Literature Review on Provision of Appropriate and Accessible ...
Literature Review on Provision of Appropriate and Accessible ...
Literature Review on Provision of Appropriate and Accessible ...
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PAGE 107<br />
aut<strong>on</strong>omy <strong>and</strong> fulfilment. In commenting <strong>on</strong> Secti<strong>on</strong> 5 <strong>of</strong> the 1993 Act he<br />
c<strong>on</strong>sidered:<br />
Unless complemented with other guarantees to maximise<br />
individual freedom <strong>of</strong> choice, it [Secti<strong>on</strong> 5 <strong>of</strong> the 1993 Act] may<br />
swing the balance too far in the directi<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> depriving mentally ill<br />
or disabled pers<strong>on</strong>s <strong>of</strong> the right to a sexual life compatible with<br />
their physical, mental <strong>and</strong> emoti<strong>on</strong>al capacities ... the secti<strong>on</strong><br />
fails to reflect the rights <strong>of</strong> pers<strong>on</strong>s who are mentally impaired to<br />
have a sexual life. (O’Malley, 1996: 133)<br />
Support to People with an Intellectual Disability who are<br />
<strong>Accessible</strong><br />
<strong>and</strong> <strong>Appropriate</strong> <strong>of</strong> Provisi<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>Review</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>Literature</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
Experiencing Crisis Pregnancy<br />
3.11.3 Finding an appropriate definiti<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> intellectual disability in the<br />
c<strong>on</strong>text <strong>of</strong> capacity to c<strong>on</strong>sent to sexual relati<strong>on</strong>s<br />
It is recognised that <strong>on</strong>e <strong>of</strong> the main difficulties in drafting legislati<strong>on</strong><br />
in this area is finding an appropriate definiti<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> intellectual disability.<br />
In Irel<strong>and</strong> The Law Reform Commissi<strong>on</strong> has commented that both the<br />
c<strong>on</strong>cept <strong>and</strong> definiti<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> ‘mentally impaired’ is unsatisfactory: the<br />
term ‘mentally impaired’ itself can be c<strong>on</strong>sidered objecti<strong>on</strong>able <strong>and</strong><br />
stigmatising <strong>and</strong>, sec<strong>on</strong>dly, the test <strong>of</strong> ability to guard against serious<br />
exploitati<strong>on</strong> (the sec<strong>on</strong>d test in Secti<strong>on</strong> 5 (5) <strong>of</strong> the 1993 Act) was<br />
c<strong>on</strong>sidered to be a better yardstick <strong>of</strong> capacity to c<strong>on</strong>sent rather than<br />
ability to lead an independent life (the first test in Secti<strong>on</strong> 5 (5) <strong>of</strong> the Act)<br />
(LRC, 2005). This viewpoint has been reiterated by Namhi (now Inclusi<strong>on</strong><br />
Irel<strong>and</strong>), who note that the criteri<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> being incapable <strong>of</strong> guarding<br />
against serious exploitati<strong>on</strong> was a better <strong>on</strong>e. They add that there are<br />
many people with intellectual disabilities who are not capable <strong>of</strong> leading<br />
an independent life but who are capable <strong>of</strong> guarding against serious<br />
exploitati<strong>on</strong> (Namhi 2003).<br />
The Law Reform Commissi<strong>on</strong> was <strong>of</strong> the view that if the matter arose<br />
for c<strong>on</strong>siderati<strong>on</strong>, Secti<strong>on</strong> 5 <strong>of</strong> the 1993 Act may be c<strong>on</strong>sidered to breach<br />
Article 8 <strong>of</strong> the ECHR by disproporti<strong>on</strong>ately interfering with a pers<strong>on</strong>’s<br />
right to respect for his private life. The Commissi<strong>on</strong> stated that an opti<strong>on</strong><br />
for reform would be to amend Secti<strong>on</strong> 5 <strong>of</strong> the 1993 Act, drawing <strong>on</strong> the<br />
functi<strong>on</strong>al approach adopted in Engl<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> Wales in relati<strong>on</strong> to the<br />
Sexual Offences Act 2003 (LRC, 2005). In c<strong>on</strong>cluding, the Law Reform<br />
Commissi<strong>on</strong> (2005) stated that it was clear that this is a complex area<br />
where law <strong>and</strong> society’s views are not settled <strong>and</strong> found it appropriate to<br />
invite views <strong>on</strong> reform in the area.