Disabled People: active or passive citizens - reflections from the Malaysian experience

The concept of citizenship has once again entered centre-stage in the debate among political philosophers, welfare theorists and activists. Marginalised groups, including disabled people around the world, are making a claim for their inclusion, rights and equal opportunities on the basis of citizenship rights. The Malaysian experience of disabled people within a newly-industrialising country draws lessons on how a disadvantaged section of Malaysian society struggle to enhance their rights as citizens of the nation and a share of the nations wealth. While there are difficult challenges, there are also positive indicators for the active citizenship participation of disabled people among fellow Malaysians.     

Bridging the Gap between Planned and Market Economies: employment policies for people with disabilities in two Chinese cities

From 1978 on wards, China has experienced a radical transition from a centrally-controlled planned economy to a market economy. At the same time, the Chinese economy is developing at high speed. This dynamic situation poses numerous opportunities and challenges to people with disabilities in China. The research finds that, with the help of government's employment policies, disabled people in two Chinese cities have benefited from both the market reforms and high speed economic growth. The Chinese government did not simply throw away the previous institutional arrangements and withdraw from its responsibility for supporting people with disabilities. In contrast, it adjusted the previous policies in order to mobilise resources from the newly-developing market economy. However, the policies have their limitations. They are temporary in nature and suitable for the transitional period only. There are potential problems and challenges ahead for disabled people in a fully fledged market economy in China.     

In pursuit of capital: The charismatic turn among the Chinese managerial and professional class in Malaysia

This article explores a so far neglected dimension of the ongoing debate on the relationship between the politically contested position of the ethnic Chinese and their dominant role in the economies of Southeast Asia in general and in Malaysia in particular. While the prominence of the ethnic Chinese in the business life of Malaysia is ubiquitous, they also seem to be the engine of the striking growth of the Christian community, in particular the Pentecostal-Charismatic groups. This ‘charismatic turn’, it has been argued, reflects a major shift in the social position and power relations among the ethnic groups and the consolidation of the position of the Malaysian Chinese in the modern Malaysian nation state. This article critically reappraises this ‘empowerment thesis’ by analyzing the opportunities that conversion to Christianity and membership of Pentecostal-Charismatic groups offer to Malaysian Chinese business people, managers and professionals. In particular, this article identifies the forms of capital (in a Bourdieuan sense) involved and analyzes how these forms of capital are utilized and imbued with meaning in the interface of religion and business.     

NeoLiberalism and the Challenges of Managing Labour Migration in Urban Malaysia

Labour migration into Malaysia has increased rapidly in recent decades and this has affected Malaysia's government policy in managing migrants’ movement. Interestingly, Malaysia has attracted a high degree of unskilled labour, accompanied by unabated rise of undocumented migrant workers. Mitigating undocumented migration is the main aim of Malaysia's labour migration policy and therefore the focus of Malaysian government. This has impacted on how enforcement agencies work out strategies. These agencies are the forefront of Malaysia's labour migration policy but they faced a number of challenges, such as documentation, finance and manpower capability, and political intervention, which impede their ability to optimize their capabilities in enforcing the Malaysian government labour migration policy. Resolving these challenges and moving towards a long‐term labour migration policy will benefit the Malaysian state, its citizens and the labour migrants.     

The global three: A Malaysian lens on the challenges and opportunities facing restorative justice planning and implementation

From the rise of restorative justice to evidence-based approaches to reducing recidivism, the intellectual landscape of criminal justice has seen considerable change in recent decades. The result is that an increasing number of countries have tackled the task of shifting preexisting political institutions to confirm with these new understandings. This is, of course, no easy feat. A great number of challenges confront willing policymakers, a reality that often puts philosophy at loggerheads with practicality. Moreover, the political process of change is subject to the influence of cultural and institutional norms. In this paper, we look at one particular case study – that of Malaysia’s juvenile justice system – to understand the challenges faced in changing criminal justice policy. We identify three primary categories of challenges and elucidate their shape and impact through the Malaysian example. We also briefly analyze potential opportunities to mitigate and overcome these challenges. Furthermore, we also conclude with several implications for future research that we deem are important to be taken place. In sum, we argue that criminal justice reform must be undertaken with an eye toward important societal and institutional norms, each requiring thoughtful analysis of complex local cases.     

