ようこそ! Wellcome!

2024年4月28日日曜日

2-2E Act for Eliminate Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Japan)

 日本語に切り替える


What is the Act to Eliminate Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities?

     The Act to Eliminate Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities was adopted in 2013, enacted in 2016, and the first amendment was made in 2021. The act prohibits unfair discriminatory treatment based on disabilities and obliges the government, local governments, and public and private sectors to provide reasonable accommodation. It has banned rejecting ​children with disabilities to go to regular schools and regular classes and imposing special conditions for school life. The act obligates schools and educational administration to accommodate and modify the environment that students with and without disabilities can learn together in the same class. Although the act obligated only public schools to undertake reasonable accommodation when the bill was passed, it has included private schools since 2021.

About "reasonable accommodation"


​◎Leaflets about the law
リーフレット「障害者差別解消法がスタートします!」
リーフレット「『合理的配慮』を知っていますか?」
リーフレット「障害者差別解消法が制定されました」
リーフレット「障害者差別解消法が制定されました(わかりやすい版)」
​◎Treaties
一木玲子「学校教育への障害者差別解消法の影響」『ノーマライゼーション 障害者の福祉』2018年12月号。

2-1E The Basic Act for Persons with Disabilities

 日本語に切り替える

This law govern the national policies of person with disabilities. How does the law stipulate about education?

13.JPG

illustrated by Yurari


     The Basic Act for Persons with Disabilities calls for the realization of a society of coexistence with mutual respect for personality and individuality whether or not they have disabilities. That is stipulated in the article 1 as the purpose of the act. National and local government shall make plans to realize it.


●About education 

      Article 16 is on about education. Article 16, Clause 1  stipulates that the national and local government shall accommodate access to inclusive education whether students with or without disabilities. And in Clause 2, the national and local government shall provide sufficient information for students with disabilities and their intention must be respected.


Article 16(1)The national government and local public entities must give accommodation to children and students with disabilities being able to receive their education together with children and students without disabilities insofar as possible, so that persons with disabilities are able to receive a full education based on their age and capabilities and in accordance with their particular characteristics, and must take necessary measures to improve and enhance the contents and methods of the education

(2)

(2)The national government and local public entities must provide sufficient information to children and students with disabilities and their parents or guardians and respect their wishes insofar as possible in order to achieve the purpose of the preceding paragraph..

1-4E State Party Report and Parallel Reports

 日本語に切り替える

     CRPD says that State Parties(countries had ratified the Convention) should report to Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities about how it is going. And CRPD also allows the national organizations to report “ That State Party Report doesn’t match actual situation”.

CRPD Committee issues Recommendation to State Party based on these.


15.JPG

illustrated by Yurari


State Party 



Initial report
Other repors
●Parallel Reports(for the 1st CRPD's observation, 2022)
​Information Room for Inclusive Education (download Japanese )download English)
The Society for Public Education Planning & Japan Alliance for Inclusive Education
JDF(Japan Disability Forum)(JDF web page)
●Parallel Reports(for pre CRPD's observation, 2019)
The Society for Public Education Planning & Japan Alliance for Inclusive Education
JDF(Japan Disability Forum)(JDF web page)

      1-3-5E About article24

       日本語に切り替える

      Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

      52. The Committee is concerned about the:

      (a)   Perpetuation of segregated special education of children with disabilities, through medical-based assessments, making education in regular environments inaccessible for children with disabilities, especially for children with intellectual or psychosocial disabilities and those who require more intensive support, as well as the existence of special needs education classes in regular schools;

      (b)   Denials to admit children with disabilities to regular schools due to its perceived and factual unpreparedness to admit them, and the ministerial notification issued in 2022 by which students in special classes should not spend their time in regular classes for more than half of their school time;

      (c)   Insufficient provision of reasonable accommodation for students with disabilities;

      (d)   Lack of skills of and negative attitudes on inclusive education of regular education teachers;

      (e)   Lack of alternative and augmentative modes and methods of communication and information in regular schools, including sign language education for deaf children, and inclusive education for deafblind children;

      (f)   Lack of national comprehensive policy, addressing barriers for students with disabilities at higher education, including university entrance exams and the study process.

