Life remains a struggle for too many old Singaporeans – UN
human rights expert says
GENEVA (3 October 2016) – United Nations human rights
expert Rosa Kornfeld-Matte today commended the Government of Singapore for its
efforts and commitment to ensure that older persons fully enjoy their human
rights. However, she noted that “addressing the needs of an ageing population
requires laws and policies grounded in a human rights-based approach.”
“While I understand that many of the new programmes and
policies to address the challenges faced by older persons will need more time
to bear fruit, “the reality on the ground indicates that life remains a
struggle for many old Singaporeans,” warned the UN Independent Expert on the
enjoyment of all human rights by older persons after her first official visit
to the country.
“I urge the authorities to ensure that all older persons
in Singapore are able to age with dignity,” Ms. Kornfeld-Matte stressed
Singapore has one of the fastest ageing populations in
the world, with the number of persons aged 65 and above expected to triple by
2030 to reach 900,000 persons. This demographic revolution has wide-ranging
implications for society at all levels and goes hand in hand with growing
concerns at the ability of older persons to enjoy the full spectrum of their
human rights.
“Efforts to upgrade the care system and social policy
need to continue in order to put in place the necessary infrastructure,
programmes and schemes to address the new demographic reality and the human
rights concerns of an increased number of older persons,” she said.
While noting that many of the new measures are currently
in their pilot phase or at a very early stage of implementation, the
Independent Expert called on the Government to monitor the measures taken so
far to fully assess their impact on the enjoyment of their human rights by
older persons at this stage.
“I was puzzled to learn that in a country with the third
highest GDP per capita in the world, many older persons with low-income
continue to depend on their social network for a significant portion of their
livelihood and that many of those who lack such support systems face financial
hardship,” Ms. Kornfeld-Matte said.
“I am concerned at reports about elder abuse,
particularly since reported cases tend to be just the tip of the iceberg”, she
stated. “Further measures and independent mechanisms are urgently required to
ensure that any form of violence against and abuse of older persons, including
financial abuse, is detected and reported.”
The rights expert welcomed the Singapore’s efforts to
pioneer new models of care, highlighting that it has much to offer in terms of
best practices in the area of care technology. “Care technology offers
unpredicted opportunities in re-shaping care systems for older persons given
that many existing care system are or will in the near future reach the limits
of their capacities,” she said.
However, she said, “the use of autonomous health care
robots also raises a number of issues, ranging from ethics to accountability,
privacy and data protection, which have to be studied in detail and for which
normative frameworks and appropriate mechanisms may need to be designed to
ensure their human rights conform utilization.”
“Such a discussion will be meaningless without older
persons themselves being heard,” the UN expert emphasised. “It is equally
important to assess the impacts of the use care robots from a human rights
perspective with the participation of older persons and to ensure that those
involved are reflective of the heterogeneity of this segment of the population in
terms of age groups and their various conditions.”
During her ten-day visit, Ms. Kornfeld-Matte met with
various Government authorities and civil society, others working on the rights
of older persons and older persons themselves, as well as with representatives
of trade unions.
A comprehensive report on her findings and
recommendations will be presented at a forthcoming session of the UN Human
Rights Council.
ENDS
Ms. Rosa Kornfeld-Matte (Chile) was appointed by Human
Rights Council as the first Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human
rights by older persons in May 2014. Ms. Kornfeld-Matte served as the National
Director of the Chilean National Service of Ageing where she designed and
implemented the National Policy of Ageing. She has a long career as an academic
and is the founder of the programme for older persons at the Pontificia
Unversidad Católica de Chile. Learn more, visit:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/OlderPersons/IE/Pages/IEOlderPersons.aspx
The Independent Experts are part of what is known as the
Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest
body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name
of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address
either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the
world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN
staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any
government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.
UN Human Rights, Country Page – Singapore:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Countries/AsiaRegion/Pages/SGIndex.aspx
For further information and media requests, please
contact Mr. Khaled Hassine (+41 22 917 93 67 / khassine@ohchr.org) or write to
olderpersons@ohchr.org
You can access this press release here:
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xcelaya@ohchr.org)
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