Abstract
Equal rights for persons with disabilities is the ultimate goal mandated by the CRPD, and it can probably be gradually achieved in Qatar as steps are taken towards reconsidering the approach to disability at large. This paper examines what impact the CRPD has on the country’s legislation. To that end, we explore how the sensitive domains –health, education, employment, and justice– need to be re-evaluated in light of the CRPD, where recent improvements in the rights of persons with disabilities in Qatar can enable compliance and where the greater challenges lie. We maintain that although legal reforms are needed for Qatar to comply with CRPD, within existing legislation there is notable potential to accommodate particular amendments that could significantly assist the move towards CRPD compliance. We suggest some structural steps aimed at improving compliance, consisting of the establishment of specific institutions, the promotion of associations that represent persons with disabilities and, above all, advancement of a fundamental shift in the way disability is perceived by society, moving away from the old medical notion of disability with its focus on special features and rehabilitation and instead adopting the social model that mandates inclusion and equality.
Highlights
Qatar is an independent, sovereign state about 11.5 thousand square kilometers in size, located on the western coast of the Arabian Gulf
“all students deserve the right to participate in all educational experiences” and “the Supreme Education Council believes that whenever possible, special needs students should be taught in a normal classroom setting.”35 the language might seem anchored in the “special needs” point of view, the philosophy to which the Qatari government is committed is a major step in the direction promoted by the CRPD
This section aims to present some conclusions related to the fields explored in the previous pages, together with some recommendations on general changes required to Qatari law for a clear, durable and unquestionable implementation of the CRPD
Summary
While most countries include declarations of the rights of citizens in their constitutions, specific references to disability are often absent in constitutional texts, and Qatar is no exception. While the Constitution itself makes no mention of disability, a national law approved in 2004 –Law 2/2004 on Persons with Special Needs– safeguards persons with disabilities in Qatar This instrument, in its first article, defines a person with disability as “any person with a permanent total or partial disability in any of the senses or in his or her physical ability or in his or her psychological or mental ability to such an extent that his or her opportunity to learn or to undergo rehabilitation or to earn a living is limited.”.
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