Participation of persons with disabilities in social and political life discussed in Nur-Sultan

Nur-Sultan, November 13, 2020 – A round-table on "Participation of Persons with Disabilities in Public and Political Life" was held with the participation of representatives of central government agencies, NGOs, analytical centers, international organizations and the media.

The event was held in an online format and organized by the Association of Women with Disabilities "Shyrak", with the support of the Central Election Commission of Kazakhstan, the Commissioner for Human Rights, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan and the OSCE Programmes Office in Nur-Sultan, in the framework of the project "Expanding Participation of Persons with Disabilities in Public and Political Life."

The purpose of the round-table was to inform the general public about the key principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the OSCE Standards for the Participation of Persons with Disabilities in Public and Political Life, the results of a baseline study in Kazakhstan on inclusivity and accessibility, as well as joint work in this direction by the government, NGOs and international organizations.

Markus Schaefer (Switzerland), a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and Amu Urhonen (Finland), an international expert, delivered reports on the participation of persons with disabilities in public and political life in accordance with the principles of the UN Convention and OSCE standards in this field.

In his speech, Ambassador-at-large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, Ussen Suleimen, noted that the Foreign Ministry, together with the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Kazakhstan, is actively working on the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as well as providing all possible support to the activities of "Shyrak".