Basic Political Principles

DHF’s policy is formulated by the political committees, based on a number of basic principles and ideas.

Strategy
Our strategy constitutes the core of our political work. It is formulated by DHF’s elected leaders and contains the objective of ensuring a life with equal opportunities for all. We do this based on a number of core values. We are both a watchdog and a necessary voice for the members. We are a competent advisor, and we are bridge builders, who work for cohesion between the sectors of society through constructive co-operation.

The basic principles of disability policy
The basic principles of the disability policy are of great importance for our work.

Since 1993, they have constituted a foundation for Danish disability policy and they express the special way of thinking, which underlies the legislation on disability in Denmark.

The goal is equality through compensation for the disability. Through the sector responsibility principle, the entire society is made accountable, as equality requires that people with disabilities can be part of all aspects of society. The principle of solidarity emphasises the fundamental principle that disability compensation must be accessible to everyone, and free of charge.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities defines a number of fundamental rights for people with disabilities. Rights that address all aspects of life – e.g. housing, economy, family life, health, mobility, family life, education and working life, etc.

The Convention was ratified by Denmark in 2009, and thus Denmark commits to ensure retention and continued development of living conditions for people with disabilities. Because the whole world has emphasised that people with disabilities are entitled to a life on an equal footing with others, the Convention is a strong document and a sound argument for our work.

The UN Sustainable Development Goals
DHF also relates to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The goals are the outcome of the international community having identified a number of concrete objectives in a number of areas that should promote better circumstances for people in general.

Some of the objectives are directly relevant to our work in a Danish context - for example, to promote better education, employment conditions and the fight against poverty and inequality. By focusing on the development goals, our own agenda becomes part of a broader united context.

The SDGs are a natural extension of the work we are already do, and they allow us to form a common front between interest policy work in Denmark and our efforts in third world countries, through our Department for Development Work.