DECLARATION OF GENERAL AND SPECIAL RIGHTS
OF THE MENTALLY RETARDED
lnternational League of Societies for the Mentally Handicapped
1968
The following Declaration was adopted by the International League of Societies for the Mentally Handicapped in 1968. The United Nations General Assembly revised and amended this Declaration and officially adopted it on 20 December 1971 under the title of Declaration on the Rights of Mentally Retarded Persons.
Article I. The mentally retarded person has the same basic rights as other citizens of the same country and same age.
Article II. The mentally retarded person has a right to proper medical care and physical restoration and to such education, training, habilitation and guidance as will enable him to develop his ability and potential to the fullest possible extent, no matter how severe his degree of disability. No mentally handicapped person should be deprived of such services by reason of the costs involved.
Article III. The mentally retarded person has a right to economic security and to a decent standard of living. He has a right to productive work or to other meaningful occupation.
Article IV. The mentally retarded person has a right to live with his own family or with fosterparents; to participate in all aspects of community life, and to be provided with appropriate leisure time activities. If care in an institution becomes necessary it should be in surroundings and under circumstances as close to normal living as possible.
Article V. The mentally retarded person has a right to a qualified guardian when this is required to protect his personal wellbeing and interest. No person rendering direct services to the mentally retarded should also serve as his guardian.
Article VI. The mentally retarded person has a right to protection from exploitation, abuse and degrading treatment. If accused, he has a right to a fair trial with full recognition being given to his degree of responsibility.
Article VII. Some mentally retarded persons may be unable due to the severity of their handicap, to exercise for themselves all of their rights in a meaningful way. For others, modification of some or all of these rights is appropriate. The procedure used for modification or denial of rights must contain proper legal safeguards against every form of abuse, must be based on an evaluation of the social capability of the mentally retarded person by qualified experts and must be subject to periodic reviews and to the right of appeal to higher authorities.
[Reprinted with the permission of the International League of Societies for the Mentally Handicapped.]