Limited voter registration exercise: Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations calls for the safety of persons with disabilities

The Ghana Federation of Disability Organizations (GFD) has demanded that the Ghana Police Service and the Electoral Commission (EC) move quickly to put the safety of people with disabilities (PwDs) first during the ongoing national voter registration exercise.

It comes in the wake of worries over violent occurrences that have been recorded at some voter registration locations during the present registration exercise. The GFD stated that although the exercise had been mostly peaceful throughout the nation, there had been reports of violent cases in a few locations, including Kukuom in the Ahafo Region, Cape Coast, and Adugyama in the Ashanti Region. These reports could have intimidated many people with disabilities and further discouraged them from taking part in the exercise.

“The news as reported by some media outlets, falls short of informing the public about the safety measures to assure persons with disabilities to participate in the process,” it said.

“The GFD wishes to call on the security agencies and the Electoral Commission to prioritise the safety of vulnerable groups, including persons with disabilities at all times during the registration process,” the federation said in a statement signed and issued by its national president, Joseph Atsu Hormadzi.

Disenfranchisement

“Persons with disabilities are deemed to be greatly affected in situations of emergencies and violence. The current atmosphere of violence at registration centres is a crucial factor that can lead to the disenfranchisement of persons with disabilities and other marginalised groups, thereby jeopardising their right to participate in the upcoming 2024 general election,” it said.

The federation said: “Ghana as a state party to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), particularly under Article 29, must guarantee the safety and equal rights of persons with disabilities to access political opportunities devoid of obstacles.”

“It needs to be emphasised that inclusion is not just a fundamental human right, but also essential for the sustainable development of Ghana under the principle of “Leaving No One Behind,” it stressed.

Condemnation

The GFD added that people with disabilities had consistently identified political violence as a major

impediment to their involvement and denounced the reported violence, expressing grave concern about its increase.

The federation stated that those with disabilities will be denied the opportunity to participate actively in the voting process if prompt action was not taken, thereby breaching their human rights.

Therefore, the GFD made a call to all duty bearers, including the leaders of political parties, to take decisive action to guarantee a secure and safe environment for individuals with disabilities at the various registration centers. It further stated that political manifestos that promise inclusion are meaningless in the absence of decisive action to protect the lives of individuals with disabilities.

It stated that the GFD was still dedicated to promoting the rights and full inclusion of people with disabilities in society and that for this reason, it was urging all parties involved to collaborate in order to establish an environment in which everyone’s rights—including those of people with disabilities—were upheld and honored.