RIO DE JANEIRO, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Brazil celebrated on Tuesday the election of Federal Representative Mara Gabrilli as a member of the United Nations' Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
The election was held in New York City earlier on Tuesday as part of the 11th Conference of the State Parties, where Gabrilli faced 21 other candidates and was voted by 103 out of 175 representatives of UN members.
It is the first time a Brazilian representative got elected into the committee, which has 18 members who serve four-year terms. Elections are held every two years for nine members at a time.
Gabrilli became an activist for the rights of people with disabilities after she suffered a car crash and became wheelchair-bound over two decades ago.
Gabrilli told governmental news agency Agencia Brasil that her election will help strengthen public policies regarding people with disabilities in Brazil, and that she will work to reduce the cost of technologies to assist them.
The Brazilian Foreign Ministry released an official statement celebrating Gabrilli's election, saying that her election reflects Brazil's commitment to the promotion of the rights of people with disabilities.