‘It is so unfair here…it is so biased’: Negotiating the politics of ethnic identification in ways of being Malaysian schoolgirls

In this paper, the notion of Malaysian identity is conceptualised within a framework of identity and difference, drawing on contemporary theorisations of ethnicity linked to the notion of difference. The notion of Malaysian is problematised as being linked to the interplay between nationalistic official and essentialistic labelling, present and historical social and political events, and experiences of daily living in Malaysia. The author draws on the narratives of 16-year-old Malaysian schoolgirls to illustrate the discourses of ethnicity these girls negotiate in their ways of being and knowing. Being Malaysian and more importantly being Malay, Chinese, Indian or Other is not a simple matter of government-imposed labelling. It is more complicated and negotiated. Ways of being and knowing in Malaysia are multiple, shifting and contradictory as each Malaysian has to negotiate with these labels in their daily lives. The author argues that the politics of ethnic identification in Malaysia are intertwined with the politics of difference, which in turn is linked to power and inequality.     

Towards an agenda for disability research in Europe: learning from disabled people’s organisations

This paper addresses the challenges of building capacity for collaborative participatory research with disabled people’s organisations in European countries. The paper presents initial findings from the project ‘European Research Agendas for Disability Equality’ (EuRADE), which seeks to build the capacity of civil society organisations to participate in future research collaborations in partnership with academic institutions. The findings draw on survey data identifying the research capacity, needs and priorities of 68 organisations in 25 countries and focuses, in particular, on responses from national or European level representative organisations of disabled people. The findings demonstrate a high degree of motivation and readiness for collaboration in academic research but raise concerns about the readiness of academic institutions to engage disabled people as equal partners within social model and rights‐based approaches. Respondent organisations identified a wide range of research needs that raise challenges for collaborative responses from the academic community. In this way, the findings provide a basis for developing user‐led agendas for European funded research within the emancipatory paradigm, and indentify important opportunities for new international research collaborations between activists and academics.     

The Exclusion of Disabled People from Positions of Power in British Voluntary Organisations

Disabled people are excluded in various ways from a wide range of social privileges, activities and institutions. Voluntary and charitable organisations promote themselves as champions of disabled people in their struggle for access to the ordinary choices and opportunities of everyday life. This paper reports the findings of an empirical study which demonstrate that in voluntary agencies governed by able-bodied people, disabled people are excluded from positions of power and influence, and they experience the same sorts of barriers and constraints as those with which they are confronted in the wider world. Furthermore, the development of agencies governed by disabled people themselves is constrained by their lack of access to money, staff and other resources.     

Mainstreaming community based rehabilitation in primary health care in Bosnia‐Herzegovina

There are over 600 million disabled people and over 20% of the world population is impacted by disability. However, the strategies for including disabled people in the process of reform of developing countries have been rarely considered. The paucity of research is striking. Mainstreaming Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) in Bosnia‐Herzegovina is one example where the needs of disabled people were a development priority and research was conducted to evaluate this experience. The research demonstrated that unlike the pre‐war environment, disabled people are increasingly active members of the community. The significance is that the needs of disabled people were ‘targeted’ and CBR was ‘mainstreamed’ in the primary health care system creating opportunities for sustained development. CBR is contributing to the citizenship of disabled people. This partnership project set the stage for the continued development of disability policies. These are important lessons.     

