‘My life in the institution’ and ‘My life in the community’: policies and practice in Taiwan
In Taiwan social services for people with intellectual disabilities have been established since 1980 and a movement supporting people to live in the community was launched in 2000. However, deinstitutionalisation has never been a state policy and it has rarely been considered and recognised by parents and service workers. Although Taiwan is not a member of the UN, it passed into law an Implementation Act based on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2014. Thus the Taiwan government has a legal responsibility to comply with the CRPD’s general obligations. This chapter firstdescribes the history of people with intellectual disabilities in Taiwan and articulates its historical and political context. Secondly, it narrates the life stories of three citizens with intellectual disabilities to express how their lives, both in institutions and in the community, have been intertwined with wider social, historical and political contexts. The conclusion examines the need for the continuation of advocacy concerning the right to choose where to live for people with intellectual disabilities in Taiwan.