Introduction One fundamental aspect of disability rights is the inclusion of persons with disabilities in public and political life. This chapter shall examine the right to political participation of persons with disabilities in Ireland and elsewhere, with consideration of progress that has been made in lifting legal and administrative barriers to political participation. Then, comparison shall be drawn between Ireland and other European Union (EU) member states, providing analysis on the realisation of these rights for persons with disabilities. This shall be followed with analysis of litigation before the European Court of Human Rights, which highlights how notwithstanding progress in this area - there remains further scope for improvement within this field. I.
The right to political participation for persons with disabilities
‘The opportunity to be involved in political life is at the heart of what it means to live in a democratic society’. Accordingly, the right to political participation of persons with disabilities, is firmly grounded in international law. It is enshrined in the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), various instruments of the Council of Europe and the primary and secondary legislation of the European Union (EU).31 Within political processes persons with disabilities often form a ‘discrete and insular minority’ whose collective voice is often ignored in public affairs and can experience ‘political powerlessness’, hence there is a strong impetus behind the protection of this right.32 At an EU level, the right of EU citizens, including those with disabilities, to vote in European and municipal elections is contained in Article 20 (2) (b) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), and Articles 39 and 40 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU.33 Article 21 of the Charter further guarantees that no EU citizen will be deprived of their rights due to discrimination on the basis of disability.34 Article 26 of the Charter also
31
European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, ‘The right to political participation of persons with disabilities’ (FRA, 2014) <https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-political-participation-personsdisabilities-summary-0_en.pdf> accessed 2 January 2021. 32 Steven Hoge, ‘Cleburne and the Pursuit of Equal Protection for Individuals With Mental Disorders’ [2015] 43 (4) Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online 416. 33 European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, ‘The right to political participation of persons with disabilities’ (FRA, 2014) <https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-political-participation-personsdisabilities-summary-0_en.pdf> accessed 2 January 2021. 34 European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, ‘The right to political participation of persons with disabilities’ (FRA, 2014) <https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-political-participation-personsdisabilities-summary-0_en.pdf> accessed 2 January 2021.
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