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United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has insisted that the rights of persons with autism must be taken into account in the formulation of all COVID-19 responses.
In his goodwill message to mark the 2020 World Autism Awareness Day (WAAD), he said, “We recognise and celebrate the rights of persons with autism. This year’s observance took place in the midst of a public health crisis unlike any other in our life time – a crisis that places persons with autism at disproportionate risk as a result of the coronavirus and its impact on the society.”
Specifically, Guterres stressed that the patients had rights to self-determination, education and employment on an equitable basis.
The UN chief regretted that statistics of vital support systems and networks in the face of the coronavirus outbreak had shown worse situations being encountered by persons with autism while trying to exercise these inalienable rights of theirs.