A/HRC/43/41/Add.2 fundamental, because the right of access to justice guarantees the effective enjoyment and exercise of all rights. 82. In Canada, legal aid is provided by provincial and territorial governments through specific programmes. The Special Rapporteur learned that there are significant regional disparities in who can access legal aid, the types of issues covered and the amount and type of legal assistance provided. For example, legal aid is often only available for certain types of legal problems and on the basis of income. 24 Therefore, a person with disabilities who works may not be eligible for legal aid despite not being able to afford private legal services. 83. Persons with disabilities can be deprived of their liberty if declared unfit to stand trial or deemed not criminally responsible on account of “mental disorder”.25 These cases are diverted and processed through the provincial and territorial review boards, specialized tribunals that can order the absolute discharge of the person, outpatient community treatment or detention in a mental health hospital. This can lead to detention for an indeterminate period or for a significantly longer period than would be ordered for a similar criminal act tried under the criminal justice system. The accused is placed in custody within a hospital or supervised within the community for as long as he or she is perceived to be posing a risk to public safety. The principle of proportionality between the seriousness of the offence and the sentence that applies in the criminal justice system is not considered. As the review board system is “inquisitorial” and not “adversarial”, the accused have less access to procedural guarantees, such as not being provided with a lawyer, than others in the criminal justice system. Canada must ensure that judicial guarantees and safeguards protecting the rights of those accused of a crime apply to all persons with disabilities. 84. There is an overrepresentation of persons with psychosocial and intellectual disabilities in prisons. Some sources suggest that psychosocial disabilities among inmates in the federal correctional system are up to three times as common as in the Canadian population at large.26 This situation is largely linked to socioeconomic factors such as lack of employment, housing and adequate support services rather than to criminality itself. In the context of the process of reviewing the criminal justice system to address the overrepresentation of different marginalized groups, the Special Rapporteur is keen to learn more about the reform and the concrete measures taken to reduce the overrepresentation of persons with disabilities in prisons. IV. International cooperation 85. Through its international assistance, the Government of Canada funds a number of initiatives geared towards reducing poverty and promoting the rights of persons with disabilities in partner countries. 27 In 2018, the Government endorsed the Charter for Change, the outcome document of the Global Disability Summit, held in London on 24 July, and announced its commitment to accelerate global action for disability-inclusive development. The Government of Canada has also committed to reviewing its international assistance policy and programming processes to identify ways to improve the availability of equal opportunities, inclusive design and the meaningful involvement of persons with disabilities in the design and delivery of international assistance. The Government committed itself to tracking and reporting on its international assistance using the disability marker approved by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in 2018. The information will be made available publicly through the International Aid Transparency Initiative. Canada is a member of the Global Action on Disability Network, a 24 25 26 27 16 Canadian Bar Association, Study on Access to the Justice System: Legal Aid (Ottawa, 2016). The Criminal Code, part XX.1, establishes the statutory framework that governs the treatment of accused persons who are deemed to be unfit to stand trial or not criminally responsible. Fiona Kouyoumdjian and others, “Health status of prisoners in Canada: narrative review”, Canadian family physician, vol. 62, No. 3 (2016), pp. 215–222. Global Affairs Canada, Report to Parliament on the Government of Canada’s Official Development Assistance 2017–2018 (Ottawa, 2018).