Disabled people !

Help, don't just sympathize

By: Moid Uddin Shaheen

"Disability is not a brave struggle or courage in the face of adversity. Disability is an art. It s an ingenious way to live." - Neil Marcus

Defining Disability and PWDs

Disability means the lack of ability to perform an activity in a manner , which is considered to be normal. PWDS means People With Disabilities.

Major Types of Disabilities

Disability can be : 1. Inborn 2. Acquired due to some accident The major types of disabilities due to the above reasons : a) Blindness b) Hearing Impairment c) Mental Retardation d) Locomotor Disability

Inborn or Acquired
INBORN: Inborn disability means that the person has that diseases from the time of his birth. It may be due to some genetic problem or some complications during birth. These can be mental as well as physical. ACQUIRED: Acquired means the disability gained due to some accident, misshape or some trauma in that person s life Resulting in disability. This may also be physical or mental.

Blindness
A level of vision that with standard correction hinders an individual on the visual planning and execution of tasks, but which permits enhancement of the functional vision through the use of optical aids and environmental modification or techniques.

Hearing Impairment
Hearing Impairment means loss of sixty decibels or more in the better ear in the conversational range of frequencies. It may be due to incomplete formation of your ear and its complete system or maybe due to some accident, misshape resulting in hearing impairment. These people are called Deaf.

Mental Retardation
Mental Retardation :means a condition of arrested or incomplete development of mind of a person which is specially characterized by sub normality and intelligence. Some Types are: 1. Dyslexia 2. Down s syndrome 3. Asperger's syndrome 4. Autism 5. M.S 6. Adhd

Locomotor Disability
Locomotors Disability means disability of the bones, joints or muscles leading to substantial restriction of the movement of the limbs or any form of cerebral palsy. This may be due to deformities or incomplete growth or just maybe due to their mental capabilities.

Disabled People in Pakistan

In Pakistan the requirements of physically challenged are hardly addressed. In addition, disabilities issues don t surface as social problems because families are ashamed of having someone with a disability, and try instead to solve the issues as a family problem.

Figures of disabled people in Pakistan

It is estimated that between 5% and 10% of the population of 172 million are disabled. Considering 38 million people in Pakistan live below the poverty line, disabled people face all kinds of barriers when it comes to employment, education and health care.

Some common problems for disabled people in Pakistan

1. They need to prove their disability and get themselves certified. 2. The procedure is very teasing and difficult. 3. There is lack of responsibility and regularity in the officers who are suppose to certify them. 4. All useable goods, supporting equipments for disabled persons are very costly. 5. Most of the education institutions and business offices are multi storied buildings. Mostly with no facility of lifts. 6. No Ramps, parking spaces and special washrooms in public places.

Difficulties for physically challenged students

1. In our country at all education levels 2% quota is reserved for physically disabled students. 2. They need to have a certificate of disability in order to register. 3. Complicated system of registration. 4. Lack of responsibility among the registration staff. 5. As the education system is commercialized. Its very expensive for them. 6. No hostel facility is provided for these special students.

Difficulties for Jobs

In Pakistan for jobs 2% seats are reserved for disable persons which means that they can get one job in an organization where 50 persons are working which is not good. In Pakistan most of the organizations are small so disable person after getting education are also not in a position to get a job and spend their lives as a respectable citizen. In Federal public service exam (CSS) no seats are reserved for disable persons despite the fact that they have proved their capabilities in the recent years by competing.

Difficulties at Government Level

Problems cannot be solved until real representatives are not present at every stage. It is amazing that at the legislation stage in senate and national and provincial assemblies there are no seats reserved for disable persons THAN HOW CAN THEIR PROBLEMS BE SOLVED? If uneducated people can come in our government then why not those who gave everything to get their education and those who actually know what human pains at physical, emotional and at mental level means?

Exploitation of Disabled People

Disabled are commonly exploited at so many levels and the irony of this is that they are exploited by those who we call as Humans . Poor families use their disable children to earn them money. These inhumane families don t sympathize with them they just use them to their advantage. Other corrupted people have made businesses out of them. Have you ever visited a mental hospital for the mentally challenged? The way that the nurses and the doctors treat them is so inhuman and these conditions don t help them rather make them more disturbed.

Is something being done?

1. How many of us can commonly name the institutions of Disable People? 2. Are they being educated ? 3. Are they being taken care of? 4. Are they being provided with basic necessities of life at all levels? 5. Is something being done at any level?  The answer is no to all these questions . Not at political level, at society level or even at moral level.  Because the excuse is that we are to busy in our own lives that we don't have time for any one.  We don t think about the problems faced by these mentally and physically challenged people.

What can we do?

Being humans its our moral duty to help these people. But we need to keep them to speed with us we cannot leave them! We have to correct ourselves and bring change only then we can be successful and compete with the other countries. Differently abled people have wonderful experiences and talents to share just give them a chance. DONOT call them disabled or abnormal but rather physically challenged or mentally challenged.

Take a Stand!
We need to raise our voices and take a stand for these people being Muslims and being educated we have to. if we can take steps to help people who our effected by some problem in other countries then why not for those who live with us? After all charity begins at home! We need to make trusts, organize fundraisers, and encourage others to join this cause and make their lives better. And we need to start social services to help those families who have these fates. And let them know that they are not alone.

THANK YOU!