Ethnic Chinese in Malaysian citizenship: gridlocked in historical formation and political hierarchy

The ethnic Chinese in Malaysia are a significant minority who call for a critical assessment as far as their cultural identity and political positioning are concerned. Appropriating the concept of ‘multicultural citizenship’, this article attempts to dissect various demands and aspirations of the ethnic Chinese in Malaysia’s multiracial hierarchy. It suggests that using the lens of multicultural citizenship can help shed light on Malaysian Chinese as well as the entire nation, where ethnicity and citizenship are gridlocked in historical formation and political hierarchy. In recent times, Malaysian Chinese have articulated their political desires and demands in order to get rid of the disgrace of racial constraints, and also to envisage a more inclusive multicultural citizenship for Malaysia as a nation-state. This article also compares and contrasts three Chinese public figures who have taken disparate stands and approaches with regard to language, culture, race, nation, and party politics.     

Orientating disability studies to disablist austerity: applying Fraser’s insights

Many disabled people in Britain have experienced profound challenges brought about by a government policy programme characterised by ‘austerity’. Drawing on the work of Fraser and Polanyi, this article explores new ways in which disability studies can become theoretically orientated to the task of explaining and challenging what has become an issue of overbearing importance for many disabled people. It is argued that Fraser’s notion of bivalency encapsulates the combination of cultural and economic challenges which characterise ‘disablist austerity’. Fraser’s development of Polanyi’s work is used to argue that disability studies should be orientated to large-scale economic challenges as well as cultural and discursive concerns that are more often the object of study in the field.     

Explanatory models for disability: perspectives of health providers working in Malawi

Health providers’ understanding of disability determines how disabled people are treated, and hence it is imperative to address conceptualisations of disability, as this will contribute to better opportunities and realisation of human rights for disabled people. This article will use data from a qualitative study exploring conceptualisations of disability by 22 health service providers from the total health care system in Malawi, including the professional sector (e.g. medical doctors and nurses) and the folk sector (healers and indigenous practices). We will discuss how these perceptions influence the lives of disabled people, using the case of a health service user with physical and speech impairment as an example. Our data show that health providers largely conceptualise disability according to the medical model for disability, contributing to the exclusion of disabled people. The bio-psycho-social model for disability, largely absent as an explanatory model for disability among our informants, is the most inclusive and rights based.     

Developing Social Firms in the UK: a contribution to identifying good practice

Social firms and related enterprises are developing rapidly in the UK as a means of providing employment for disabled people. This study examined the kind of enterprise that will best meet the aspirations of disabled people. A telephone survey identified the range of enterprises describing themselves as social firms, and examined their develop ment and operation. Alongside the survey, focus groups with disabled people and interviews with carers explored perspectives on the values that should underpin social firms. The results suggest that indicators of good practice include: user/worker participation in the firm's development and operation; the availability of expert advice to enable informed choice about payment, with payment at the minimum wage rates or higher for those who choose this; opportunities for workers to develop to their full potential; a workforce comprising disabled and non-disabled workers; the involvement of carers and local socio-economic agencies in developing the social firm.     

A review of the participation of disabled persons in the labour force: the Kenyan context

This paper presents a review of the challenges that disabled people experience in participating in the Kenyan labour market. It draws on existing literature and on a narrative of the experiences of one disabled academic in a Kenyan university to highlight some of the forms of discrimination that disabled people have to cope with in their workplaces. The goal is to further our understanding of the nature of barriers that disabled people face in the work environment in Kenya, with a view of exploring ways of addressing those barriers and developing some recommendations for improvement. It is clear from the interview with a disabled academic that, despite strides made by the Kenyan government in terms of enacting the Disability Act, which aims at boosting disabled people’s participation in employment, there is still a big gap between the law and its implementation. What is needed is constitutional change and implementation of the existing law at all levels, as well as provision of resources to support this change.     

