To the government of Iran:
- Implement a comprehensive review of legislation and policies including a legal definition of disability, to ensure that they are in line with the requirements of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities;
- Remove all derogatory language from legislation and policies;
- Adopt a legal provision based on CRPD requirements defining and prohibiting disability-based discrimination including denial of reasonable accommodation;
- Implement public awareness campaigns about people with disabilities, emphasizing their equality, inherent dignity, and human rights.
- Ensure that public officials refrain from any language that is discriminatory or derogatory towards people with disabilities as an essential part of combatting discrimination and stigma;
- Ensure that all persons with disabilities have the opportunity and accessible information to register as a person with a disability with relevant state agencies;
- Ensure that SWO staff, particularly social workers who are in daily contact with people with disabilities, receive adequate and regular training on rights and needs of people with different disabilities, based on the principles underlying the CRPD;
- Establish effective and independent monitoring systems to ensure that SWO staff respect the rights, dignity, and diversity of people with disabilities;
- Establish accessible and confidential complaint mechanisms to ensure that any alleged abusive or negligent treatment by SWO staff is properly investigated and appropriate remedies are provided in the event of a violation. Information about how to use these mechanisms should be distributed in accessible formats, including sign language, Braille, audio, or large fonts, and easy-to-read formats to people with disabilities and their support persons upon registration with SWO;
- Ensure that all individuals or companies offering home-care services to people with disabilities are licensed and that home-care providers fulfill background checks and professional training. Ensure that people with disabilities who use home care services have access to effective complaint mechanisms in case of any abusive or negligent treatment;
- Ensure that any financial support including “nursing allowance” or “disability pension” is allocated based on a transparent, confidential and needs-based assessment.
- The SWO should prepare an individual support plan for each person with a disability that includes the types of assistive equipment and other services according the individual’s needs; to maximum extent feasible using available resources, support people in obtaining assistive devices and services determined in their individual support plans;
- Ensure that the procurement of assistive equipment aligns with the actual needs determined by the individual support plans;
- Ensure that disability prevention programs are funded and implemented separately from policies designed to ensure the rights of persons with disabilities. The State Welfare Organization, as the main implementing agency of the CRPD should not have responsibility for disability prevention. Any disability prevention policies should be designed and implemented with full respect for the autonomy and right to private and family life of persons with disabilities;
- Withdraw any legislation or policy leading to any obligation for people to undergo genetic testing or consultation, including as a requirement for registration of a marriage;
- Develop and publish a time-bound detailed plan to ensure, using maximum available resources, that public transportation would become equally accessible for persons with disabilities. At the mid-term/short-term level, dedicate specific services to facilitate access to transportation for all persons with disabilities in order to ensure their social inclusion and exercise of other basic rights;
- Provide adequate training to public transportation staff, including bus and social taxi drivers, to support persons with disabilities in their use of public transportation while respecting their dignity and autonomy;
- Develop a time-bound detailed, plan, using maximum available resources, to ensure that people with disabilities in rural and remote areas can access transportation on an equal basis with others including by provision of reasonable accommodation;
- Develop and publish uniform standards on accessibility in line with Universal Design Principles, and ensure that these standards are accessible to all persons with disabilities and other stakeholders; coordinate and consult with people with disabilities and disabled persons’ organizations on distribution of the standards;
- Conduct regular comprehensive studies on accessibility of all public buildings and publish the findings, including in the media;
- Introduce and enforce meaningful penalties for non-observance of accessibility requirements and denial of reasonable accommodation to persons with disabilities;
- Make accessibility standards mandatory for any procurement of goods, services and technologies which will be used to serve the public;
- Ensure that medical care for persons with disabilities is of the same quality and equally accessible for persons with disabilities on an equal basis with others. Medicines and treatment should only be given on the basis of free and informed consent.
- Ensure that the National Health Transformation Plan extends coverage under the national health insurance scheme coverage to disability-related healthcare and rehabilitation services.
- Ensure that health care professionals are adequately trained on how to inform persons with disabilities about available medical choices, any proposed treatment, including potential side-effects, and support them in making decisions if so desired by the person;
- Ensure that all persons with disabilities, particularly women and girls with disabilities, have access to sexual and reproductive services, information, and choice;
- In consultation with deaf and hard of hearing persons and organizations representing them, develop and publish a detailed time-bound plan to realize, using maximum available resources, access to professional sign language interpretation for deaf and hard of hearing persons who seek to use public services including SWO and other organizations serving people with disabilities, health care facilities, and the justice system.
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