Expressing the sense of Congress that the United States Government should support the human rights and dignity of all persons with disabilities by pledging support for the drafting and working toward the adoption of a thematic convention on the human rights and dignity of persons with disabilities by the United Nations General Assembly to augment the existing United Nations human rights system, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, on March 30th, the Congressional Human Rights Caucus held a groundbreaking Members Briefing entitled, ``International Disability Rights: The Proposed UN Convention.'' This discussion of the global situation of people with disabilities was intended to help establish disability rights issues as an integral part of the general human rights discourse. The briefing brought together the human rights community and the disability rights community, and it raised awareness in Congress of the need to protect disability rights under international law to the same extent as other human rights through a binding UN convention on the rights of people with disabilities.

The Caucus welcomed as expert witnesses Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Mark P. Lagon; the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Ecuador to the United Nations, Ambassador Luis Gallegos; the United Nations Director of the Division for Social Policy and Development in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Johan Scholvinck; the distinguished former Attorney General of the United States, former Under-Secretary General of the United Nations and former Governor of Pennsylvania, the Honorable Dick Thornburgh; the President of the National Organization on Disability (NOD), Alan A. Reich; Kathy Martinez, a member of the National Council on Disabilities (NCD); and a representative of the United States International Council on Disabilities (USCID) and Executive Director of Mental Disability Rights International, Eric Rosenthal. I intend to place their important statements in the Congressional Record, so that all of my colleagues may profit from their expertise, and I ask that my own statement at the briefing be placed at this point of the Congressional Record.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to welcome

you to today's Congressional Human Rights Caucus Briefing on

international disability rights and the proposed UN

Convention.

I would like to thank the Co-Chair of the Bipartisan

Disabilities Caucus, James Langevin, as well as my good

friends Peter King, Betty McCollum, Jim Moran and Jim Cooper

for attending this important briefing. We all owe a special

thanks to our former colleague, the former Chairman of the

House International Relations Committee, Benjamin Gilman, for

his active participation in this briefing. His support for

this noble cause is invaluable.

This is the first time that the Congressional Human Rights

Caucus has held a briefing on international disability

rights. While I am very pleased that the Caucus is holding

this groundbreaking briefing today, the mere fact that this

is the first of its kind highlights an important shortcoming

of the work of the human rights community, which, so far,

has largely been absent in its support for the disability

community.

Ladies and gentlemen, an estimated 600 million people in

the world have a disability of various types and degrees. The

day-to-day life of 25 percent of the world's population is

affected by disability--affecting entire families, not just

individuals. 80 percent of the world's people with a

disability live in developing countries, where only 1 percent

to 2 percent have access to the necessary rehabilitation

services. The majority of an estimated 150 million children

with disabilities worldwide remain deprived of learning

opportunities. Only 2 percent of children who have

disabilities in developing countries are attending schools or

have access to rehabilitation facilities.

These facts only begin to describe the global disparities

in the living conditions of persons with disabilities.

According to the recent State Department's Country Reports on

Human Rights Practices, in the People's Republic of China,

some protection laws were passed and attention to disability

issues raised, particularly in light of the upcoming Special

Olympics in 2007. However, a wide gap exists between

protection laws and the practical implementation.

Additionally, some remaining legal provisions outrightly

contradict those protection laws. The Maternal and Child

Health Care Law prohibits the marriage of persons with

certain specified contagious diseases or certain acute mental

illnesses. If doctors find that a couple is at risk of

transmitting disabling congenital defects to their children,

the couple may marry only if they agree to use birth control

or undergo sterilization. Doctors frequently force parents of

children with disabilities to place those children in state-

run institutions, which cannot provide adequate

rehabilitation. Government statistics showed that almost one-

quarter of the approximately 60 million persons with

disabilities live in extreme poverty. The Higher Education

Law enables universities to legally exclude disabled

candidates for higher education. Other countries also have

codified laws to prevent discrimination against persons with

disabilities, but fail to implement them. Traditional myths

and misconceptions further compound harsh living conditions

for people with disabilities. For example, in Zimbabwe

according to traditional beliefs, persons with disabilities

are considered bewitched, and reports of children with

disabilities being hidden when visitors arrive are common.

