Volkan Yilmaz

The Political Economy of Disability in Turkey: Disability and Social Policy Reform in Turkey Volkan Yilmaz

Approaching disability as an administrative category that entitles its holders to particular rights and privileges in the context of capitalist welfare state, this book investigates the contemporary reforms in the domain of social policies targeting disabled people in Turkey while situating them within the history of the category of disability in the country's welfare regime. The book draws upon three empirical sources: in-depth interviews with welfare administrators, professionals working for and representatives of disability organizations; legislations, official reports and data obtained from state institutions; and testimonies of disabled people accessed through Engelliler.biz online forum. The book argues that the category of disability, which first came into being in 1970s, has become the main contour of the expansion of the welfare regime in Turkey. Nevertheless this expansion comes with liberal residualism with regard to restricted coverage of the programs and the introduction of work requirement for beneficiaries as well as conservative outlook due to its ideological commitment to the myth of family solidarity.