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The Moving Finger by Lionel Wijesiri

It is a hot humid afternoon in the village of Kongollewa at Talawa, in the Anuradhapura district. The location is the base office of the Association for Women with Disabilities. A group of professional managers from Colombo are strolling in the lush compound in front of the office watching disabled women energetically attending to their chores.

The group represents members of a professional club in Colombo who want to understand what this Association is about and how they could extend their support.

Within a few minutes, Narayana Gedera Kamalawathie comes out of the office in the wheel chair smiling and greeting the visitors. She has a wonderful contagious laugh. She loves people and has a warm accepting way about her.

She is the president of the Association.

Kamalawathie's tale is a textbook example of commitment and courage. She was born with polio and her active life starts with her interest in wheel-chair racing over 20 years ago. She speaks in soft tone but grit and determination are written all over her face.

" Yes, I have won many gold and silver medals at international wheelchair racing in Indonesia, Hong Kong and Japan. I really loved the game. I then got a decent job at State Gem Corporation. However, I had to climb three floors to the work place and then again in the evening four floors to my apartment.

I was using crutches and that was a very painful experience. Then I began to understand the suffering the other disabled women are going through. They had no rights and there was nobody to speak on behalf of them."

She stops for a while and looks around. A cool breeze brushes her hair. She continues: " In 1995 I formed an Association for Women with disabilities (AWD) and that, I believe, was the first in our country. I wanted to help the disabled women or women with disabled children. Initially it was based in Colombo and then I came to know that there is a serious problem in Anuradhapura district and I may be able to do something worthwhile there. So in 1998 we moved to Talawa."

Determination

The Provincial Council provided her with a 5-acre plot. Swedish Handicapped International Aid (SHIA) Foundation and Care helped her with funds.

Karunawathie began to set up the vocational centre and the 3-acre herbal garden and farm. Women with disability are now earning a living growing medicinal herbs. In her Home Gardening Project, 30 beneficiaries are now engaging themselves in income generating Projects.

Karunawathie speaks of her future plans: further vocational training, management and entrepreneurship training, establishing an organization for deaf in Anuradhapura. She talks with confidence.

The managers from Colombo were transfixed. For them, the veils that concealed reality were parted. They were beginning to understand.

Mr Fayaz Saleem, Chairman of the Club is a determined man. He says: "We must initiate an effective umbrella organisation to look after the interests of the disabled. It should work with employers to build partnerships that support creative job accommodations and provide all disabled Sri Lankans with meaningful and successful careers. Breaking down barriers requires this kind of cooperative, sustained, and consistent effort".

Issues

Returning to Colombo, I asked Gayathri Fernando, a sociologist, what she thinks of the problem. She said, "I believe, part of the issue of getting people with disabilities integrated into the mainstream society is the lack of role models. There are not many politicians, athletes, actors and singers who live with a disability".

"Another issue is moving people into action. We must act upon our beliefs in the rights of people with disabilities by speaking to politicians asking about their involvement. There is lot to be done by them".

"Look at our infrastructure. We have a National Council for Persons with Disabilities to promote and protect the rights of disabled persons. We have a National Secretariat to develop a national data bank and resource centre.

We have passed in Parliament an Act to protect their rights. We have formed a Committee to draft legislation on disable-accessibility. The National Institute of Education has special facilities for teacher training and curricula development to provide education to children with disabilities.

Vocational training for disabled is being provided in 26 trades. The government has a policy to allocate 3 per cent of public sector employment to people with disabilities. We also have a community-based rehabilitation (CBR) programme, to identify each and every person with disability in the country and to provide rehabilitation services for those who need them. Yet, what have we really achieved during the last decade? There is something radically wrong with our system. Somebody should make an in-depth study".

Later, I discussed the woes of our disabled citizens with Dr. Priyantha Saparamadu, a medical consultant living in USA for the past 20 years. He said: "Every October, USA observes National Disability Employment Awareness Month. This is to recognize the talents, skills, and dedication of disabled Americans who are a vital part of their workforce. During this month, they reaffirm their commitment to ensuring that people with disabilities who want to work can receive the training they need to achieve their goal. Why cannot we, too, do the same?"

Food for thought, indeed.

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