* * *All India Federation of Mental Illness*
*(The National Body of Association for Persons with Mental Illness & Caregivers)*** *Bunder Garden Main Street, Perambur, Chennai-600 011* * * *AIFMI’s Response to Misleading and Malicious Mail* There is a mail being circulated in the name of Abdul Mabood of Snehi, inviting the addresses to join a Protest Sitting organised by DRG and another unregistered group on 10th October outside the MHFW in New Delhi to demand immediate stop to the process of bringing in what they call maliciously “The Draconian Mental Health Care Bill”. The mail is misleading and is a futile attempt to malign and to stop the passage of a very salutary draft bill. As what is stated in the mail is factually incorrect and apparently without a proper reading of its provisions, AIFMI considers it necessary to put the facts correctly and accurately before the stake holders. *Twisted Statements and Misrepresentation of Facts*** *Statement:* The archaic Mental Health Act of 1987, an offshoot of the colonial Lunacy Acts, makes people with ‘unsound’ mind non-human! They are not considered to have opinions, wishes or feelings. They are meant to be locked away, drugged and given electric shock treatments! *Response: *Hyperboles without specific references do not mean anything. Mental Health Act 1987 was drafted after due consultations with stake holders and was considered a progressive piece of legislation when it was passed. Over a passage of time and after India signed and ratified UNCRPD, need was felt to bring out a new more progressive legislation. After due consultations with the stake holders and after several draftings spread over a period of more than 2 years, the Draft Bill 2012 is ready to be introduced and is hailed by stake holders as a fine piece of draft legislation providing adequate safe guards and protecting and promoting the interests of the users. *Statement: *The Disability Act of 1995 defines ‘mental illness’ as a disability. India has also ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) that talks about India’s obligation to respect, protect and fulfill the human rights of ALL persons with disabilities. However, the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare seems to be knowingly or unknowingly ‘unaware’ of this. Nothing explains why then it has come out with a Mental Health Care (MHC) Bill, while completely failing to include mental health & wellbeing to the Right to Health Act! *Response: *There cannot be a more confusing and disjointed statement. Persons with mental illness have a disability as well as an illness. The Disability Act covers the disability part and Mental Health Act and now the Mental Health Care Bill cover the Illness Part. MHFW knows all that needs to be known, it is the authors of the statement who need to brush up their understanding. The Drafting Team and the officials of MHFW have used UNCRPD document as a Bible while drafting and redrafting the Draft Bill. *Statement: *The draft of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2012 recently unveiled by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment (MSJE) guarantees the ‘legal capacity’ and the ‘right to choice’ of all persons with disabilities, including those with psychosocial disabilities. The Ministry of Health has gone drastically against CRPD and the draft Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill and has advocated for involuntary incarceration and continuing with electric shock treatments and even lobotomies! Talk about the right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing! *Response:* Again vague statements and rhetorics without substantiating any of the statements! Where is the mischievously alleged advocacy for involuntary incarceration? The draft bill has only built in safeguards when there is high support need necessitating involuntary admissions. *Inane Questions:* The questions are mostly declarations and only repeat what is stated in the above unsubstantiated statement which has been appropriately commented upon. The correct position is repeated below in response to the inane questions to expose the hollowness of what is asked/stated. *Q:* The rights of people with psychosocial disabilities must be governed by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. *A: *The affirmation is vague, lacks precision and makes no sense. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill as finalized by MSJE has appropriate provisions, S 3 on Guiding Principles and S 4 on Equality and Non-discrimination which also apply to persons with mental disability. Nothing more is required. *Q: *Why is the Health Ministry then overstepping its turf? A: Alleged overstepping is not explained. Where is the overstepping? MHFW is concerned only with the health care of persons with mental illness and has provided in the draft bill only about the rights of persons with mental illness in regard to their health and treatment and has introduced adequate safeguards for such persons when their illness is severe they may need high support. *Q: *What is the Health Ministry’s motivation? A: This insinuating question provides no background or provocation for asking it. The MHFW has strived to present a draft Mental Health Care Bill to help the persons with mental illness and to ensure their human rights related to their illness in compliance with UNCRPD and even beyond that. This is their sole motivation. *Q: *While the draft Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill of MSJE talks about ‘full legal capacity’, A: The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2012 does not talk about ‘full legal capacity’ as claimed. The draft bill provides equality of rights and opportunities for persons with disabilities and accordingly and correctly it states in Section 7 (1) that “……persons with disabilities enjoy legal capacity on an equal basis with others……” *Q: *Mental Health Care Bill talks about ‘involuntary incarceration’? A: This is a highly misleading and factually incorrect statement repeated. In no section of Mental Health Care Bill there is a talk about ‘involuntary incarceration’ Sections 45 and 46 provide for admission and treatment of persons with high support needs with adequate safeguards and reviews built in. Even Rights of Persons with Disability Bill provides for such exceptions to achieve a legitimate aim of inter alia ‘treatment (S.4.2). *Q: *What is the Government of India’s stand on the issue if two of its Ministries are talking diametrically opposite on this? *A: *There is nothing diametrical opposite and such rhetorics are misleading and irresponsible. The statement only shows a lack of understanding of the law making process. The two ministries have consulted each other on the bills originated by each one of them. Other ministries and state governments and union territories have also been duly consulted as a part of the law making process. Proper coordination and understanding is visible in the two draft bills originated by two ministries. *Q: * Involuntary incarceration, over drugging, mental asylums, electric shock treatment and the rampant abuse & exploitation that goes on in the name of psychiatry and mental health goes against the letter of CRPD that India has ratified. *A: *Using exaggerations and belligerent language with negative connotations and without referring to the text or the provisions of the Draft Bill prove nothing except frivolousness and bias. None of the words quoted in the question above have been used in the proposed bill as such and in the manner quoted. Section 51 is on Prohibited Treatments and forbids ECT Treatment for minors and for others without the use of muscle relaxants and anesthesia. It is unfortunate that words such as mental asylums which were given up decades ago have been used in the question instead of using acceptable term Mental Health Facility used in the draft bill. *Q: *What is India’s answer to the international community? *A: *Such rhetorics have no relevance. The draft bill is progressive and compliant with UNCRPD. International community will only appreciate India’s initiative. *Q: *We demand an immediate stop to the process of bringing a draconian mental health care act! *A: *Futile attempts to scuttle the bill are anti to persons with mental illness. The opponents of the Bill are doing a great disservice to the cause by their ill-advised demands based on distortions and lack of understanding. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Mental Health Advocacy (News 'N Views) India" group. 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