Disability organisations and services in the Balkans, Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus have been directly and severely affected by the stop-work order and cuts to US Government funding. Thousands of persons with disabilities have lost support, and disability organisations face existential threats.
This is a nightmare shared by other human rights groups that are essential to promoting diversity, solidarity, and international cooperation.
We call on the EU to urgently take a stance for human rights and the security of all persons in the region by:
- Providing emergency funding to the disability organisations affected.
- Influencing donors and national governments to increase their support for disability organisations affected in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus.
- Ensuring disability inclusion is mainstreamed within all EU humanitarian aid and funding mechanisms.
We call on national governments and non-governmental donors to:
- Step up in providing emergency and long-term funding to civil society and human rights groups.
- Fund and develop inclusive and intersectional programs.
- Recognise the value of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and development assistance programmes and actively fight misinformation and disinformation.
We stand in solidarity with our colleagues in the United States who continue to work for a more just world.
With the Global Disability Summit ahead, it’s time for the EU, our national governments and humanitarian donors to step up and show our leadership for an inclusive, just world.