In response to the existing global discrepancies, the UN

set non-binding standards in 1993 through the United Nations

Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for

Persons with Disabilities (UN res48/96). To further

strengthen international standards, the General Assembly

established an Ad Hoc Committee in 2001, which is charged

with the drafting of a Comprehensive and Integral

International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of

the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities. The Ad

Hoc Committee is chaired by Ambassador Luis Gallegos, whom we

welcome today to this briefing. Currently, 27 countries and

12 representatives of NGOs participate in a working group,

which is considering draft proposals for such a convention,

and which reports to the Ad Hoc Committee.

Unfortunately, some critics have come forward and spoken

out against this noble effort, characterizing it as either

needless, naive, or too complex for an international

solution. Arguments such as: ``Are we really going to tell

the poorest countries of the world that they now have to

build ramps for people in wheelchairs, when they barely can

feed their citizens?'' do not only miss the purpose of a

Convention, but also do not recognize the realities on the

ground.

To address the latter point on the practical implications

first, I am fully convinced that poor and developing

countries can only move forward in their development if they

include

people with disabilities. It is impossible to feed a starving

population on the ground with food donations when, as I have

mentioned earlier, a significant number of people in the

developing world have a disability, and cannot even reach

this food aid. International Donor countries could have

hardly intended to provide food aid so we all can witness

scenes on television reminiscent of Darwin's ``Survival of

the Fittest,'' where only the strong survive. The same is

true for any economic development. If significant numbers of

people are excluded from any development and opportunities in

a country, we can expect their dependence on international

aid to continue. Furthermore, how can persons who are deaf or

blind ever benefit from significant efforts in the global

fight against HIV/AIDS, if they cannot be part of any

education campaign, an issue recently addressed in a New York

Times article from Sunday, March 28th? The United States can

hardly change the infrastructure of a country over night. Nor

can we do it alone, we need the international community

and encourage all nations to move forward with our

guidance and support.

Critics also miss the point of what the purpose of the

proposed Convention really is. The most important role of the

proposed convention is the elevation of disability rights to

the highest level of international law. Only if we can

establish an internationally verifiable consensus on what

disability rights are and through what mechanisms they can be

achieved, can we expect to make them part of a meaningful

international dialogue. This is exactly the purpose of other

UN human rights instruments the US has not only entered into,

but helped bring into existence, most notably the Universal

Declaration of Human Rights, which has become part of

customary international law. This convention most certainly

is not a ``silver bullet'' for all disability rights problems

everywhere, nor does it change the situation in a country

over night, only because it has become a party to this

treaty. It also does not serve to ``threaten'' developing

countries with the overnight implementation of unachievable

goals and standards, but to offer an opportunity for a

country to commit itself to a verifiable journey toward

standards, which are the result of an international

agreement. I think it behooves the United States to let other

countries benefit from our expertise and the standards we

have achieved, most notably in the Americans with

Disabilities Act. We are undoubtedly the leading nation on

disability rights, and we are the sole remaining superpower.

This unique position realistically means that we can either

provide active leadership toward passage of such a document,

ensuring that it gains international credibility, or we can

stand aside. Therefore, I was disappointed by the remarks of

former Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Ralph

Boyd, before the Ad Hoc Committee on June 18, 2003. In his

remarks, Assistant Attorney General Boyd, recognized that

``Unfortunately, persons with disabilities have too often

been the targets of improper discrimination . . .'' and

continues that: ``. . . the activism and attention of UN

Member States brings hope that one day they will be

seamlessly integrated into the societies in which they

live.'' Interestingly enough, the U.S. does not seem to be

one of those states infected with ``activism and attention,''

as he points out that--while the US has a lot of experience,

and other countries are more than welcome to learn from us--

we do so considering our ``comprehensive domestic laws

protecting those with disabilities, not with the expectation

that we will become party to any resulting legal

instrument.''

We have invited the Department of Justice to participate in

today's briefing, but the Department declined our invitation

yesterday. I find it very curious that the Department of

Justice speaks at the United Nations about these issues, but

has nobody available to share their position with Members of

Congress at this briefing today.

