Insights of a Mad Pride campaign [2005…]

Several international agreements, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), the UN Standard Rules for Equal Opportunities and Non-discrimination of Persons with Disabilities, and the recently ratified UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities [CRPD], have given a frame of reference for talking about the fundamental rights of persons living with a mental illness. In India, three decades of Public Interest Litigations against institutions around the country, the Persons with Disabilities - Equal Opportunities and Non-discrimination Act, 1995, and the Human Rights Act, have provided for various human rights guarantees for persons charged with, diagnosed as or living with a mental illness. The National Human Rights Commission, too, has extensively documented the human rights violations in the government run mental hospitals of India.

The 1991 Principles for the Protection of Persons with Mental Illness of the United Nations hitherto recognized in India as the basic rights instrument for the sector, such as informed consent, protection from harm, prohibitions on arbitrary or unnecessary isolation or physical restraint, the right to live, work and receive treatment within the community, least restrictive environment, treatment aimed at maintaining and furthering independence and self reliance, and promoting his or her full participation in the community.

The 1991 Principles has been roundly criticized by mental health activists as allowing forced treatment and involuntary commitment. The CRPD, replacing the Principles, extends the guarantees of the Principles and further recognizes the right to full legal capacity, places prohibitions on institutionalization and on involuntary treatment. It endorses other civil, political as well as socio-economic rights to persons living with a mental illness on an equal basis as others.

In India, there is no consensus on what constitutes the fundamental human rights of persons living with a mental illness. Controversies and dilemmas abound, particularly on the issue of the use of force in the sector, without resolutions. The National Alliance on Access to Justice for Persons living with a Mental Illness [NAAJMI] was created in the year 2005 to serve as a dialogue forum and to build a bank of Insights on Mental health and Human Rights, across a diversity of constituencies and stake holders all over the country.

NAAJMI goes beyond demanding “basic needs” for persons living with a mental illness, recognizing the conflict between fighting for basic needs and fighting for human rights. Programs looking only at basic needs may result in a protection regime and maintaining the status quo. NAAJMI is on the side of people’s dreams: We have seen that, against all odds, people have the potential to move forward. NAAJMI provides a space of social justice where, making the mental health system congruent with people’s inner most aspirations, can be discussed with positive solution based strategies at the programs level. [Read more…]

Related Links
	What is NAAJMI?
	Report of NAAJMI, Kolkatta, August 2005.
	Charter of Human Rights for persons with mental illness, Kolkatta. (download pdf file)
	NAAJMI - Bill of Rights Workshop, Southern Region Consultation.
	Charter of Rights, Bangalore
	Bill of Rights consultation- Western Region