On Thursday 30th March, a rally was organised by disability support groups. This demonstration was held to mark the 10th anniversary of the date on which the Irish government had committed to adopting the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. (UNCRPD)
This was an international agreement on changing attitudes and approaches to people with disabilities.
Ireland is one of the last countries in the European Union to ratify the UN convention for the rights of a person with disabilities.
Here is our Youth Leadership Team member Joanne Weller to tell us about her experience at the demonstration.
Hello, my name is Joanne, and I am going to tell you about my experience at the rally.
The demonstration was about ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.
It has been going on now for 10 years. This is extremely annoying, as all people with disabilities have the same rights anyone else. It annoys me that even after 10 years it has not been ratified.
The demonstration took place outside Leinster house in Dublin City. I enjoyed being able to represent people with disabilities.
There were a lot of protesters, from different disability services. I was there as a Youth Leadership Team member, representing AsIam and Gheel Autism services.
At the demonstration, we shouted how angry we are about the situation. It was very intense. We are treated like second class citizens, and people are annoyed. We want equality and to be treated the same as everyone else.
Campaigner Joanne O’Riordan was there, along with hundreds of other people. It was amazing to see so many people standing up for what we believe in.
The march taught me to always stand up for what you believe in, and to make your voice heard. I hope that more people get involved. The more people that come from all walks of life, the better. We are all here to support each other, and hopefully this will have a positive effect on the UN convention to be ratified in Ireland.
