Project Summary
Grantee	: Association of Persons with Visual Impairments (GOZDER)
Purpose	: Establishing a platform with the participation of disability NGOs to monitor the implementation of UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and build capacity of those NGOs
Location	: Turkey
Grant Amount	: 172.410 TL
Project Partner	: Neurovascular Diseases Association of Turkey
Period	: 15 April 2011-15 April 2012
Status	: Completed
Project Year	: 2011

Background

Discrimination against persons with disabilities is a consistent problem in Turkey. According to research conducted by the Administration for Disabled People, 65% of persons with disabilities reported mockery, 42% reported mistreatment by civil servants. 46% of the participants of the survey reported discrimination in the area of employment, 51% in the area of education, 39% in the area of health, 40% in the area of justice and 51% in the area of social participation. Among persons with disabilities 71% reported that they are not aware of the legislation regarding persons with disabilities. (GOZDER, 2011)

Project Goals

• In Turkey;
  • Capacity Building trainings to defend against discrimination will be organized for 32 disability NGOs that represent more than 10 .000 persons with disabilities.
  • A platform will be established with the participation of trained NGOs.
  • Platform members will initiate and track at least 160 legal cases representing their members.
• A Report on Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities will be published and disseminated to raise awareness on the subject.

Project Developments

• 32 NGOs representing more than 40 thousand people with disabilities from 8 cities came together for trainings in Istanbul.
• During the trainings, legal framework on discrimination, prevention methods and monitoring of discrimination have been discussed. The trainings were given by a team of legal experts, academicians and sociologists.
• In order to raise the awareness of the public, project website and a facebook page were created in order to reach more people. A Project brochure is prepared to introduce the platform.
• NGOs that took part in the training started to monitor discriminatory acts in public services and prepared written application to demand better services. Some issues addressed by the NGOs were:
  • Housing Services for Women with Disabilities in Women Shelter
  • Education Rights of Children with Autism
  • Accessibility of Public Revenue Services Building
  • Training of Public Transport Officers regarding the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Testimonials

“To be a part of this rights based platform project has been very useful for me. As we worked together we learned the basic rules of rights based advocacy and monitoring and started to see the results of our petitions and initiatives.”

Platform Member Association Representative, Istanbul

’’I am not very good at expressing my feelings; but the most important contribution of this project is that it enabled me to realize that I knew nothing. I learned that it is much better to have a rights based approach, I learned the importance of acting together in solidarity.”

Platform Member Association Representative, Istanbul