I, and all of my colleagues on the International Relations

Committee, strongly disagreed with the position expressed by

former Assistant Attorney General Boyd when we passed

unanimously H. Con. Res. 169, a bill I have introduced in

strong support of a UN Convention. I seriously hope that the

Administration is reconsidering its position, and I call on

the House Leadership to schedule my legislation as soon as

possible, so that the Full House and the Senate can go on

record in calling for an international convention before the

next working group meeting in May. We also need to bring the

complete resources of the U.S. Government to help in

addressing the problems of people with disabilities abroad.

That is why Frank Wolf and I introduced H.R. 1462, the

International Disabilities and Victims of Civil Strife and

Warfare Assistance Act, and we hope to see legislative action

on that initiative soon.

We should be the engine of this effort, not the breaks.

Apart from our moral obligations as the richest and most

powerful nation on this planet, the United States also stands

to benefit directly from such efforts. First, only equal and

full participation of all groups of society in all aspects of

life can guarantee a stable country, and a strong democracy.

I do not need to discuss this in great detail, as the spread

of democracy around the globe has long been the foremost

foreign policy goal of the United States. A leadership role

in the field of international disability rights will

significantly impact the positive perception of the United

States globally. Second, in an increasingly global economy,

American companies have to be global actors to be

competitive. Maybe the critics of a strong US leadership role

on this issue can explain to us how American citizens with

disabilities will participate in those global opportunities,

and the career chances they present, if persons with

disabilities would not even be able to get to a branch office

of their company in El Salvador, Rwanda, Vietnam or--let's

say, Uzbekistan?

As you are aware, the US government recently made

fundamental changes in the way we will consider foreign aid.

The Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 (Pub. L. 108-199)

established the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), and

clearly proscribes in Sec. 607(b)(1)(B) as one criteria for a

country's eligibility for funds through the Millennium

Challenge Account the `` respect [for] human and civil

rights, including the rights of people with disabilities.''

According to our legislation, ``Such determination shall be

based, to the maximum extent possible, upon objective and

quantifiable indicators of a country's demonstrated

commitment to the criteria in subsection (b), and shall,

where appropriate, take into account and assess the role of

women and girls.''

The legislative intent is clear, the implementation is not.

According to the MCC's Report on the Criteria and Methodology

for Determining the Eligibility of Candidate Countries for

Millennium Challenge Account Assistance in FY 2004, the

disability rights criteria will largely be determined by the

findings of the State Department's Human Rights Report.

Unfortunately, the Country Reports vary widely in

comprehensiveness and quality on this issue, precisely

because of the absence of recognized international standards,

which we have for other human rights issues. Clearly, only

global and enforceable disability rights standards which have

become part of accepted international law by UN Member

Countries through a UN Convention can provide us with

appropriate reporting criteria, so that an objective

determination can be made.

Mr. Speaker, please insert the attached statement into today's Congressional Record under Extensions of Remarks.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on March 30th, the Congressional

Human Rights Caucus held a groundbreaking Members' Briefing

entitled, ``International Disability Rights: The Proposed UN

Convention.'' This discussion of the global situation of

people with disabilities was intended to help establish

disability rights issues as an integral part of the general

human rights discourse. The briefing brought together the

human rights community and the disability rights community,

and it raised awareness in Congress of the need to protect

disability rights under international law to the same extent

as other human rights through a binding UN convention on the

rights of people with disabilities.

Our expert witnesses included Deputy Assistant Secretary of

State Mark P. Lagon; the Permanent Representative of the

Republic of Ecuador to the United Nations, Ambassador Luis

Gallegos; the United Nations Director of the Division for

Social Policy and Development in the Department of Economic

and Social Affairs, Johan Scholvinck; the distinguished

former Attorney General of the United States, former Under-

Secretary General of the United Nations and former Governor

of Pennsylvania, the Honorable Dick Thornburgh; the President

of the National Organization on Disability (NOD), Alan A.

Reich; Kathy Martinez, a member of the National Council on

Disabilities (NCD); and a representative of the United States

International Council on Disabilities (USCID) and Executive

Director of Mental Disability Rights International, Eric

Rosenthal.

As I had announced earlier, I intend to place the important

statements of our witnesses in the Congressional Record, so

that all of my colleagues may profit from their expertise,

and I ask that the statement of Mr. Alan Reich be placed at

this point in the Congressional Record.

