Summary

In a 2011 paper, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights made the case that voting rights were arguably the most important aspect of participation in democratic and political life.  Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1966 (ICCPR) sets out that every citizen shall have the right and the opportunity, without unreasonable restrictions to vote and be elected.  Upholding the inherent dignity of all person's with disabilities and respecting autonomy are guiding principles, consistent with IFSW's Global Social Work Statement of Ethical Principles 2018.  Our review of the international literature has found that people with disabilities experience:Unlawful exclusion on grounds of mental capacity and personal characteristics.The civic nature of participation in person by voting at polling stations being trivialised with proxy or postal alternatives.Silencing of voices of dissent as an inevitable outcome. This is in direct contradiction to the protective measure drafted in response to ICCPR within Article 29 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2006.  Under Article 29, people with disabilities have not only the right, but also the opportunity, to vote and to be elected. This workshop shall use interactive media (Mentimeter, QR Coded Video Content) and group discussion to consider emergent findings from a 3 years study in England which is analysing the impact of a social work intervention which has been co-designed, discovered and delivered with disabled people: Promote the Vote.    Our fidings from this practice research project are consistent with the hypothesis that people with intellectual disabilities are significantly more likely to register to participate and turn out on polling day to cast a vote if they are made aware of their right to do so by social worker who take a human capabilities approach towards their practice role.  

Keywords (separate with commas)

Democracy, Political Rights, Voting, Disabilty Rights