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Abstract
Kyrgyzstan was one of the last post-Soviet countries to ratify the UN Convention on Rights of People with Disabilities (UN CRPD) in 2019. The disability movement played a significant role in advocating for the adoption and ratification of the UN CRPD. Interviews with disability activists and a desk review of documents trace the trajectory of the disability movement in Kyrgyzstan. As post-ratification events demonstrate, a narrow interpretation of the Convention results in the misrecognition of the voices of people with disabilities, who are prevented from meaningful engagement and participation in the policymaking process. The essay cautions against equating ratification with recognition.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 Interview with representative from the working group on the development of a plan for realising the CRPD in the Kyrgyz Republic, Bishkek, 15 September 2020.
2 Interview with a disability movement activist, Bishkek, 23 August 2020.
3 Interview with a working group representative from the working group on the development of a plan for realising the CRPD in the Kyrgyz Republic, Bishkek, 25 September 2020.
4 Interview with a representative from the working group on the development of a plan for realising the CRPD in the Kyrgyz Republic, Bishkek, 20 September 2020.
5 ‘In-kind’ support belongs to both the social and medical model.
6 Interview with the head of the NGO ‘Ravenstvo’, Kazakunova Gulmira, Bishkek, 23 September 2020.
7 Interview with a disability movement activist from NGO ‘Hand to Hand’, Bishkek, 11 August 2020.
8 ‘Developing Communication for Development: A Report on the Relationship to Children with Disabilities’, PIL Research Company, Bishkek, 2020, unpublished report.
9 Interview with a ‘Hand to Hand’ representative, Bishkek, 15 August 2020.
10 See, ‘Assotsiatsiya invalidov trebuyet vstrechi s prezidentom. Spisok trebovanii’, Kaktus media, 27 November 2017, available at: https://kaktus.media/doc/366646_associaciia_invalidov_trebyet_vstrechi_s_prezidentom._spisok_trebovaniy.html, accessed 18 March 2021.
11 See, Ministry of Justice (Citation2013).
12 In Kyrgyzstan benefits are assigned according to the severity of disability, classified as first (the most severe), second and third degrees of disability for adults and ‘disability from childhood’ for children.
13 Interview with a person with a disability participating in the march, Bishkek, 12 November 2020. See also Makanbay Kyzy (Citation2020).
14 Interview with a ‘Hand to Hand’ representative, Bishkek, 15 August 2020.
15 Focus group discussion with disability movement activists, Bishkek, 10 October 2020.
16 Interview with a blind disability activist, Bishkek, 15 October 2020.
17 Interview with a disability activist, member of working group on CRPD plan development, Bishkek, 17 October 2020.
18 Interview with a representative of the NGO ‘Phenomenon’, Bishkek, 10 October 2020.
19 Interview with a former candidate for parliamentary election with a disability, Bishkek, 27 October 2020.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Rakhat Orozova
Rakhat Orozova, Faculty Member, Institute of Education, American University of Central Asia, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic. Email: [email protected]
Alfiya Battalova
Alfiya Battalova, Postdoctoral Fellow, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC 4255 Laurel St, Vancouver, BC V5Z 2G9, Canada. Email: [email protected]
Nina Bagdasarova
Nina Bagdasarova, Professor of Psychology Department, American University of Central Asia, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic. Email: [email protected]