Securing rights in the twenty-first century: A comparison of the disability and older persons' rights conventions

ABSTRACT

This article assesses the outcome of the proposed UN Convention on the Rights of Older People (CROP) by comparing its political, economic, and social contexts with those of the 2006 Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The research draws on interviews with those involved in the debates, nonparticipant observation, and analysis of primary and secondary literature. The article concludes that weakness of the aging advocacy network compared to the disability network and a relatively more closed political opportunity structure negatively influence the CROP's prospects. However, many of the hurdles proponents of the CROP face are similar to those faced at the beginning of the CRPD campaign, so progress and eventual adoption are possible. By comparison with the closely related CRPD, social scientists can better understand the institutional and contextual factors that influence campaign success in the contemporary context and advocates of the CROP can better anticipate roadblocks.

Notes

1. International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) adopted in 1965; the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR; UNGA 1966a); and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR; UNGA 1966b).

2. See Krasner (1993) and Sikkink (2005). However, there are many examples of campaigns that succeed even when they lack the support of powerful actors, such as the successful negotiation of the Landmines Convention, International Criminal Court statute, women's suffrage, and the campaign against apartheid. See Price (2003) and Sikkink (2005).

3. However, Estrémé points out that there was little special about the disability convention that could serve as a model, more so than any other convention would (he even cites the experience negotiating the Arms Trade Treaty as influential).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jennifer Dabbs Sciubba

Jennifer Dabbs Sciubba is an Assistant Professor in the International Studies Department at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. She received her PhD and MA from the University of Maryland and her BA from Agnes Scott College.