      52. Recalling its general comment No. 4 (2016) on the right to inclusive education and the Sustainable Development Goal 4, target 4.5 and indicator 4 (a), the Committee urges that the State party:

      (a)   Recognize the right of children with disabilities to inclusive education within its national policy on education, legislation and administrative arrangement with the aim to cease segregated special education, and adopt a national action plan on quality inclusive education, with specific targets, time frames and sufficient budget, to ensure that all students with disabilities are provided with reasonable accommodation and the individualized support they need at all levels of education;

      (b)   Ensure accessibility to regular schools for all children with disabilities, and put in place a "non-rejection" clause and policy to ensure that regular schools are not allowed to deny regular school for students with disabilities, and withdraw the ministerial notification related to special classes;

      (c)   Guarantee reasonable accommodations for all children with disabilities for meeting their individual educational requirements and ensuring inclusive education;

      (d)   Ensure training of regular education teachers and non-teaching education personnel on inclusive education and raise their awareness on the human right model of disability;

      (e)   Guarantee the use of augmentative and alternative modes and methods of communication in regular settings of education, including Braille, Easy Read, sign language education for deaf children, promote the deaf culture in inclusive educational environments, and access to inclusive education for deafblind children;

      (f)   Develop a national comprehensive policy, addressing barriers for students with disabilities at higher education, including university entrance exams and the study process.

      1-3-4E About article23

       日本語に切り替える

      Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

      49.      The Committee notes with concern:

                 (a)       The provision in the Civil Code (art. 770) discriminating against persons on the grounds of their psychosocial disability, setting it as grounds for divorce;

                 (b)      The separation of children with disabilities from their families, and their institutionalization in particular living arrangements on the basis of their disability.

      50.      The Committee recommends that the State party:

                 (a)       Repeal discriminatory provisions against persons with disabilities, including article 770 (1) (iv) of the Civil Code which sets psychosocial disability as grounds for divorce;

                 (b)      Recognize the right of children with disabilities to family life, and render appropriate assistance, including early intervention and inclusive support, to parents of children with disabilities, including to parents with disabilities, in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities, to prevent families from being separated on the basis of disability, and, when the immediate family is unable to care for them, undertake every effort to provide them with alternative care in the community in a family setting.

      1-3-3E About article19

       日本語に切り替える

      Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

      41.      The Committee observes with concern:

                 (a)       The perpetuation of institutionalization of persons with intellectual disabilities, persons with psychosocial disabilities, elderly persons with disabilities, persons with physical disabilities and those who require more intensive support, particularly living arrangements outside the community, and of children with disabilities, particularly children with intellectual, psychosocial or sensory disabilities and those who require more intensive support – through the Child Welfare Act, in various types of facilities, depriving them of family and community life;

                 (b)      The promotion of institutionalization of persons with psychosocial disabilities and persons with dementia in psychiatric hospitals, both public and private, and particularly the continuance of indefinite hospitalizations of persons with psychosocial disabilities;

                 (c)       The limited opportunities for persons with disabilities to choose their place of residence and where and with whom to live, including for those dependent on parents and living in their homes, and those placed in particular arrangements such as group homes under the Act on Comprehensive Support for the Daily and Social Life of Persons with Disabilities;

                 (d)      The lack of a national strategy and legal framework for the deinstitutionalization of persons with disabilities residing in residential institutions and psychiatric hospitals, and for their independent living in the community on an equal basis with others, including the lack of recognition of their right to autonomy and full social inclusion;

                 (e)       The insufficient support arrangements for persons with disabilities for living independently in the community, including accessible and affordable housing, in-home services, personal assistance and access to services in the community;

                 (f)       Assessment schemes for granting support and services in the community that are based on the medical model of disability.

