PWDs For Proper Legislation To Provide Disables Equal Opportunities

ISLAMABAD, Dec 2 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Dec, 2022 ) :Person with Disabilities (PWDs) have called upon the government to devise proper legislation and ensure their implementation to provide equal opportunities and facilities for making them useful citizens of the country.

"It is very unfortunate that Pakistan lacks proper data of disabled persons and still depends on the data compiled during 1998 census. "What kind of planning can be done for the development of disabled persons, if there is no accurate data available," the PWDs said.

Talking to APP, Dr. Afshan Afridi, a polio affected disabled rights activist said that PWDs should also be taken on board in the policy making process to make more effective and realistic policies for these people, She said, "Although the work is being done on various levels but we also need to involve Federal and provincial governments in the process to further facilitate persons with disabilities while creating acceptance for them".

Dr. Afshan urged the government and all the institutions to provide equal and quality education and skills facilities to the persons with disabilities to enable them to participate in the process of national development.

She said "First and foremost, important issue for the person with disabilities is the acceptance from the family and society. The people with disabilities are not treated equally and from family to society no one accept these people as a part of the society".

She said that acceptance is the first step for these people towards a normal life and we need to create awareness among the families and society to treat the people with disabilities as a part of the society and provide them equal health, education and other facilities to enable them to become an active and positive citizen of the country.

She said that although many people with disabilities needed special education facilities but beside this, many physically challenged people could get education in main stream education system. The only thing we need is to sensitize the society about the persons with disabilities to provide conducive environment to these people, she said.

About the health facilities, she was of the view that the treatment of disabled persons is very expensive while 95 percent of the disable people are from the grass root level who can't afford the expensive medical treatment.

She urged that federal as well as provincial authorities to provide special health facilities to the people with disabilities.

Dr. Afshan said that due to the lack of awareness and financial opportunities the persons with disabilities were considered as a burden for family and society.

She called for devising skill development programs and equal job opportunities for the persons with disabilities to make them a valuable citizen of the society.

She mentioned that cottage industry has a lot of scope and we should provide small loans and basic training for the promotion of entrepreneurship culture in the persons with disabilities, she added.

She said that in many areas, the disability quota was still two percent while the ratio of disabilities was increasing fast. She urged the government to increase the disability quota to minimum 05 percent all over the country to facilitate these people.

She said that in educational institutions, offices and bus stands, the basic facilities like washrooms, stairs, and ramp walk throughs should be established to facilitate the people with disabilities.

She urged the media, social media and educational institutes to raise their voice and play their due role to create awareness about the rights of persons with disabilities. The success stories of these people should also be highlighted to encourage others and create acceptance for the people with disabilities.

She appreciated the brands which are providing opportunities to the persons with disabilities and making them a role model for the society.

Meanwhile Syed Sardar Ahmed Pirzada, a visually impaired person said "PWDs are the most vulnerable segments of society and they need share in all the welfare steps being introduced at the government level".

"We always consider those in the category of vulnerable who are poor but the disabled persons are the most vulnerable as they lack capacity to move equally in the society", he lamented.

Sardar Pirzada said that in the under-developed countries, special policies were devised for the special persons but unfortunately PWDs who comprised over a significant chunk of the total population of the country (around 30 million according to the World Health Organization) are neglected.

The annual observance of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) on December 03 was proclaimed in 1992 by the United Nations General Assembly.

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) will be observed around the globe including Pakistan with the objective to sensitize the world on disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights, and well-being of persons with disabilities.

This year the Day will be marked under the theme "Transformative solutions for inclusive development: the role of innovation in fueling an accessible and equitable world".

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