ratified or acceded to the Convention to consider doing so,

Noting also that the 2016 Social Forum will focus on the promotion and full and

equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with

disabilities in the context of the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the

Rights of Persons with Disabilities,

Taking note of the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human

Rights entitled “Protection of the family: contribution of the family to the realization of the

right to an adequate standard of living for its members, particularly through its role in

poverty eradication and achieving sustainable development”,1

1. Reaffirms that the family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society,

and is entitled to protection by society and the State;

2. Also reaffirms that States have the primary responsibility to promote and

protect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all individuals, and stresses the

fundamental importance of full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms of all

family members;

3. Affirms the need to promote and protect rights of the child, and in this regard

calls upon States to render appropriate assistance to parents and legal guardians in the

performance of their child-rearing responsibilities in the best interests of the child, bearing

in mind that a child should grow up in a safe and supportive family environment, and

giving high priority to the rights of children, including their survival, protection and

development;

4. Reaffirms the responsibilities, rights and duties of parents, legal guardians or

other persons legally responsible for the child to provide, in a manner consistent with the

evolving capacities of the child, appropriate direction and guidance in the exercise by the

child of his or her rights;

5. Recognizes the positive impact that policies and measures to protect the

family can have on protecting and promoting the human rights of its members, and can

contribute to, inter alia, promoting human rights for persons with disabilities, decreasing

drop-out rates from educational institutions and inclusion in schools, achieving equality

between women and men and girls and boys, empowering women and girls and enhancing

protection against violence, abuses, sexual exploitation, the worst forms of child labour,

and harmful practices, while bearing in mind that violations and abuses of the human rights

and fundamental freedoms of family members adversely affect families and have a negative

impact on efforts aimed at protecting the family;

6. Stresses that equality between women and men, and equal participation of

women in employment, public life and decision-making, as well as shared parental and

household responsibilities, are essential elements of family policies;

7. Recognizes that the family, while respect for the rights of its members is

ensured, is a strong force for social cohesion and integration, intergenerational solidarity

and social development, and that the family plays a crucial role in the preservation of

cultural identity, traditions, morals, heritage and the values system of society;

1 A/HRC/31/37.

8. Conscious that families are sensitive to strain caused by social and economic

changes, and expresses deep concern that conditions have worsened for many families

owing to economic and financial crises, lack of job security, temporary employment and

lack of regular income;

9. Recognizes that the family unit is facing increasing vulnerabilities and

pressures, and notes that single parent-headed households, child-headed households,

families with members with disabilities and intergenerational households might be

particularly vulnerable to poverty and social exclusion, and resolves to pay particular

attention to them, while bearing in mind that a considerable proportion of households

worldwide are headed by women and many other households are dependent on female

income, and that female-maintained households are very often among the poorest because

of wage discrimination, occupational segregation patterns in the labour market and other

gender-based barriers;

10. Remains convinced that persons with disabilities and their family members

should receive the necessary protection and assistance to enable families to contribute to the

full and equal enjoyment of the rights of persons with disabilities;

11. Highlights the role of families in supporting its members, including members

with disabilities, and recognizes their potential in contributing to the protection and

promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities;

12. Stresses that families remain the first and most immediate environment where

children with disabilities can develop their potential and enjoy a fulfilling life, and that the

realization of the rights of persons with disabilities can be deeply affected by the quality of

life of their families and the support and assistance provided to them, and underlines the

need to provide families with members with disabilities with access to a range of support

services that are responsive to the individual choices, wishes and needs of its members with

disabilities;

13. Recognizes that families with members with disabilities may be subject to

discrimination by association on the basis of disability owing to distinctions that affect or

nullify their rights;