Mr. ALAN A. REICH. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I come before

you today in my capacity as Chairman of the World Committee

on Disability. There are 600 million men, women, and children

with disabilities in the world. Disability knows no political

boundaries. Eighty per cent live in developing countries and

are doubly disadvantaged by poverty and hunger. The numbers

are increasing dramatically. Population growth, war injuries,

landmines, HIV/AIDS, malnutrition, disease, substance

abuse, accidents, and environmental damage all contribute

to this increase. Prejudice abounds. Many are consigned to

the shadows of beggary. Anyone can join the disability

community in an instant. No on is immune.

While economic and social conditions vary among countries,

all of us with disabilities are united by the pursuit of a

common goal: full and equal participation in the life of our

respective societies. And, we all yearn to end the hurtful

discrimination that exists in all our countries. Is not

access to employment, education, religious worship and basic

services our human right? Surely it is. Mr. Chairman, I

commend you and the Human Rights Caucus of our Congress for

recognizing disability as a human rights issue and for

calling on our nation, which consistently and forcefully

provides leadership on human rights issues, to advance the

United Nations Convention on Disability Rights.

Disability is a silent crisis; it has not received the

attention that this body and the United Nations itself have

historically accorded other human rights issues. Indeed, we

ourselves shaped the United Nations as the global forum for

human rights law and policy. The time has come to end the

marginalization of disability in the quest for universal

human rights. As president of the National Organization on

Disability, I thank you for this significant contribution.

We also are most thankful to those nations who have pressed

this cause as an issue of human rights within the U.N.

Paradoxically and unfortunately, the United States cannot yet

be counted among those countries that have come forward to

lead this effort. This is evidenced not only by the U.S.

position on the Convention, but also--in a most visible way--

by the composition of the U.S. delegation to the U.N., which

unlike the delegations of so many other countries, does not

include a single individual with a disability!

It is very important that the United States take an active

leadership role in securing an effective U.N. Convention. It

is not sufficient for us to be a passive participant, any

more than it would be for Ecuador, whose distinguished U.N.

Permanent Representative Ambassador Luis Gallegos is with us

today. Ambassador Gallegos' own involvement in disability

matters came about through his nation's winning the World

Committee's $50,000 Franklin Delano Roosevelt International

Disability Award two years ago. He then quickly assumed

leadership of the United Nations Ad Hoc Committee for the

U.N. Convention, and it has been a privilege to work with him

as he has generated support throughout the world and has

guided this endeavor within the U.N. Its successful adoption

by the general assembly and the world most certainly will be

attributable to Ambassador Gallegos and his dedicated hard

work.

Mr. Chairman, for more than a quarter century the United

Nations slowly but progressively has recognized the need to

confront the disability crisis and has taken important

actions. The General Assembly in 1976 proclaimed 1981 as the

International Year of Disabled Persons. At the end of the

year, I had the privilege of addressing the General Assembly,

the first person in a wheelchair ever to do so, to urge

adoption of

the World Programme of Action Concerning Disabled Persons.

This was followed by the Decade of Disabled Persons and the

development of the U.N. Standard Rules on the Equalization of

Opportunities of Disabled Persons. But these efforts, while

important, have been non-binding.

A binding instrument, or, a U.N. Convention, that states

can sign and ratify is the next natural step, and it would be

a travesty if the United States, which has been at the

forefront of the United Nations human rights and disability

efforts were not at the forefront of this one. People with

disabilities in our country have benefited from the United

Nations leadership. Our own National Organization on

Disability, of which I have served as President since its

founding in 1982, is a direct outgrowth of the United Nations

initiative. Literally thousands of national and local

organizations throughout the world have come into being and

continue to derive their stimulus from the United Nations'

core concern. The U.N. stimulates and nurtures interactions

among those with disabilities and has helped enormously in

solidifying our cause as a global one. Certainly, progress

must come about within nations, but the international

communication and interaction has provided wonderful

opportunities for the exchange of ideas and learning centered

on shared values. This International Convention will, as

other United Nations instrumentalities before it have done,

encourage and stimulate these interactions and that will be

very worthwhile for those with disabilities and their family

members.

Intensified international communication in the important

area of disability, as we witness every day, is good for

Americans with disabilities and for our organizations--just

as I know our participation benefits our counterparts abroad.