Cripping sexualities: An analytic review of theoretical and empirical writing on the intersection of disabilities and sexualities

This paper provides a review of some of the literature addressing the juncture of disabilities and sexualities and invites sociologists to build on this work and take part in this important intersectional field. First, I discuss the central relevance of an intersectional lens for making sense of the unique experiences of queer people with disabilities who are located at the crossroads of various stratified systems. Then, I discuss some of the many unique challenges that queer disabled people face when exploring their sexuality, establishing relationships, and remaining sexual. The invisibility, marginalization, and discrimination of queer people with disabilities in both queer and disability communities are the focus on the third section. The fourth section speaks to current theoretical dialogues between disability studies and queer theory that have illuminated new pathways for theorizing the intersection of disabilities and sexualities, “cripping” sociological theories, and reimagining disability within sociology. As I demonstrate, this literature is growing; however, myriad exciting opportunities for empirical and theoretical sociological exploration remain and I will conclude with a discussion of possible directions for future research.     

Disabled children,child protection systems and the Children Act 1989

It is now widely recognized that disabled children are particularly vulnerable to abuse but that a number of factors get in the way of protecting them. This article discusses research on the implementation of the Children Act as it applies to disabled children and the findings from in‐depth interviews with young disabled people. The research concluded that: current child protection systems are not addressing the particular needs of disabled children; the Children Act regulations on short‐term and long‐term placements are often not complied with; and disabled children and young people have little say in decisions which affect them and few opportunities to communicate their experiences. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The emancipation of disability studies in Portugal

Despite the interest of the social sciences in issues of exclusion and inequality, the question of disability, as a key issue of reflection, remains absent from many academic areas. The emergence of disability studies owes much to contexts in which the activism of disabled people has revealed the structural conditions that oppress and neglect experiences of disability. Bearing in mind the specific features of the Portuguese socio-political environment, two lines of inquiry are developed in this text. Firstly, what are the challenges faced by Portuguese academics in making disability a central issue, enabling it to confront the silencing of the voices and experiences of disabled people in society? Secondly, how important is it for research to engage with an ethical and political paradigm that supports the rights of disabled people?     

Themed section: the person-centred turn in welfare policies: bad wine in new bottles or a true social innovation?

This themed section is aimed at evaluating different personalised policies and at drawing a clear map of opportunities and challenges for future implementations. All the essays are based on evaluative researches and on original case studies. They concern different policies: the Australian National Disability Scheme (NDIS) a first serious venture into personalised funding; personalisation in the management of offenders in probation services within the English criminal justice system; social care services for young disabled people attempting to personalise their transition from childhood into adulthood (in Redbridge, UK); health personal plans for disabled people (in Sardinia, Italy). These case studies address the question of how transferable the concept of personalisation is from the social care sector to other and outline different methodologies for developing and evaluating person-centred policies. Last but not least they reflect on a bundle of issues which seem to emerge autonomously from such different case studies. We can sum up their results affirming that personalisation is not an individual consumer-client technology, simply confronted with a single market context and new professionals. It has to be steered within an appropriate context, including new type of professionals, users' led associations and a new governance's architecture. If the public role has to shape freedom and control, helping people to exercise choice in a collectively responsible way and, consequently, to participate in creating public goods, then the person-centred turn will have to confront, at least, some emergent issues, which in turn need specific forms of governance.     

The impact of involuntary job loss on those disabled by society: a pilot study to encourage effective participation

Over half of the people who become disabled whilst employed are thought to be pressured into leaving their job. This study investigates the experience of involuntary retirement/redundancy due to disability. Three researchers who had all experienced such involuntary job loss were trained to conduct the research. Semi-structured interviews were designed and conducted by disabled researchers. The training of the researchers enabled them to successfully conduct a research project. The results of the project show the impact of involuntary job loss due to disability to be considerable. This study would suggest that government reforms to create new opportunities for disabled people of a working age are well overdue. Although there were some problems experienced with the amount of training required and the lack of objectivity, training disabled researchers to conduct research proved to be a valuable experience for both the researchers and the facilitators.