Mockery of human rights: Iran blasts US sanctions on disabled community

The head of State Welfare Organization of Iran (SWO) has censured illegal sanctions imposed by the US and Western governments on the country’s community of persons with disabilities.

Ali Mohammad Qaderi said “The global community and human rights forums must address these critical questions: Which human rights principles are consistent with and justify the sanctions imposed on the Iranian community of persons with disabilities?”

He was speaking at the the 17th session of the Conference of States Parties (COSP17) to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in New York on Tuesday.

Qaderi said Iran will make every effort to promote services needed for the disabled in accordance with the convention’s framework as the Islamic Republic has prioritized the implementation of community-based rehabilitation programs at the national level.

Washington's sanctions against Iran have taken a new turn since May 2018 when the former US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew his country from the 2015 nuclear deal and reinstated harsh economic bans on Tehran.

Qaderi said the Islamic Republic, with a commitment to further enhancing the empowerment, independence, and social integration of persons with disabilities, has embarked on comprehensive initiatives to ensure accessibility in both physical environments and cyberspace for the disabled.

“This is notwithstanding the fact that the cruel sanctions imposed by the United States and many Western countries on the Islamic Republic of Iran have significantly increased the prime costs of rehabilitation items and specialized services, and affected the economic capabilities of individuals receiving such services,” he said.

Qaderi asked the forum, “Don’t you think that creating barriers to the international communication of the Iranian community of persons with disabilities will ultimately deprive them of their equal rights to educational and rehabilitation facilities?”

Iranian authorities have on numerous occasions censured the decades-long unilateral US sanctions on the Islamic Republic as a crime against humanity since they severely undermine the basic rights of the entire nation.

Crime against humanity: Iran’s top rights official decries Western sanctions

Iran’s top rights official says the West sanctions severely undermine the basic rights of the Iranian nation.

Blaming US sanctions for a shortage of medicines that treat special diseases such as cancer and epilepsy, health experts have warned that the harm caused by bans on Iran’s access to medicine supplies may get worse in future.

The Iranian governments have tried to circumvent the sanctions and import the drugs from suppliers that normally charge exorbitant prices.

'Gaza genocide occurring before our very eyes'

During his address to COSP17, Qaderi underscored the dire plight of the Palestinian people, particularly the children of Gaza and persons with disabilities, who endure unimaginable suffering under the Israeli regime’s brutal occupation.

"The Zionist regime’s systematic repression serves as a stark reminder of the most harrowing chapters in human history," he said. "Atrocities such as war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and widespread humanitarian crises are occurring before our very eyes."

Qaderi stressed that the deliberate destruction of healthcare facilities and infrastructure has further compounded the Gaza crisis, depriving Palestinians with disabilities of access to vital services.

"It is incumbent upon the international community to act decisively and hold the Israeli regime accountable for its egregious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law."

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