Conversation with Simin Rouzgar

Elham Yousefian was born in 1359 in Tehran. She was born blind and completed her studies with a PhD from Shahid Beheshti University and a Master’s degree in Human Rights from the London School of Economics. Her activities include practicing law, researching various international legal issues, journalism, and working in the field of refugee rights. For the past 10 years, she has been volunteering in the field of disability rights and using social networks to raise public awareness about the rights and abilities of people with disabilities.

You can read the conversation about the peace line with Mrs. Yousefian below:

As the first question, please explain why the rights of people with disabilities in Iran have been demanded in recent years to the extent that it can even be said that a civil movement has formed in this regard.

This issue has several reasons. One reason is that in general, demands and civil activities in Iran have intensified in recent years. In fact, we are witnessing various groups, including teachers, workers, women, and children’s rights activists, voicing their demands; Activists in the field of disability can also be seen as a result of this general movement of society. The next issue is that due to the existing economic conditions, people with disabilities have also been greatly affected by these problems and have been forced to do so. If we consider the overall economic conditions of people with disabilities in Iran, we see that they have no solution and resort to this method in order to bring about a change in their daily lives. Another point to consider is that there is less political sensitivity towards this issue compared to other issues that are given the label of human rights and are dealt with more strictly. For example, the cost of working in the field of women’s rights is very high, and for this reason, those who

The law that has recently been passed in Iran due to the demands of disability rights activists, to what extent does it comply with the provisions of the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and what are its shortcomings?

This law is considered a good law in some aspects, but in my opinion, it still has a long way to go compared to the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. If I were to give a few examples, one of them would be related to the discussion of defining disability. The definition in our law is said to be in line with the medical model of disability, but it differs from the definition in the convention. The convention takes a social approach to disability, meaning that disability is the result of the interaction between physical, sensory, intellectual, and psychological impairments with social, cultural, and legal barriers. However, our law sees this issue as a physical, intellectual, and psychological impairment and does not pay attention to the social aspect that shapes the phenomenon of disability. Another prominent example is that our law does not have any provisions that say any kind of discrimination based on disability is prohibited, and it does not define discrimination based on disability, while this is one of the fundamental principles.

In summary, it should be said that our law deals with a set of social and economic privileges that are very good and appropriate, but it can be said that it has disregarded civil and political rights.

You mentioned the phrase “violence against people with disabilities.” When we talk about violence against people with disabilities, what is meant by that?

Global research shows that individuals with disabilities are at a much higher risk of experiencing violence compared to others. This issue has several reasons, one of which is the dependence of individuals with disabilities on their caregivers for daily tasks. For example, imagine someone who is dependent on a family member for going to the bathroom, eating, and getting dressed. This dependence increases their vulnerability to violence. Additionally, those with disabilities who struggle with communication and facing challenges may have a harder time expressing their experiences of violence. Some individuals may not even recognize that they are experiencing violence due to lack of education. Furthermore, society may not believe that these individuals are victims of violence. For instance, it is said that children with intellectual and psychological disabilities are four times more likely to experience sexual violence compared to other children. Similarly, women with disabilities are two to three times more likely to experience violence compared to other women.

How are the performances of government institutions related to people with disabilities in line with realizing the rights of this group? Especially if you were to compare it with the Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans in Iran, how would you evaluate the performance of this institution?

If I were to compare the welfare and veterans foundation, I would have to say that the veterans foundation receives a larger budget. For example, the veterans foundation pays a better monthly salary; therefore, the difference between them is more related to the resources they have. However, the approach of both is that disability is a disease and physical defect that must be helped in any way possible for these individuals to live or survive. In fact, there is no equal, non-discriminatory and rights-based approach in either of these two organizations. Of course, in terms of welfare – which I have studied more – a serious problem exists in the way welfare employees and social welfare workers deal with people with disabilities. Even those who are considered the first link of communication and service providers have not received any special training in this area and do not know how to deal with people with disabilities.

Do you think that women with disabilities in Iran face double discrimination compared to men with disabilities?

The reality is that there has been no specific research on the situation of women with disabilities in Iran. However, it can be said that in a patriarchal society like Iran, living as a woman is a difficult task. Similarly, in a society that accepts and understands differences, having a disability is also a challenge. As a result, in such a society, a woman with a disability will face difficult conditions. Personally, as a woman with a disability living, studying, and working in Iran, I was fortunate enough to have the necessary conditions to achieve acceptable achievements in terms of work and education. However, the main issue is that women with disabilities are not considered or seen. Even if you look at the activities of individuals with disabilities, you will see that gender is not given much attention. Of course, women with disabilities are not very active, and this issue has many complex reasons, including the fact that their presence in society is difficult and families often prevent their independent and free presence in society,

According to statistics from the World Health Organization, one in every five women is disabled; this is while 15% of the world’s population is made up of people with disabilities. Therefore, according to the statistics of the World Health Organization, the number of women with disabilities should be higher than men with disabilities. However, the Welfare Organization in Iran states that out of the registered population of people with disabilities, 35% are women and 65% are men. In fact, the number of men with disabilities who have files in the welfare system is almost twice that of women. This shows that there are a large number of women with disabilities, even though their information is not registered in the welfare system. In many cases, these individuals are taken care of at home and their families do not bother to take them to the welfare organization to be registered as a person with a disability. In many cases, families are not willing to acknowledge the issue and do not want their daughters to be recognized as a

In fact, as I mentioned earlier, no research has been done on this matter, but evidence suggests that the situation cannot be very interesting.

In your opinion, which group of disabled people have the hardest living conditions in Iran or even in the world?

In my opinion, women with mental disabilities and women with psychological disabilities have the hardest and most difficult conditions. The reason is that these individuals are more vulnerable to violence and sexual abuse than others, and have the least chance of being heard and having their opinions heard. They have the least opportunity to participate in various social activities and are also deprived of resources and education.

Thank you for the opportunity you have given us to use the peace line.