      42.      With reference to its general comment No. 5 (2017) on living independently and being included in the community, and to its guidelines on deinstitutionalization, including in emergencies (of 2022), the Committee urges the State party to:

                 (a)       Take expedited measures to end the institutionalization of persons with disabilities, including children with disabilities, by redirecting its budget allocations from the placement of persons with disabilities in residential institutions towards arrangements and supports for persons with disabilities for living independently in the community on an equal basis with others;

                 (b)      Review all cases of persons with disabilities who are hospitalized in psychiatric hospitals to cease any indefinite hospitalization, ensure their informed consent and foster their independent living, along with the required mental health support in the community;

                 (c)       Ensure that persons with disabilities have the opportunity to choose their place of residence and where and with whom they live in the community and are not obliged to live in a particular living arrangement, including group homes, and enable persons with disabilities to exercise choice and control over their lives;

                 (d)      Launch, in consultation with organizations of persons with disabilities, a legal framework and national strategy with time-bound benchmarks, and human, technical and financial resources, aimed at the effective transition of persons with disabilities from institutions into independent living in the community on an equal basis with others, with recognition of their right to autonomy and full social inclusion, and obligations on prefectures to ensure its implementation;

                 (e)       Strengthen support arrangements for persons with disabilities to live independently in the community, including independent, accessible and affordable housing outside any type of congregated premises, personal assistance, user-led budgets, and access to services in the community;

                 (f)       Revise existing assessment schemes for granting support and services in the community to ensure that they are based on the human rights model of disability, including the assessments of the barriers in society for persons with disabilities and of the support for their social participation and inclusion.

      1-3-2E About article7

       日本語に切り替える

      Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

      17. The Committee observes with concern:

      (a)       The early identification and rehabilitation system, as regulated by the Maternal and Child Health Act, which leads children with disabilities – on the basis of their medical examination – to social segregation, distancing them from the community and hindering inclusive life prospects;

                 (b)      The lack of clear recognition of the right of children with disabilities to be heard, and to express their views freely on all matters affecting them, in all relevant laws, including the Child Welfare Act;

                 (c)       The lack of full prohibition of corporal punishment of children, including children with disabilities, in home, alternative care and day-care settings, as well as the insufficient measures to prevent and protect children with disabilities against abuse and violence.

      18.      With reference to the joint statement of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on the rights of children with disabilities, of 2022, the Committee recommends that the State party:

                 (a)       Review the existing legislation with the aim of recognizing the right to full social inclusion of all children with disabilities, and take all necessary measures, including universal design, and reasonable accommodation – inter alia, alternative and augmentative methods of information and communication, to ensure their full enjoyment of this right in the general childcare system from their earliest age on an equal basis with other children;

                 (b)      Recognize the right of children with disabilities to be heard, and to express their views freely on all matters affecting them on an equal basis with other children, including in judicial and administrative proceedings, and to be provided with disability- and age-appropriate assistance and communication in accessible formats to realize that right;

                 (c)       Fully and explicitly prohibit the corporal punishment of children, including of those with disabilities, in all settings, and strengthen measures to prevent and protect against abuse and violence against children with disabilities.

      1-3-1E About article1-4

       日本語に切り替える

      Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities


             A.    General principles and obligations (arts. 1–4)

      7.        The Committee is concerned about:

                 (a)       The lack of harmonization of disability-related national legislation and policies with the human rights model of disability as contained in the Convention, which perpetuates a paternalist approach to persons with disabilities;

                 (b)      The perpetuation of the medical model of disability across legislation, regulations and practices, including the disability qualification and certification system, which, on the basis of impairment and capacity assessment, promotes the exclusion of persons who require more intensive support, and persons with intellectual, psychosocial or sensory disabilities, from disability allowances and social inclusion schemes;

                 (c)       Derogatory terminology, such as “mentally incompetent(能力のない)”, “mental derangement(狂わせる)” and “insanity”, as well as discriminatory legal restrictions, such as disqualifying clauses, based on “physical or mental disorder”;

                 (d)      Inaccurate translation of the Convention into Japanese, particularly of the terms “inclusion”, “inclusive”, “communication”, “accessibility”, “access”, “particular living arrangement”, “personal assistance” and “habilitation”;

                 (e)       Regional and municipal gaps in providing necessary services and assistance to persons with disabilities in the communities, including mobility support, personal assistance and communication support.

