2015-03042 Writing as an Inquiry(Final Draft)/19 May 2019

ENG 10 – THV6 Deocampo, Irish Joy G.

PWD VS Discrimination in the Public Space

The everyday life for the members of the Metro Manila community can be harsh in many
ways, with the hot commute and people-packed vehicles, all the way to the long queues in many
establishments. But it is of little knowledge to most people that there are also those who experience
the same thing but is affected by it in a greater degree. These are our ‘Persons with Disabilities’
(PWDs). PWDs are those with any physical, mental, or intellectual impairments which can affect
their daily lives. Some disabilities are not obvious in a way that it manifests in the outside
appearance of an individual. Some deals with their social or mental capacity, while some could
have problems in their internal organs. According to the 2010 Census of Population and Housing
(2010 CPH), among 92.1 million household population, 1.57% or 1.443 million of these have at
least one PWD, showing that the number of PWDs are a significant number in terms of population.
In this paper, I will talk about the state of our PWDs in the public space.

PWDs have long been discriminated in the society, by bullying due to their outside
appearance or mannerisms. But this discrimination is mainly due to the inflicted negative
stereotypes to being a PWD. These stereotypes include – ‘PWDs are brave and courageous despite
being helpless and dependent.’ This stereotype, while putting a lot of pressure on PWDs to be a
‘fighter’ or to strive better in life, at the same time they are to be pitied, because they have a
sickness and spend their life dependent from other people. This makes absolutely no sense, since
PWDs are simply ‘normal’ people, but with disabilities.

Another is that ‘PWDs are sick and in constant pain.’ However this is true for some PWDs,
this is not always the case. Most PWDs live their life the same as the average Filipino. It is just
that they occasionally get sick and feel agony. And the worst one, ‘PWDs don’t really need the
PWD ID’, they just want discounts and benefits. It is sad that one can think this about a PWD. The
PWD ID is a somewhat necessity for PWDs, since they have to pay for medicine, therapies, and
other equipment, that all costs a huge fortune. ‘Normal people’ don’t even need to think about
these things, let alone actually buy them. The government cannot fully reimburse what the PWDs
purchase, as it would be too expensive, so instead, they give discounts and other benefits. It is
because of these stereotypes that many people, although qualified for a PWD ID, won’t apply for
it.
 As a PWD myself, I have severe idiopathic scoliosis, I am part of a facebook group, named
the “Scoliosis Philippines Support Group”, a closed group composed of Filipinos who suffer from
scoliosis with more than 21,000 members. It is sad that the said negative stereotypes exist even
within this PWD community. Some members do not wish to apply for a PWD ID, to not be labelled
as ‘weak’ or ‘broken’.

I will also speak about how I deal with everyday life and frustrations as a PWD. In public
transportation vehicles, such as buses and trains, although there are reserved queue and seats for
PWDs, since my disability is not very obvious, many people show that they think that I’m just
cutting in line, not knowing that I am a PWD and roll their eyes at me. Same goes for priority lanes
in fast food restaurants, which is some of the reasons why I don’t go to the priority lane even
though standing for long hours adds in my already severe back pain. Although these are probably
because people do not want to be cheated upon, and see that other people have the upper hand on
things. Another frequent encounter is when a well-abled person parks their car in the PWD-
reserved parking slot. Even though I do not need it, some people who are wheelchair-bound or has
inabilities when it comes to walking would need that parking spot, instead they would park at a
farther spot and walk from there. In train stations, although there are reserved carts for PWDs,
even well-abled people enjoy these carts so that they’d be able to ride the less crowded area. Same
as with the PWD-reserved seats in different busses. These are just some of the frustrations that
different PWDs may encounter in their daily life.

