The text below is taken from the Equality and Human Rights Commission News story on the conference, chaired by RADAR Chief Executive Liz Sayce, which launched the new "Promoting Safety and Security of Disabled People" Report:
29 April 2009
Trevor Philips, Liz Sayce, Maria Eagle MP (Under Secretary of State for Justice)
A report published today by the Equality and Human Rights Commission announces a three point plan to address the safety and security of disabled people and commits to funding for advocacy groups.
In the report, Promoting Safety and Security of Disabled People, interviewees describe their experiences of targeted violence and hostility against them. They talk about how their belief that complaints won't be taken seriously leads them to suffer in fear and silence.
The research establishes that disabled people are at greater risk of being victims of targeted violence and hostility. People with learning disabilities and mental health conditions face the greatest risk. The impact of such experiences is grave, leading people to move house, avoid going out at night and lead isolated lives.
One person said: 'I lost all trust in human beings – it’s difficult to describe the depth of that...I had my barriers up all the time, I was terrified of speaking to anyone in the new flat because of my experiences in the old flat.'
But disabled people also reported that they are reluctant to report violence and hostility, believing that professionals and institutions will not respond. Another person said:
'There was absolutely no communication between any of them – the psychiatrist, the environmental health people, the police...I felt like they all thought I was stupid and weren’t taking me seriously enough to take it forward with their managers or other people.'
The Commission is today announcing a three point plan to support and empower disabled people who are targets of violence and hostility:
- All public institutions – from schools and social landlords to hospitals - have a statutory obligation under the Disability Equality Duty to eliminate hostile behaviour towards disabled people and to promote positive attitudes. The Commission will carry out a review of how well these various authorities are meeting their responsibilities. The Commission will seek to ensure that the new Equality Bill provides at least as effective a legal framework to address these issues as existing legislation, and further research, evidence gathering and assessments will be carried out this year.
- The Commission will support disabled people to live independently and have access to justice through the distribution of grants to independent advocacy organisations from a dedicated sum from the Commission's £10.5 million funding programme.
- The Commission will work with criminal justice agencies to remove barriers to disabled people taking legal remedies against violence, hostility and hate crimes, and use its legal powers where necessary, as with the case of FB v Director of Public Prosecutions. Despite the high prevalence of anecdotal and reported incidents, the number of prosecutions remains low. In the year to March 2008 only 183 incidents of violence against disabled people were prosecuted. Whilst the CPS advises that this has almost doubled for the year to March 2009, contrasted with evidence of prevalence this remains woefully low.
Trevor Phillips, Chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said:
'We all remember the horrific murder of Brent Martin and Steven Hoskin, two young men with learning disabilities who were viciously killed by those who befriended them.'
But they were the conspicuous flashes of an often silent bullying menace on our streets, on our housing estates, on our buses and trains, in our schools and, increasingly, online and on mobile phones.'
'We all want disabled people to be able to go out and play a full part in their community but too often a trip to the pub, the shops, the swimming pool or work is such an ordeal that it seems easier to narrow their horizons, to stay indoors. This is a hidden catastrophe that we need to address.'
'When we interviewed people for this report they told us the same thing: we need to do something. This is not an issue we can prioritise in rhetoric and ignore in practice. There can be neither disabled and non-disabled, neither hounded and free. There cannot be two tiers of safety and security, for we are all individuals of equal standing and worth.'
Also speaking at today’s launch are Maria Eagle MP, Deputy Minister for Women and Equality and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, and Keir Starmer, Director of Public Prosecutions.
Download the research reports:
- Ends -
For more information contact the Equality and Human Rights Commission Media Office on 02031170255, out of hours 07767272818.
Notes to editors
- For a full copy of Promoting the Safety and Security of Disabled People please contact the press office or follow this link.
- The research has found that:
- disabled people are 4 times more likely to be victims of crime compared to non-disabled people (British Council of Disabled People, 2007);
- 47 per cent of disabled people had either experienced physical abuse or had witnessed physical abuse of a disabled companion (Scope, 2007);
- 75 per cent of people with mental health conditions and 66 per cent of those with learning difficulties experience being victims of crime (GLA, 2003; Mind, 2007);
- In the year ending March 2008, 183 defendants were prosecuted for crimes involving disability incidents. 77% of completed cases resulted in a conviction in 2007-08, 23% were unsuccessful. In the three years ending March 2008, over 33,000 defendants were prosecuted for crimes involving racial or religious aggravation. In the three years ending in March 2008, over 2,400 defendants were prosecuted for homophobic or transphobic crimes.
- The risk people face is influenced by a range of factors including other aspects of their identity such as their gender, age and ethnicity and by socio-economic status including income, where people live and their contact with the wider community.
- FB v CPS. In January 2009, The High Court ruled the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) were wrong to drop a prosecution where the victim had a history of mental illness. The CPS believed the individual, granted anonymity and known as 'FB', would not be a credible witness. The Equality and Human Rights Commission intervened in the case to offer expert advice to the Court, raising concerns that assumptions about people with mental health conditions were preventing them from having full access to justice.