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 118<br />
McCarthy <strong>and</strong> Thomps<strong>on</strong> (2004) note that even where a pers<strong>on</strong> with an<br />
intellectual disability is in a relati<strong>on</strong>ship with a staff member that may<br />
be viewed as sexually exploitative by others, that pers<strong>on</strong> may be unhappy<br />
when an interventi<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>Literature</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>Review</str<strong>on</strong>g> is taken <strong>on</strong> to Provisi<strong>on</strong> end the <strong>of</strong> relati<strong>on</strong>ship. <strong>Appropriate</strong> The <strong>and</strong> <strong>Accessible</strong> reas<strong>on</strong> for this,<br />
they note, is Support that although to People the with sexual an Intellectual side <strong>of</strong> the Disability relati<strong>on</strong>ship who are is likely<br />
to be exploitative Experiencing <strong>and</strong> may Crisis be experienced Pregnancy as physically painful, people<br />
with learning disabilities <strong>of</strong>ten take a wider view by valuing the presence<br />
<strong>of</strong> that pers<strong>on</strong> in their life <strong>and</strong> the attenti<strong>on</strong> they receive (2004: 232).<br />
McCarthy <strong>and</strong> Thomps<strong>on</strong> argue that a broad c<strong>on</strong>cern about the welfare <strong>of</strong><br />
people with learning disabilities needs to c<strong>on</strong>sider not <strong>on</strong>ly the damage<br />
d<strong>on</strong>e to them in such relati<strong>on</strong>ships, but also the damage d<strong>on</strong>e by ending<br />
such relati<strong>on</strong>ships.<br />
3.15 Provisi<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> supports<br />
Brown (2004) argues that from a rights perspective, the argument<br />
<strong>of</strong> supporting women to make their own choices, while retaining<br />
resp<strong>on</strong>sibility to c<strong>on</strong>sult <strong>and</strong> assist, or to step in to take proxy decisi<strong>on</strong>s<br />
when the woman is out <strong>of</strong> her depth is a str<strong>on</strong>g <strong>on</strong>e. Article 12 <strong>of</strong> the UN<br />
C<strong>on</strong>venti<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> the Rights <strong>of</strong> Pers<strong>on</strong>s with Disabilities requires States<br />
Parties to take appropriate measures to provide access by pers<strong>on</strong>s with<br />
disabilities to the support they may require in exercising their legal<br />
capacity. In particular, Article 23 1 (b) <strong>of</strong> the C<strong>on</strong>venti<strong>on</strong> recognises the<br />
rights <strong>of</strong> pers<strong>on</strong>s with disabilities to have access to age-appropriate<br />
informati<strong>on</strong>, reproductive <strong>and</strong> family-planning educati<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> the means<br />
necessary to enable them to exercise their rights to marry <strong>and</strong> found a<br />
family.<br />
In Irel<strong>and</strong>, the Law Reform Commissi<strong>on</strong> has emphasised the close<br />
c<strong>on</strong>necti<strong>on</strong> between the promoti<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> capacity to c<strong>on</strong>sent to sexual<br />
relati<strong>on</strong>ships <strong>and</strong> the provisi<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> sex educati<strong>on</strong> to young adults with<br />
limited decisi<strong>on</strong>-making ability which is pitched at an appropriate level to<br />
their capacity (LRC, 2005: 145).<br />
Research has shown that people with intellectual disability <strong>of</strong>ten have<br />
more limited sexual knowledge than other people (McCabe, 1999;<br />
Murphy <strong>and</strong> O’Callaghan, 2004) <strong>and</strong> are more vulnerable to abuse than<br />
others. Research carried out in Engl<strong>and</strong> by Murphy <strong>and</strong> O’Callaghan<br />
(2004) has important implicati<strong>on</strong>s for capacity to c<strong>on</strong>sent to sexual