Esidimeni Campaign
SA Legislative Framework
South Africa's Mental Health Care Act of 2002 is the legislation that governs medical mental health services and to some extent intends to protect the rights of people with psychosocial and intellectual disabilities. It refers specifically to people diagnosed or attributed with "mental illness" or disorders". It determines the procedures with little if any due process guarantees and assumes that compulsory treatment and deprivation of liberty is in the person's best interest. The legislation exists specifically for the purposes of differentiating "mental illness" from other physical healthcare issues that do not allow for coercion. The 2002 Act reflects a move from Institutionalization towards determining medical services in the community
South Africa's Mental Health Policy and Strategic Framework was promulgated in 2013. It is intended to be an organized set of values, principles and objectives for improving mental health service delivery and decreasing the incidents of diagnosis of "mental disorders in a population. It defines a vision for the future and establishes a model for action, including components of advocacy, promotion, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation. A mental health strategic plan outlines the specific actions, actors, timeframes and resources required to achieve the goals and objectives set out in the policy.
The White Paper on the Rights of People with Disabilities outlines the policy and future strategic objectives to ensure that the rights of people with disabilities in South Africa are promoted and protected. It is not legally enforceable but however is a an official document that powerfully outlines the Governments aims and objectives and framework for transformation.
Regional Legislative Framework
The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (the Bangul Charter) guarantees the in Article 18 (4) "The aged and the disabled shall also have the right to special measures of protection in keeping with their physical or moral needs." This is presently being further elaborated in the drafting of an African Disability Protocol that will elaborate on these rights. Afinal Validation workshop is to be held at the end of 29 and 30 November 2016 in Addis Ababa to discuss the final draft of the African Disability Protocol.
that has been adopted by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights
International Treaties
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2007) is an international treaty that South African has ratified. Accompaning this is the Optional Protocol that sets out a complaints mechanism.
The Convention Against Torture and the Optional Protocol Against Torture (OPCAT) defines and prohibits cruel and unusual punishment and treatment and torture. This is an important treaty to consider in the light of Esidimeni as SA has ratified CAT and OPCAT.
