Age Demands Action for Rights
Older women and men have the same rights as everyone else: we are all born equal and this does not change as we grow older. Despite this, older women and men around the world continue to be discriminated against and denied their rights because of their old age.
ADA activist Kulumkan from Kyrgyzstan presents the ADA petition to Ivan Simonovic, the UN Assistant Secretary-general for Human Rights.
(C) HelpAge International
The UN conventions on human rights that exist don’t cover the specific human rights violations that people experience in old age. A new UN convention on the rights of older people is necessary to change this.
Making a convention a reality
HelpAge is working hard to help make a convention a reality through our Age Demands Action for Rights campaign. ADA for Rights is marked on 15 June, World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.
The campaign raises awareness of rights abuses towards older people and encourages governments to attend the UN Open-ended Working Group on Ageing (OEWG). This is where the possibility of a new UN convention is being discussed.
Last year, at the OEWG ADA activist Kulumkan from Kyrgyzstan presented the ADA petition to Ivan Simonovic, the UN Assistant Secretary-general for Human Rights. And on 15 June 2012, older people from over 21 countries campaigned for older people’s rights.
Take action now!
Your Government's positive participation in the OEWG meeting in August is critical to keeping this process moving forwards towards a new convention on the rights of older people. We urgently need your support as this is just two months away.
Please sign our Age Demands Action petition calling for a UN convention on the rights of older people. Every single signature contributes towards the global call for a convention and brings us closer to our target of 200,000.