This ongoing dialogue and sharing in this area of common

interest helps create a climate conducive to active diplomacy

in other more political areas of concern. It generates mutual

understanding that is so much in need in our world today.

It is incomprehensible that the United States would not

seize the opportunity in this non-controversial area of

common interest, an area in which we are acknowledged world

leader, to ensure the best possible Convention that reflects

our principles and values we cherish.

Continued United Nations progress for our fifth of humanity

is an economic, social, and humanitarian imperative. The eyes

of the world are upon us. Like the United Nations World

Programme of Action before it, the U.N. Convention on

Disability Rights will be a beacon of hope for people with

disabilities and for all mankind.

Mr. Chairman, I have written President Bush urging that he

and his administration vigorously support this Convention at

the United Nations. I have urged him to support in all

possible ways H. Con. Res. 169. I request your permission to

include in the record this letter in its entirety along with

my remarks here today.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

[Letter to President George W. Bush]

March 31, 2004.

Hon. George W. Bush, President of the United States,

Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. President: Shortly after taking office, on

February 1, 2001, you announced the New Freedom Initiative

and expressed your strong commitment to improving the lives

of America's 54 million citizens with disabilities. I recall

well how proud I was to be on the platform with you that day

as you announced your plans to bring to reality the hopes and

dreams of our constituency.

The entire world has benefited greatly from America's

leadership as our nation has set the pace for the world

through our legislation such as the Americans with

Disabilities Act and our leadership in the United Nations of

ongoing international disability initiatives. Thanks to this

commitment, we are looked to by the world, and especially by

its 600 million men, women, and children with disabilities,

for spirited leadership in this area of concern.

I therefore write to respectfully request that you continue

our nation's world leadership in the area of disability by

instructing the U.S. Departments of State and Justice to

advance aggressively the work in which our nation and many

others are engaged presently at the United Nations to develop

a U.N. Convention on Disability Rights. Many other U.N.

member nations are wondering why the United States, as a

long-time leader in this area of concern (as you and your

father have asserted and demonstrated), is not pursuing

development of this Convention.

There are humanitarian and economic reasons why America

should be out in front on this issue. Because the world's

disabled are highly marginalized as a distinct minority as

well as within all other minorities, they need America's and

the U.N.'s help. The U.N. Convention will encourage action

among governments and non-governmental organizations

everywhere that will have a profound impact over time. People

with disabilities around the world will benefit from

America's commitment and example. We Americans with

disabilities will continue to benefit greatly from the

interactions and sharing of experience stimulated by the

Convention.

The United Nations and most members regard disability as a

human rights issue. America cannot afford to forfeit its

avowed leadership as the champion of human rights in the

world, and backing this initiative would be a wonderful

expression of our human rights concerns.

Please, Mr. President, direct your Administration team to

take a positive, aggressive leadership role in bringing about

the U.N. Convention on Disability Rights. I also request that

you ensure that the U.S. delegation at the U.N. include

people with disabilities themselves to maximize its

effectiveness. I am sure you have heard our cry, ``nothing

about us without us.'' We need to be at the table.

Finally, the House of Representatives International

Relations Committee has recognized the importance and value

of such a Convention by voting H. Con. Res. 169 out of

committee unanimously. It is currently awaiting scheduling

for the floor. We support this resolution and the U.N.

Convention itself. We respectfully urge you to seize this

opportunity for the good of our nation and for people with

disabilities everywhere.

With all best wishes,

Respectfully yours,

Alan A. Reich,

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, on March 30th, the Congressional Human Rights Caucus held a groundbreaking Members' Briefing entitled, ``International Disability Rights: The Proposed UN Convention.'' This discussion of the global situation of people with disabilities was intended to help establish disability rights issues as an integral part of the general human rights discourse. The briefing brought together the human rights community and the disability rights community, and it raised awareness in Congress of the need to protect disability rights under international law to the same extent as other human rights through a binding UN convention on the rights of people with disabilities.

Our expert witnesses included Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Mark P. Lagon; the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Ecuador to the United Nations, Ambassador Luis Gallegos; the United Nations Director of the Division for Social Policy and Development in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Johan Scholvinck; the distinguished former Attorney General of the United States, former Under-Secretary General of the United Nations and former Governor of Pennsylvania, the Honorable Dick Thornburgh; the President of the National Organization on Disability (NOD), Alan A. Reich; Kathy Martinez, a member of the National Council on Disabilities (NCD); and a representative of the United States International Council on Disabilities (USCID) and Executive Director of Mental Disability Rights International, Eric Rosenthal.

