In May 2008, Rwanda ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons withDisabilities. The convention upholds the rights of persons with disabilities, including intellectual disabilities, to equal rights. HumanRights Watch said that laws on sterilization, including for persons with disabilities, must respect both a person's right to bodily integrity andinformed consent to medical procedures. Decision making about sterilization must take into account each individual's capacity to give informed consent,and where such capacity is lacking an individualized consideration must be made of the best interests of the person concerned. "While Rwanda has made notable progress in fighting stigma and responding to the AIDS epidemic, and has pledged to advance the rights of persons withdisability, forced sterilization and mandatory HIV testing do not contribute to those goals," Amon said. "These elements of the bill underminereproductive health goals and undo decades of work to ensure respect for reproductive rights.