Promoting the Right to Free Movement

2011-11-05

On September 23, Unison NGO held an open-air photo exhibition. The event was aimed at promoting the right to free movement for persons with limited mobility. This right is fixed in the national legislation and follows from Armenia’s obligations to fulfill the requirements of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The exhibition was organized within the framework of Barrier-Free Movement: the Right for All project supported by the Counterpart Armenia and USAID. The State Employment Agency of Armenia had also assisted Unison. The existing challenges and various possible solutions were shown on 70 large-size photos by Garegin Ghazaryan and Rasmila Alaverdyan.

"Once again we tried to voice our concerns related to the execution of the right to free movement", says Armen Alaverdyan, Unison NGO Executive Director. "This right is still violated in Armenia. Laws and construction regulations are in place; however, they are widely ignored in our country". According to Alaverdyan, in spite of some progress that has been achieved during the 20 years of independence, a lot of schools, cultural institutions, banks and other facilities are still inaccessible. Even the majority of newly-constructed buildings does not comply with accessibility norms. In addition, no accessible public transport exists in Armenia.