Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights of Women with Disabilities

December 3rd is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

In a session on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights of women with disabilities the participants - all Indian women - observed that, when young, they could not socialise with opposite sex as there was parental concern about their safety and further infrastructure was inaccessible preventing them from moving around.  Male college mates applauded when they sang songs but were not willing to be partners, as able-bodiedness was the norm and as they were not willing to invest the extra time in accompanying women with disabilities - be it visual, hearing or physical.  Majority of women with disabilities were single, which was not the case of men with disabilities (unless they were living with severe disabilities).  In the rare event that women with disability got into an arranged marriage, it was often because the parents paid greater dowry than the norm.  At times, the partner got into another relationship. In other instances, he refused to be seen with his differently abled partner, citing that he was embarrassed. In worst case scenario, male partners did not want a child, fearing that it will be born differently abled, and insisted on abortion.  Though not cited in this group, cases of forced hysterectomies and higher incidence of rape amongst differently abled women are well known.


The International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), 1994, states that governments should "Ensure that services are in place to enable people with physical impairments or learning disabilities to exercise their rights as sexual beings". ICPD+5 states that state governments must "put in place enabling legislative and administrative instruments and adequate financial resources to meet the needs of all citizens, especially …disabled".  However, the National Rural Health Mission of India does not refer to people with disabilities at all.


It is recommended that:

1.       At international levels, the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women with disabilities are researched and that ICPD+20 more comprehensively addresses these;

2.       Reporting on the Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities includes sexual and reproductive health and rights of women with disabilities;

3.       National schemes on health are reviewed so that sexual and reproductive health needs of women with disabilities are addressed;

4.       Organisations working with people with disabilities are trained in drafting shadow reports on differently abled women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights;

5.       Women’s and youth’s organisations are sensitised on sexual and reproductive health needs and rights of women with disabilities; and

6.       Legal services and self-defence training are provided to women with disabilities.    

By Ranjani.K.Murthy, Image credit: IFPA, Meeting described in this blog organised by Vidya Sagar and Initiatives: Women in Development