I believe strongly that autistic rights are human rights. We hear all too often that autistic people do not believe that their basic rights are safeguarded by the country they live in. Their right to an education. Their right to healthcare. Their basic right to life. Autistic people talk of being repeatedly let down – by schools, by the NHS, and by the Government more generally. Autistic people should not have to fight for their rights and should expect to be kept safe and to access the same services and opportunities as any other person.
When Autism Action were offered the opportunity to engage with the process that holds the UK to account for fulfilling its human rights obligations, we jumped at the chance. We knew this was an opportunity to raise the high rates of suicide in autistic people , a scandal which continues to go unaddressed by the UK. Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is the ‘the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health’. We know that 80% of autistic people suffer from mental health problems including severe anxiety and depression and that autistic people are at least seven times more likely to die by suicide than non-autistic people. In short, we know the UK is not living up to its obligations under Article 12 when it comes to autistic people.
Following our submission to the United Nations’ committee scrutinising the UK, I was able to attend the three-day examination process, kindly funded by the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Here I was able to brief the committee members, to identify any points of inaccuracy and to advocate for better recognition of the human rights of autistic people. The issue of autism and suicide was raised by the scrutiny committee during the session, the only issue raised across the whole three days that related to a specific disability or condition. Getting the issue on the radar of parts of the Government, at a senior level, was a good achievement.
We await the final outcome of the process but for me this had made me all the more determined to look at the challenges autistic people face through the lens of human rights. Why should we accept autistic people consistently having their rights trampled upon by a state that fails to recognise the multiple and systemic failings happening on their watch? As Nelson Mandella said, “To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.”
At Autism Action we will not stand by and let this happen any longer.
Tom
