Society fails to accept disabled as equals

Another ‘International Day of Persons with Disabilities’ was observed on Saturday (December 3) across the country, but all the pledges and claims made by the civil society and government stakeholders made last year are yet to be materialised.
Although they opted for similar promises on this year too, but no one is ready to take practical step to address the problems being faced by special persons, experiencing discriminatory attitude in the society.
These views are shared by disabled persons with Pakistan Today during a ceremony and walk organised by Special Talent Exchange Programme (STEP) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) at the Iqra University. The participants of the walk were holding placards and banners inscribed with different slogans, like “Ham Mazoor Nahin Hamare Sath Mazoori Hai” and “We Need Equal Rights”.
The major issues being faced by the special persons also include inaccessibility to private and government buildings and discriminatory attitude in the society. “If you want to see an act of discrimination with the disabled persons on part of government, just see the recent advertisements published in national dailies, offering jobs in National Accountability Bureau (NAB). It was mentioned in the advertisement that disabled persons can only apply for the jobs from BPS-1 to BPS-15,” said Imran Afridi while talking to Pakistan Today, who is holding a masters degree.
“Why should I apply for the job which do not match my qualification, these are the main issues which should be resolved,” he said, while conveying his message to the so-called leaders that false claims are not enough.
Imran is just a single example among thousands of others who are not treated equally, neither by the state nor by the society. The international day is promoted by the United Nations since 1992. It aims at crating understanding of disability issues and mobilise support for the dignity, rights and well-being of the special persons.
Besides the failure on the part of government to introduce specific laws regarding rights of disabled persons, ineligible doctors in Pakistan are also culprit for many of them. “When I was only four-year-old, my parents came to know that muscle atrophy has crippled me, but instead of my treatment, doctors misguided my parents that everything will be alright with the passage of time,” said Imran Ahmad, a youngster who is now working as a manager in private NGO. National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine (NIRM) Deputy Director Dr Shaista Habibullah, while talking to Pakistan Today, said wrong prescription, prediction and observation was not less than a crime for doctors, adding that there were a number of cases in which the special persons could not be treated timely due to wrong treatment. She said in the US, the rights of disabled persons were included in building byelaws, but not even a single building in Pakistan was accessible to the special persons.
The International Day of Persons with Disabilities also seeks increased awareness of gains to be derived from the integration of persons with disabilities in every aspect of political, social, economic and cultural life. “Our country also observe this day, but it cannot prove helpful for us. We need some real changes and facilities for us,” said Hamza Ameer, an 18-year-old disabled boy, adding, “We are disabled by the environment.” Dr Kozue Kay Nagata, the representative of UNESCO, said as a member of the international community, the Pakistani government’s decision to ratify the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) was a significant step forward; however, there were still many measures that needed to be taken, including the formulation of legislation on anti-discrimination attitude.
STEP President Atif Sheikh said the qualitative evidence suggested that the disabled people were significantly poor in developing countries. “Many people with disabilities are denied education or jobs, the disorder may require chronic healthcare, which, in turn, drain the scarce household resources. Lucie Dechifre from Handicap International appreciated the effort and assured the audience that the disabled persons would be involved in the processes of rebuilding the infrastructure and other development interventions in the disaster-affected areas of Pakistan.