Senator Monthian passed away on the morning of 2 March 2024 at his home in the suburbs of Bangkok. He was 58, just two months short of his 59th birthday.
Senator Monthian was a giant in the struggle for the human rights of persons with disabilities, a fervent advocate for and change maker on disability rights at all levels: international, regional, national and local.
For the ESCAP secretariat team, Senator Monthian walked with us throughout three Asian and Pacific Decades of Persons with Disabilities and in the inaugural year of the ongoing fourth Decade, 2023-2032. He was a Decade Champion who understood the value of actively engaging in ESCAP forums to promote disability rights and disability inclusion to the membership of 62 Governments. His tireless efforts left an indelible mark on regional strategies for empowering 750 million persons with disabilities in Asia and the Pacific.
Senator Monthian was a strong early advocate for disability-inclusive accessible information and communication in the ESCAP Thematic Working Group on Disability-related Concerns whose members included United Nations entities and civil society organizations in the field of disability.
A significant highlight of his achievements was his contributions to the development, ratification, monitoring and implementation of the world’s first disability-specific human rights treaty, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
The concerns that Senator Monthian voiced were captured in “the Bangkok Draft” – essential Asia-Pacific elements for a comprehensive and integral international convention on the protection and promotion of the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities. As an ESCAP region expert with disability, Senator Monthian played a decisive role in fostering clarity on concepts of accessibility, universal design and supported decision-making in the context of Asian and Pacific realities.
ESCAP submitted “the Bangkok Draft” to the Ad Hoc Committee on a Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities that convened annually between 2002 and 2006 at United Nations headquarters in New York. The Ad Hoc Committee highly regarded the value of “the Bangkok Draft.”
As a member of the delegation of the Government of Thailand, Senator Monthian’s interventions underscored his commitment to the human rights of all persons. His interventions sparkled with his passion for economic, social, civil and political rights of persons with diverse disabilities. Senator Monthian was the first citizen of an ASEAN Member State with a disability to be elected for two consecutive terms (2013 to 2016) to the membership of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities convened in Geneva by the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights. In that capacity, he was responsible for, among others, reviewing the reports submitted by State parties, including ESCAP member States. During his tenure, Senator Monthian engaged in numerous ESCAP forums. Among those was his participation in the Working Group on the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, contributing to strengthening knowledge and understanding concerning the ratification and implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Civil society organizations in the ESCAP region gained much from his insights regarding the need for cross-disability solidarity as a foundation for the preparation of civil society reports for submission to the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Senator Monthian was a co-author of the Thailand country case study in an ESCAP publication on harmonization of national legislation with the Convention.
More recently, Senator Monthian strongly advocated for disability-inclusive business. He sought to encourage disability inclusion as a new business strategy: the integration of disability perspectives in all phases of business value chains, shifting away from mere compliance-driven employment of persons with disabilities and corporate social responsibility. In the last two years of his life, the ESCAP secretariat worked hard with Senator Monthian to establish, in Thailand, a disability-inclusive public procurement system. With Senator Monthian’s advocacy, disability-inclusive business is one of the six priority areas of the Jakarta Declaration for the Fourth Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2023-2032.
For years, Senator Monthian enlivened ESCAP intergovernmental and expert forums with the power and passion of his speeches. Their wisdom, depth and clarity were unforgettable. Delivered in his deep, beautiful voice.
Senator Monthian’s motto, “I’ve given up on giving up,” will continue to inspire all of us striving to realize disability inclusion and disability rights.
We thank you, Senator Monthian.