      8.        The Committee recommends that the State party:

                 (a)       Harmonize all disability-related national legislation and policies with the Convention, recognizing all persons with disabilities as rights holders on an equal basis with others, including by ensuring close consultation with representative organizations of persons with disabilities, in particular persons with intellectual disabilities and persons with psychosocial disabilities;

                 (b)      Review its legislation and regulations to eliminate elements of the medical model of disability, including the disability qualification and certification system, to ensure that all persons with disabilities, regardless of impairment, receive the required support in the community in order to have equal opportunities in society and full social inclusion and participation;

                 (c)       Abolish derogatory language and legal restrictions, such as disqualifying clauses, based on “physical or mental disorder”, in its national and municipal legislation;

                 (d)      Ensure that all terms of the Convention are accurately translated into Japanese;

                 (e)       Take the necessary legislative and budgetary measures to eliminate the regional and municipal gaps in the provision of necessary services and assistance to persons with disabilities in the communities, including mobility support, personal assistance and communication support.

      9.        The Committee is further concerned about:

                 (a)       The insufficient involvement of persons with disabilities through their representative organizations in consultations concerning legislation and public policies, including those carried out by the National Consultative Council of Persons with Disabilities and by the municipal and intermunicipal committees on accessibility;

                 (b)      The lack of a comprehensive response to the stabbings that took place in 2016 at the Tsukui Yamayuri-en facility, located in Sagamihara, mainly owing to a eugenic and ableist mindset in society;

                 (c)       Limited awareness of the rights recognized in the Convention among the judiciary and justice sector professionals, policymakers and lawmakers at the national and municipal levels, as well as teachers, medical, health, building design and social workers, and other professionals who have a connection with persons with disabilities.

      10.      Recalling its general comment No. 7 (2018) on articles 4 (3) and 33 (3) of the Convention, the Committee recommends that the State party:

                 (a)       Ensure active, meaningful and effective consultations with the diverse range of representative organizations of persons with disabilities at the national and municipal levels, including by means of alternative communication, accessibility and reasonable accommodation, in public decision-making processes, paying attention to self-advocates with disabilities, to organizations of persons with intellectual disabilities, of persons with psychosocial disabilities, of autistic persons, of women with disabilities, of LGBTIQ+ persons with disabilities, and of persons with disabilities living in rural areas, and to those requiring more intensive support, including in the implementation and monitoring of and reporting on the Sustainable Development Goals;

                 (b)      Review the Tsukui Yamayuri-en case with a view to combating eugenic and ableist attitudes and ensure legal liability for the promotion of such attitudes in society;

                 (c)       With the close involvement of organizations of persons with disabilities, provide systematic capacity-building programmes on the rights of persons with disabilities and the obligations of the State party under the Convention, for the judiciary and justice sector professionals, policymakers and lawmakers, teachers, medical, health and social workers, and all other professionals who have a connection with persons with disabilities.

      11.      The Committee notes that the State party has not yet ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention. It also notes with concern the State party’s interpretative declaration relating to article 23 (4) of the Convention.

      12.      The Committee encourages the State party to ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention, and to withdraw its interpretative declaration relating to article 23 (4) of the Convention.

      1-3E First Conclusion Recommendations to Japan

       日本語に切り替える

           The Committee on the Right of Persons with Disabilities published the 1st Conclusion Recommendations to Japan on September 9th, 2022(finalized on October 7th). This document is a report about Japanese circumstances from the viewpoint of the CRPD. It was made by elaborate dialogue between the Committee, the Government of Japan, and civic groups. How do the Conclusion Recommendations describe children with disabilities.


      1-1E Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ CRPD General comment No. 4 (2016)

      英語に切り替える

            CRPD was adopted on 13 December 2006 at the United Nations. According to Article 24, Inclusive Education becomes a principle of education. Inclusive Education has been described in greater depth and detail in CRPD Committee’s General Comment no 4,


      挿絵

      illustration by Yurari