in English - Handicap International

so, since this is a legally binding instrument. In other words, its observance is
obligatory.
This is an important difference between this treaty and the United Nations
Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities,
which is still valuable for promoting human rights and development for people
with disabilities. However, its great weakness is that its provisions are not binding
and States, therefore, may either apply them or not.
b. The UN Millennium Development Goals.
This is an initiative of the Presidents and Heads of State who met in New York in
late 1999. On this occasion, they approved the initiative known as the Millennium
Development Goals, whose main objective is reducing poverty around
the globe by 50%—in other words, to cut the number of people living in conditions
of poverty in half—within a period of 15 years.
This period will conclude on December 31, 2015. Since this initiative was approved,
numerous actions have been undertaken in a myriad of areas in order to
achieve these goals.
What relationship do these goals have to disabled people?
A very strong one. Given that poverty has a very acute impact on the lives
of people with disabilities (remember the vicious circle), significant progress in
reducing poverty linked to disability must be made in order to achieve these
goals. Thus, the programs and actions being promoted by governments, the
UN and other international organizations should include disabled people living
in poverty and extreme poverty. If they do not, these goals will be destined to
failure.
53