A/HRC/34/69 B. Persons with disabilities and human diversity: embracing diversity and awareness-raising 15. The Chair of the Global Partnership on Children with Disabilities Youth Council, Peter Ochieng, said in a video message that inclusive education, employment and health, including sexual and reproductive health, were still a challenge for many youth with disabilities. The Convention’s diversity approach would be important in engaging persons with disabilities and youth in realizing the Sustainable Development Goals, allowing advocates to challenge all stakeholders to engage with persons with disabilities as rights holders rather than objects of charity. Youth with disabilities deserved an equitable and equal representation in all decision-making processes at all levels. He called upon States and all stakeholders to prioritize inclusive and meaningful participation of youth, including those with disabilities, in all programmes to implement the Goals. 16. A member of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Heisoo Shin, said that the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights safeguarded the equal rights of persons with disabilities. In its general comment No. 5 (1994) the Committee had stressed that persons with disabilities were entitled to all rights recognized in the Covenant. States parties were required to take appropriate measures, including through positive actions and appropriate preferential treatment, to reduce structural disadvantages. When considering States parties’ reports, the Committee checked the situation of persons with disabilities. She said that educational programmes should promote mutual understanding of the Covenant and the Convention and that there should be greater participation of persons with disabilities in the work of the Committee. 17. The Director of the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds, Anna Lawson, stated that the Convention required States to collect appropriate information to formulate policies. That helped to identify barriers, inform campaigning and debate within countries and compile shadow reports for treaty-monitoring bodies. States were obliged to undertake or promote research and develop universally designed goods, services and facilities. Challenges included achieving meaningful involvement of organizations of persons with disabilities in setting widely disseminated and accessible research agendas; using different methodologies; gathering evidence about the lives of people in hard-to-reach situations; making research processes accessible and inclusive; developing ethical and health and safety research requirements; and facilitating multidisciplinary collaboration and transdisciplinary thinking. 18. A journalist specializing in gender and disability at Public Television of Argentina, Verónica González, said that persons with disabilities were excluded from producing information and were underrepresented as specialists. They were portrayed in a discriminatory way, as victims or, conversely, as superheroes. Information was not accessible to all audiences. In Argentina, Public Television covered diverse issues, such as sexuality, access to justice, sports, education and employment, with a human rights-based approach. The national law on accessibility of the audiovisual press included sign language, closed captioning and simplified language. The Convention had helped raise awareness on the diversity of persons with disabilities and to break down barriers and prejudices, and allowed persons with disabilities to learn about their rights. Similarly, recommendations of the Committee had allowed advocates to challenge policies that were not in accordance with the rights-based model. 19. During the interactive dialogue, representatives of Action on Disability and Development of Sudan, ASEAN Disability Forum, Dementia Alliance International, Global Alliance for Disability in Media and Entertainment, Include Me Too, Italian Network on Disability and Development, Mongolian National Federation of the Blind, National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda, People First New Zealand, World Federation of the Deaf 6