Paper short abstract:

How and to what extent do deaf Tibetans challenge a model of disability that they experience as one of charity and pity? This question is discussed in the broader context of the UN Convention of the Rights of People with Disabilities, the role of state and local disability advocacy in Tibet.

Paper long abstract:

The UN Convention of the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPWD, 2008) aimed to inspire and realise a movement away from viewing people with disabilities as objects of charity, medical treatment and social protection, towards viewing them as full and equal members of society, with human rights. It is the only UN human rights instrument with an explicit sustainable development dimension. The People's Republic of China (PRC) was one of the first to sign the convention. Since the 1980s, through the China Federation for People with Disabilities (CDPF) the country already had a powerful institution with branches all over the PRC to promote disability-related work. However, the deaf Tibetans in Lhasa who I have worked with had only limited (if any) knowledge of the UN Convention, or even of fundamental national rights and laws (labour, employment, family) affecting their everyday. Myriad barriers to education, sign language use, fair employment and equal pay, to civil rights etc. were also in place. Cadres and employees of the local CDPF branch, the Tibet Disabled People's Federation (TDPF), are constructed as "representatives" and "advocates" of Tibetans with disabilities, yet it quickly became apparent that Tibetans with disabilities considered them otherwise. The model of disability that many experienced in dealings with the TDPF was one of charity and pity. This paper looks at how and to what extent deaf Tibetans challenge this model.