More than four million Australians live with a disability. Their rights are protected by a variety of laws, some international – like the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability (UNCRPD) – and some national, like the Disability Discrimination Act (Cth) (DDA).
But despite the existence of these laws, people with disability continue to experience segregation, barriers and discrimination. The Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability (also referred to as the Disability Royal Commission) has shone a spotlight on many of these terrible experiences.