A/HRC/44/41 63. Women may be subject to intersecting forms of discrimination and the risks are increased when they are isolated by being cut off from protective peer networks and excluded from social, cultural or economic activities that could otherwise confer protective exposure. They may face barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health care and rights, be denied educational opportunities and be subjected to forms of domestic violence. 56 Women and girls with disabilities, and to a lesser extent men and boys with disabilities, reportedly face greater risks of sexual and gender-based violence because of stigma linked to disability, social isolation and the loss of protective community networks. However, persons with disabilities are often overlooked in sexual and gender-based violence prevention programmes.57 64. Internally displaced older persons with disabilities may be abandoned by family members whose resources are already depleted. They appear not to access health care on an equal basis with other displaced persons and are often excluded from livelihood activities.58 Stigma and discrimination 65. The Special Rapporteur is concerned by reports of negative stereotypes and the stigmatization of internally displaced persons with disabilities, including by service providers, camp residents and host communities. These forms of discrimination may be compounded by discrimination on the basis of, age, gender, race, religion, ethnicity or membership of a minority group. 66. Persons with disabilities are often not considered equal members of the community and are segregated in social gatherings. Some are kept “hidden” by their families because of cultural stigma. They may be addressed in derogatory language, be subject to prejudicial attitudes and are less likely to receive opportunities for paid work in camps, owing to assumptions and prejudices about their abilities to perform a task. 59 The lack of acceptance of persons with disabilities prevents them from integrating into communities and may deter them from expressing their views and concerns. Stigma and ignorance can also spark conflict within the community. For example, adults with disabilities in a camp reported emotional abuse by peers without disabilities because of the priority or assistance they received in accessing food and non-food items.60 An organization of people with disabilities working in the camp sought to defuse the tension by organizing inclusive events and fostering other forms of positive exchanges between internally displaced persons with and without disabilities, using an approach based on disability inclusion in community development, proposing joint security patrols, and opportunities for volunteering in child-friendly places or acting as after-school tutors.61 67. Stigma and discrimination are not always deliberate; they can arise inadvertently, particularly when humanitarian staff or caregivers are not aware of or are otherwise not implementing a human rights-based approach to disability. Owing to lack of experience or training, humanitarian aid organizations may only consider persons with disabilities as an afterthought. Fighting ignorance and stigma can be best achieved through collaboration with organizations of persons with disabilities and fostering links between persons with disabilities who are internally displaced and those who are members of host communities. Accountability and access to justice 68. The exclusion of persons with disabilities from services and assistance and the potential violations of their rights and due process need to be addressed through independent, fair and responsive reporting mechanisms, including where necessary by a judicial 56 57 58 59 60 61 14 See contribution from UNFPA. UNHCR, “Working with persons with disabilities in forced displacement”, p. 20. See contribution from HelpAge. See, for example, contribution from Medical Aid for Palestinians. See contribution from Light for the World, annex III. See contribution from Light for the World and “Disability inclusion in community development” (2019).