Many people abuse this stereotype by making PWDs role models for empowerment. For
example is an article from Kalibrr, an online blog which, titled “3 Inspiring People with Disability
(PWD) in the Philippines. In this article, the author talked about how Ronnel del Rio (blind) is a
successful journalist, Ana Arce (deaf) as a successful inspirational speaker and a Gilda Nakahara
(deaf) as a successful business entrepreneur. This feeds off of this stereotype to gain inspirational
points. Although this helps in spreading awareness about PWDs, this is not how PWDs want to be
remembered for. They want to be classified as people before their disability. Or not classified by
their disability at all. PWDs want not to be treated special, but to be treated fairly.
 Even public establishments fail to comply within the rules set by the RA 7277 or the Magna
Carta for Disabled Persons, followed by more Republic Acts 10524 and 10754, all discussing the
rights and privileges of PWDs. These laws say that buildings and establishments must provide aid
and help for Senior Citizens and PWDs. However, some establishments do not have ramps for
wheelchair-bound PWDs or if they do, have ramps that are too steep. Some do not have elevators,
which would disallow other PWDs to reach higher floors. Even in the streets, you can see
overpasses so steep that even the normal person would have problems crossing it, more so would
a PWD. Or if there is no overpass, crossing the street is already hostile for normal pedestrians, so
it would be a bigger obstacle for a PWD. Even public schools don’t abide by these rules, which
just shows how society don’t give much attention to PWDs.

From an article from the Philippine News Agency, Arnold de Guzman, focal person of
Quezon City’s PWD Affairs Office, talks about how the city is 60% PWD-friendly due to different
laws and ordinances. They endorsed 314 PWDs to 20 partner companies, and managed to hire
21% or only 66 PWDs. However it looks good on paper, 66 people is very few. Also, according
to RA 7277, “no disabled persons shall be denied access to opportunities for suitable employment,
and that a qualified disabled employee shall be subject to the same terms and conditions of
employment and the same compensation, privileges, benefits, fringe benefits, incentives or
allowances as a qualified able-bodied person”.

Among the negative experiences suffered by our PWDs, there are some who takes a step
forward in making a more PWD-friendly community. As shown in the PWD section of Top Gear
Philippines in their website, many automobile companies make designs that are able to
accommodate PWDs, even those who are wheelchair-bound. There are developments in cars with
automatic doors and buses with retractable ramps so that wheelchairs can go inside it. Navigation
applications that are designed so that drivers with deafness can know the directions and
instructions by using flashing light for respective instructions. In the 2019 National Elections, the
COMELEC started having precincts with more accessible venues for our fellow PWDs for their
“Barrier-Free Elections” campaign. Although there are many developments to make the
communities PWD-friendly, these are not enough unless we actually spread awareness about the
state of PWDs in our society and their everyday endeavors.
 With all that’s said, laws and ordinances are nothing, if the mass’ thinking is still one-sided
and don’t consider what the other parties or minorities are going through. The battles of each PWD
does not end with their medical conditions and fighting their diseases, but it only starts as they
blend into the crowd, doing the same things that well-abled people do at the same time enduring
their own problems. As Ed Geronia Jr. said in his article in Esquire Magazine, titled “Life as a
PWD in the Philippines”, “My daily struggle with mobility usually starts the moment I step out of
the house and set my wobbly feet on the streets: a reality that any PWD will tell you is no mean
feat.” We, as part of the public, must create safe spaces for both ourselves and for others. Spread
awareness on how different minorities are discriminated upon. We must understand what they’re
going through and not judge them so hastily. The government and different mass media
organizations should work together in order to represent PWDs in a less stereotypical way so that
the masses won’t have wrong ideas or misinterpret one’s action either when they line up for the
priority lane and try to understand that to some, taxes are the worst enemy, but to us PWDs, it
could be stairs or getting out of bed.

References

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www.kalibrr.com/advice/2015/10/3-inspiring-people-with-disability-pwd-in-the-philippines.

A Glimpse of the Employment Status of Persons with Dsabilities in the Philippines from a Cebuano
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Abundabar, Froilan. “Persons with Disabilities (PWD) Program.” DTIWEB3,

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Adminrp. “Who Qualifies for the PWD ID?” PWD Philippines, 16 Nov. 2017,
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Appendix