Political Rights of People with Disabilities in Lebanon

Description: In 2016, there were 98,000 registered persons with disabilities in Lebanon, representing an estimated three percent of Lebanon’s population. They face many challenges, including legal and administrative barriers to political participation, while lack of access is present in elections as well as in political parties and political expression. Initiatives to increase their participation in elections and decision-making processes are also limited. Political participation of persons with disabilities has been outlined in a series of international and regional human rights conventions. Among them is the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which was first to elaborate the right to participate in political and public life in the context of disability and to provide specific guidance to States. Lebanon signed the CRPD in 2007 but has yet to ratify it, and the hope is to improve the level of participation of persons with disabilities in the political life and facilitate their accessibility to electoral process.