ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at barriers to protecting the rights of disabled children in Bulgaria, focusing particularly on those living in institutions. It draws on documented cases of violation of the right to life and discusses existing structural, institutional and cultural factors which are contributing to failures to ensure access to quality care and protection of children with disabilities. It focuses on the rights to life and access to care for disabled children in Bulgaria – how these basic human rights are understood by professionals, policy-makers and the wider community, and what mechanisms are in place to protect them. This text is derived from broader research on access to health care for children in Bulgaria, and presents specifically only those results that are relevant to children living with disabilities.
