Data and human rights for persons with disabilities: the case of deprivation of liberty

The purpose of this article is to analyse the available evidence on deprivation of liberty based on disability in 15 countries from the five regions of the world. We analysed international and regional human rights legislation and collected legal and statistical information on this topic in each of the countries. Using this information, we study how countries are collecting and analysing data, and how the analysis of the fulfilment of human rights for people with disabilities can be limited by the non-fulfilment of duties concerning data collection. A list of 31 indicators was elaborated and a questionnaire was designed to collect information on these indicators. The findings reveal that, despite a general commitment to the right to liberty, there is a contradiction within national legal frameworks, allowing for disability-specific deprivation of liberty. In all countries, available information was incomplete or outdated. No country has information regarding the number of institutions for people with disabilities or the total number of people with disabilities living in disability-specific settings. There is a generalised lack of valid data on this topic, creating barriers for the analysis of the negative consequences of deprivation of liberty on the lives of persons with disabilities around the globe.