As I had announced earlier, I intend to place the important statements of our witnesses in the Congressional Record, so that all of my colleagues may profit from their expertise, and I ask that the statement of Cathy Martinez be placed at this point in the Congressional Record.

``International Disability Rights: The Proposed United Nations

Convention,'' March 30, 2004, Washington, DC

NCD is an independent federal agency whose members are

appointed by the President to advise the President, the

Administration and Congress on disability policy issues. NCD

supports House Concurrent Resolution 169, which expresses the

Sense of Congress that the U.S. should support a UN

Convention on the rights of people with disabilities.

As a group composed of some 600 million people worldwide,

people with disabilities are a sizable global population.

More compelling, however, than the sheer magnitude of this

population, is the appalling history regarding the denial of

even the most basic human rights of people with disabilities

in both the developed and the developing countries. Even in

the 21st century, the Department of State Country Reports has

revealed that people in psychiatric facilities are restrained

in cages and are subjected to serious human rights abuses. In

the late 1990s, governments in many countries in Europe,

Asia,

and North America acknowledged long histories of the

sterilization of people with disabilities. Additionally,

there is evidence of denial of the right to vote and

conscious utilization of inaccessible polling places

constituting an abrogation of the democratic rights of people

with disabilities in all regions of the world. As more and

more countries face aging societies the public dialogue is

becoming more and more critical about whether people, as they

age, will be allowed to stay in their community.

Within the last thirty years the United States Congress has

led the way in adopting law after law which mandate a range

of choices for American citizens with disabilities equivalent

to that for American citizens without disabilities:

education, transportation, employment, and communication.

With the passage of the proposed MICASSA legislation, this

range of choices would be extended to include the right of

people with disabilities to choose where they receive

personal assistance services and care. The UN Convention is

one way for the US to share its technical expertise and

legislative achievements, provide technical assistance and

the exchange of knowledge, skills, and experience to help

reduce the learning curve for countries that are ready to

implement new solutions. Something I've observed through my

years of experience in international development is how

powerful it is when the disability leadership from other

countries understands how people with disabilities in the US

have been able to organize themselves into an influential

constituency. Disability leaders from all over the world come

to this country and marvel at things we now take for granted.

For example, I hosted disability leaders from Russia a few

years ago. They spent a lot of time taking pictures of each

other in elevators, on ramps, on bus lifts, on the accessible

Metro, reading Braille menus in restaurants, and using our

telephone relay services. In other words, we have a lot to

share.

NCD believes the people of the United States would be well

served by being involved in the historic process of drafting

a Convention, and by ensuring that this Convention benefits

from the American experience in implementing the Americans

with Disabilities Act. U.S. disability legislation, with its

core principles of choice, independence, and integration, is

one of America's greatest democratic achievements. The U.S.

must continue to show its leadership through its support of

and involvement in the proposed Convention, in order to

protect, preserve, and enforce the rights of people with

disabilities everywhere. The passage of Resolution 169 will

be an important step in helping to ensure that people with

disabilities in other countries have the same opportunity to

attain equality.

The U.S. cannot afford to ignore the burgeoning momentum

for the development of an international disability

Convention. The United States has plenty to gain by

constructive participation in the effort to fully integrate

disability fully into the international human rights agenda.

United States interests abroad, such as our foreign

assistance work, can only be bolstered by a UN Convention.

The economic cost to society of excluding people with

disabilities is enormous. No nation in the world will achieve

its full potential for economic development while it leaves

out people with disabilities.

US government support for a strong UN convention will be a

validation of this country's commitment to include disability

issues as a meaningful priority of US foreign policy.

Effective international collaboration in the drafting

process will require consultation with and full participation

by disability leaders and their allies in the United States

and abroad. By supporting a strong Resolution, by consulting

with disability groups, and by the inclusion of people with

disabilities in the drafting process, the US will establish

its role as a leader in international disability rights

consistent with its commitments to citizens with disabilities

at home.