Bulgaria passed a law on the ratification of UN CRPD

The parliament of Bulgaria decided to make laws according to the Convention of the United Nations on the rights of persons with disabilities. This way, Bulgaria says it will do what the Convention says to make better the lives of people with disabilities.

On 26 January 2012, the 41^st National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria passed a law on the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Up until now, there have been 109 ratifications of the Convention. So far, 19 EU member states have ratified the Convention, with Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Malta, the Netherlands and Poland being the exceptions.

The unanimous ratification of the Convention by the Bulgarian Parliament commits it to immediately proceed to all the necessary steps towards the full implementation of the Convention. It is worth mentioning that Bulgaria has often occupied the media with scandals of inhuman living conditions in its institutions and various violations of the rights of its residents, raising intense reactions by human rights organisations and individuals. Recently, the UN Human Rights Committee itself called on the Bulgarian government to close all children’s institutions, including those for children with disabilities. More information is available here.

The fact that the Bulgarian Parliament decided to ratify the Convention might hopefully mean a serious commitment to  a more inclusive society, where people with disabilities can take active role in the community and are not imprisoned in institutions. The Bulgarian Minister of Labour and Social Policy stated that in 6 months he will propose to the Council of Ministers a 2-year plan for the application of the Convention in Bulgaria. It remains to be seen what this plan will contain and how it will try to put the Convention into practice.