Comité Económico y Social Europeo
Accessibility is not just a technical issue but a human right. The aim of this own-initiative opinion is to draw the attention of policy makers to the challenges and barriers that still exist for people with disabilities.
The Commission communication represents a fundamental policy instrument for people with disabilities. The EESC welcomes the European Disability Strategy, as an active policy instrument to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The EESC believes that the UN Convention sets a clear framework that allows people with disabilities to contribute to the realisation of their potential, and calls for the EU to take the next and equally important steps of ratifying the Optional Protocol and of ensuring that existing and future secondary legislation respect the Convention.