On the Road to Freedom from Guardianship in Mexico

After being denied the right to make decisions for himself his entire life, “Ernesto”, at 50 years old, is finally free to make his own choices. On March 13, Mexico’s Supreme Court First Chamber issued a groundbreaking ruling giving Ernesto, who has an intellectual disability, the right to decide to marry, sell or rent his house, enter into contracts, and carry out any other legal acts that many of us take for granted. Until that day, he had been placed under “guardianship,” meaning another person made all these decisions on Ernesto’s behalf. Guardianship completely strips away the autonomy of…

© Human Rights Watch - vendredi 15 mars 2019