Human rights approach to disability advocacy on sexual health and education

Abstract

Abstract In this part of the workshop we will present an example of best practices in advocacy for CSE for children and young people with disabilities. The International Federation for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus (IF) represents individuals with spina bifida and/or hydrocephalus (SBH) and their families globally. IF's mission is to protect and advance the rights of individuals with SBH and as a part of that mission IF installed a formal international youth group to inform IF's advocacy on issues related to youth with spina bifida and/hydrocephalus (SBH) where sexuality, sexual health and the taboos and stigmas surrounding these topics was identified as a high priority topic for advocacy. IF will present the work of IF and its youth group, the implementation and findings of activities such as the survey on SBH and sexuality, focus group discussions and the 2020 IF event on disability rights and sexual health. With an emphasis on the role of young people in advocacy and how they were supported and empowered to address this important topic. How strong leadership from persons with SBH helped to open discussions about the challenges faced by young people with disabilities and how disability specific issues (such as incontinence) are often left unaddressed due to stigma and societal taboos. These discussions help to address the barriers to CSE for children and young people with disabilities. IF bases all of its work on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and as such meaningful participation by persons with lived experiences, inclusion and non-discrimination guide IF's work on sexuality. IF will present how those principles elevated the discussions and the outputs produced by the activities. In addition, IF will present how this was achieved in collaboration with other representative organisations for persons with disabilities and the wider impact of IF's advocacy for individuals with SBH on the disability community as well as for health and social care professionals.