Mexico failed to take necessary measures to ensure equal access to education, UN committee rules
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Loading... - Villalba Alai
- 08 May 2023
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In a decision that has left many perplexed, a UN committee ruled on Friday that Mexico failed to ensure equal access to education for a woman with an intellectual disability. The woman, Selene Militza García Vara, claimed that the Morelense Centre for Art had not provided inclusive access to tertiary education.
As a signatory of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Mexico was found to be in breach of its obligations by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which monitors compliance with the Convention. The Convention highlights the importance of equal access to education for all, without discrimination and on the basis of equal opportunity.
The Committee found that Mexico had not taken sufficient measures to make the Bachelor of Visual Arts programme at the Morelense Centre for Art accessible to Vara, and should have engaged in dialogue to determine what adjustments were necessary for her to take the admission tests. The Committee stated that reasonable accommodations must be adhered to by the State.
Vara claimed that she had not been given the necessary reasonable adjustments to take the admission test on an equal basis to other applicants without disabilities. She was subsequently not admitted to the programme, as the assessment was not designed for candidates with disabilities. The Dean of the Centre stated that there was no budget for admitting people with intellectual disabilities and that the programme was designed for students without disabilities.
This case is not isolated, and highlights the ongoing structural challenges faced by people with intellectual disabilities in Mexico. The lack of a rigorous track record on this issue has previously been criticised by Human Rights Watch.
