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PRIORITYMEASURE22
“Eradicate themultiple forms of discrimination that affect older persons, including all forms of violence against olderwomen andmen,
taking intoaccount the obligations of Stateswith respect toageingwithdignity and rights.”
Possible lines of action
1. Pass legislation eliminating formal and substantive discrimination based on age and assign the corresponding obligations to public and
private players; 2. Review laws regularly, and amend them if necessary, to ensure that they do not discriminate, either formally or
substantively, against older persons in the exercise of their human rights; 3. Draw up action plans to combat formal and substantive
discrimination against older persons in the exercise of their human rights; 4. Educate and train public officials to combat discrimination,
including judges and candidates for positions in the justice system; 5. Adopt suitablemeasures—legislative administrative or other— to
guarantee differentiated and preferential treatment for older persons in all spheres; 6. Employ incentives or penalties to encourage public
and private players to modify their attitude and their behaviour towards older persons; 7. Create programmes to boost awareness about
the systemic discrimination that older persons suffer in the exercise of their human rights; 8. Establish accessible mechanisms in the
courts, the administrative authorities, national human rights institutions or public defenders’ offices to handle complaints of
discrimination against older persons; 9. Repeal laws that discriminate against widows with respect to their inheritance rights and protect
them from dispossession of their lands.
Targets
1. Society has become aware of the many forms of discrimination that affect older persons; 2. Existence of procedures and protocols to
offer preferred and preferential treatment to older persons; 3. All public officials understand and are committed to fulfilling their
obligation not todiscriminate against older persons.
Tentative indicators
1. Percentage of persons who consider that older persons are discriminated against as a group; 2. Percentage of government institutions
that have instituted protocols for giving preferred and preferential treatment to older persons; 3. Percentage of older persons in situations
of neglect; 4. Percentage of government institutions that treat non-discrimination against older persons as a competence their staff must
have.
Related instruments,
forums andmechanisms
TheCommittee onEconomic, Social andCultural Rights, in itsGeneral Comment No. 20, has observed that “
Age is a prohibited ground
of discrimination in several contexts. The Committee has highlighted the need to address discrimination against unemployed older
persons in finding work, or accessing professional training or re-training and against older persons living in poverty with unequal
access to universal old age pensions due to their place and residence
.” (Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (2009),
“Nondiscrimination inEconomic, Social andCultural Rights”, E/C.12/GC/20, 2 July 2009.
TheMadrid International Plan ofAction onAgeing has as a central theme the need to ensure “
the full enjoyment of economic, social and
cultural rights, and civil and political rights of persons and the elimination of all forms of violence and discrimination against older
persons
”, and it includes in its recommendations on labour and health various provisions relating to non-discrimination based on age or
other factors. (http://undesadspd.org/Portals/0/ageing/documents/Fulltext-SP.pdf)
Thismeasure is also related to theOpenWorkingGroup proposal for sustainable development goals, in particular el SDG 5.2. “eliminate
all forms of violence against all women and girls in public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of
exploitation.” SDG target 10.2: “By 2030 empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all irrespective of age,
sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religious or economic or other status.”
SDG target 10.3: “Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including through eliminating discriminatory laws,
policies andpractices andpromoting appropriate legislation, policies and actions in this regard.”
