Mr. Monthian Buntan was re-elected to the United Nations’ Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities during the 9th Session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on 14 June 2016 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

            Mr. Buntan competed with 17 other candidates and won one of the nine vacant seats on the Committee for the term 2017-2020.  In his second term, he pledges to continue working to improve accessibility for persons with disabilities, including access to ICT, mainstream disability in the works of the UN, particularly in development and disaster risk reduction, and enhance collaboration and coordination between the Committee and other relevant UN bodies.

            Mr. Buntan was involved with the drafting of the Convention since its inception.  He has been working actively to advance the rights of persons with disabilities in Thailand, in the region, and at the international level.  He was instrumental in ensuring that the Sustainable Development Goals are disability-inclusive and represented the Committee in the negotiation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.  During his first term on the Committee, he served as Rapporteur for the review of Republic of Korea and the European Union.

            Born and raised in a village in Prae Province, Mr. Buntan completed his Bachelor’s degree in English and Philosophy at Chiang Mai University and went to the United States to study Music. He was a faculty member at Mahidol University and began his political career as a senator in 2008.
He is currently member of Thailand’s National Legislative Assembly.