Disability commission shifts services to Sapport to focus more on abuse complaints

Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability beefing up investigations arm to focus more on abuse of people with a disability

L-R: Roda Garland, Samantha Pace Gasan, Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli, Dr Bernard A. Busuttil
L-R: Roda Garland, Samantha Pace Gasan, Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli, Dr Bernard A. Busuttil

The Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability will be transferring more of its services to the Sapport agency in a bid to focus more on abuse investigations.

CRPD commissioner Samantha Pace Gasan said a disability task force had enabled the disability rights commissioner to overcome the challenges posed by COVID-19 restrictions.

Malta had 19,705 persons with a disability registered with the commission as of December 2020.

The task force carried out research in conjunction with the University of Malta on the effects of the pandemic on persons with disability. The pandemic had forced the halt on medical assessments for ‘blue’ disability badges, and instead temporary badges were issued, with a drastic reduction in the number of applications received for the badges.

The CRPD’s investigations committee saw an overall reduction of 24% in requests for investigations on discrimination, but an increase of 75% in those related to working places. 

Around 70% of applications received by the conformity committee, responsible for the monitoring and auditing of accessibility within buildings, were rejected. 

The CRPD’s enforcement section will now be increasing in size, after more than 2,000 expired blue badges were collected in an exercise to eliminate abuse.

Pace Gasan appealed for more private companies to come forward for Disability Equality Training, in order to ensure that they conform with their obligations related to accessibility, inclusion and rights of disabled people. 

Minister for Inclusion and Social Wellbeing, Julia Farrugia Portelli, insisted on the importance of CRPD and it workers during the pandemic, thanks to whom “the wellbeing and quality of life of disabled people and their families improved.”

Farrugia Portelli said changes to the Criminal Code will strengthen the CRPD and safeguard the rights of persons with disability.

An awareness campaign will soon be launched in an effort to address the taboos with which persons with disabilities are faced with.