ABSTRACT
I am an indigenous person with disabilities from the developing country Nepal. Very often I question myself, ‘Where do I locate myself, my identity and my space?’ I do this because most often I find myself nowhere: neither in disability nor in indigenous discussions, organizations or movements. And so I ask, ‘Is the indigenous person with disability issue a human rights issue? How can I claim my space and my voice? And from which location?’ These are the questions that most indigenous people with disabilities in Nepal have grappled with in their daily lives. The challenges which they face on a regular basis are shaped and interconnected with their ‘indigenous person with disabilities’ identity and they have recognized the large gap between themselves and the non-indigenous population. Indigenous people with disabilities have begun to raise awareness about their challenges. Having an unheard voice, seeking space to be heard in both disability and indigenous movements, indigenous people with disabilities start their journey of awareness to advocacy, aiming to gain a collective strength in order to claim their rights. The journey for indigenous disability, intersectional rights and advocacy in Nepal began formally in 2009 with an organization established by Nepalese indigenous disabled activists.