14. Reaffirms the right of persons with disabilities to an adequate standard of

living for themselves and their families, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and

to the continuous improvement of living conditions, and that appropriate steps should be

taken to safeguard and promote the realization of that right without discrimination on the

basis of disability, and reaffirms also the right of persons with disabilities to social

protection and to the enjoyment of that right without discrimination on the basis of

disability and by taking appropriate steps to safeguard and promote the realization of this

right, including by ensuring access by persons with disabilities and their families living in

situations of poverty to assistance from the State with disability-related expenses, including

adequate training, counselling, financial assistance and respite care;

15. Recognizes that persons with disabilities may be parents and head of their

families, and as such, all persons with disabilities who are of marriageable age have the

right to marry and to found a family on the basis of the free and full consent of the

intending spouses:

16. Affirms that children with disabilities have equal rights with respect to family

life, and that States should realize these rights and prevent the concealment, abandonment,

neglect and segregation of children with disabilities and undertake to provide early and

comprehensive information, services and support to children with disabilities and their

families;

17. Stresses that States should take appropriate measures to prevent all forms of

exploitation, violence and abuse of persons with disabilities by ensuring, inter alia,

appropriate forms of gender- and age-sensitive assistance and support for persons with

disabilities and their families and caregivers, including through the provision of information

and education on how to avoid, recognize and report instances of exploitation, violence and

abuse, and ensuring that protection services are age-, gender- and disability-sensitive;

18. Also stresses the need for States to adopt immediate, effective and

appropriate measures aimed at raising awareness throughout society, including at the family

level, regarding persons with disabilities with a view to fostering respect for their rights and

dignity;

19. Calls upon States to recognize in their policy and legal frameworks the

important role played by families in caring for and supporting persons with disabilities;

20. Urges States, in accordance with their respective obligations under

international human rights law, to provide the family, as the natural and fundamental group

unit of society, with effective protection, support and assistance, and encourages States in

this regard to take, as appropriate, relevant effective measures to the maximum of their

available resources;

21. Recognizes the important role of civil society, including organizations of

persons with disabilities and their families, national human rights institutions research

institutes and academia, in advocacy, promotion, research and policymaking and, as

appropriate, the evaluation of family policy development and capacity-building;

22. Also recognizes that the family unit plays a key role in social development,

and as such should be strengthened and attention paid to the rights, capabilities and

responsibilities of its members, and invites States, the organizations of the United Nations

system and all other relevant stakeholders to take into account the role of the family as a

contributor to sustainable development and the need to strengthen family policy

development in their ongoing efforts to achieve the internationally agreed development

goals, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;2

23. Invites the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the treaty

bodies, relevant special procedure mandate holders and other relevant international and

regional human rights mechanisms, within their respective mandates and competence, to

pay due attention in their work to the implementation by States of their obligations under

relevant provisions of international human rights law to provide protection and support to

the family as the natural and fundamental unit of society;

24. Decides to convene, with the support of the High Commissioner, before the

thirty-fourth session of the Human Rights Council, a one-day intersessional seminar on the

impact of the implementation by States of their obligations under relevant provisions of

international human rights law with regard to the protection of the family on the role of the

family in supporting the protection and promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities,

and to discuss challenges and best practices in this regard;

25. Requests the High Commissioner to present a report on the seminar, in the

form of a summary, to the Human Rights Council at its thirty-fifth session;

26. Decides to remain seized of the matter.

44th meeting

1 July 2016

2 General Assembly resolution 70/1.

[Adopted by a recorded vote of 32 to 12, with 3 abstentions. The voting was as follows:

In favour:

Algeria, Bangladesh, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Botswana, Burundi,

China, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Ghana,

India, Indonesia, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Mongolia, Morocco,

Namibia, Nigeria, Paraguay, Philippines, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saudi

Arabia, South Africa, Togo, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela (Bolivarian

Republic of), Viet Nam

Against:

Albania, Belgium, France, Germany, Latvia, Netherlands, Panama, Portugal,

Republic of Korea, Slovenia, Switzerland, United Kingdom of Great Britain

and Northern Ireland

Abstaining:

Georgia, Mexico, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia]