From invisibility to positive legal protection: The drafting of Article 11 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Abstract Initial drafts of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) did not include any significant reference to the obligations of States to protect their citizens with disabilities during armed conflict or other emergency situations; international documents dealing with disability up until that point had not considered persons with disabilities as rights holders during armed conflict either. But early in the negotiations for the CRPD, disabled persons’ organizations made it clear that they wanted to see the protections of the Convention extend to times of risk, emergency and armed conflict. This study focuses on Article 11 of the CRPD. The negotiating history of Article 11 demonstrates that although there were some disagreements over the scope of the article, support for a clear statement of States’ obligations during armed conflict and other emergencies was broad-based and came from all regions.