At the OSCE meeting, Lyazzat Kaltayeva, Deputy of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Volker Frobarth, Head of the OSCE Programme Office in Astana, briefed the representatives of the Organisation’s member states on the situation of persons with disabilities in Kazakhstan,El.kz cites MFA.
Senator Kaltayeva, one of the founders of the Association of Women with Disabilities “Shyrak”, gave a presentation on the ongoing work to protect and promote the rights of people with disabilities in our country.
“There is a law on a 30% quota for women, young people, and people with disabilities in parliament. It is a big step forward for Kazakhstan for people with disabilities to come to the legislative and representative branches of government. Today, there are seven people with disabilities in the Mazhilis and 71 in the Maslikhats,” the senator noted.
Frobarth briefed the participants on the events and projects undertaken by the OSCE Programme Office in Astana to promote the meaningful and active participation of persons with disabilities in the country's political life. These include the organization of training sessions to promote the inclusiveness of electoral processes, the publication of a brochure entitled “Minimum Requirements for the Equipment of Polling Stations”, an easy-to-read version of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Kazakh and Russian, and the transcription and printing of the Constitution of Kazakhstan in Braille.
The Permanent Representative of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the OSCE, Mukhtar Tileuberdi, expressed his gratitude to the OSCE Programme Office in Astana for its support in implementing the comprehensive reforms and initiatives of the President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, aimed at building a just society, including the protection and promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities.