Article 12
Article 12 is a key article in the United
Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities
(UNCRPD) which has been signed and ratified by the UK & the EU
and may give an answer.
Article 12 Equal Recognition before the law
states the following:
- States Parties reaffirm that persons with
disabilities have the right to recognition everywhere as persons
before the law.
- States Parties shall recognize that persons
with disabilities enjoy legal capacity on an equal basis with
others in all aspects of life.
- States Parties shall take appropriate
measures to provide access by persons with disabilities to the
support they may require in exercising their legal capacity.
Supported decision making enables Article 12
to be implemented, whilst in my view shared decision making does
not. This is because shared decision making assumes a level playing
field in all decision making and this is not the case in most
mental health services.
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