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| Friday, 3 December 2004 |
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Disabled-friendly devices as the gateway to independence by Chandani Jayatilleke
Sameera is 13 and on the verge of what to many teenagers would be an exciting time in his life. As he smiles, he looks a normal person. But, his youthful life is confined to a wheel chair. Sameera's life is mostly spent on the road. His mother brings him to Colombo Fort every morning. Well... Sameera's mother has no choice but to live on what he gets from charitable passers-by. Sameera's disability has automatically made him a part of the begging community. Sameera should have been in a school or in a vocational training centre at this age. Kamal's fate is even worse than that of Sameera. Kamal was born disabled. That's all he knows about his illness. When his parents detected his illness, it was too late. Kamal grew up a crippled kid. He doesn't even have a wheelchair to move on his own. His mother has to look after him and take care of his every movement. She even has to help him sit in a chair. Kamal and Sameera have never been to a school. They have not got any opportunity to educate themselves. While Sameera struggles with his mother to make a living, Kamal spends his days gazing at the sky. They grow up disabled persons sans education. Kamal and Sameera are not the only disabled children growing up without an education. Though every child has a right to education, disability has forced many children to idle. What does Sameera's future hold for him? What would Kamal do when his mother is no more? Lack of sufficient facilities to educate disabled children in the country is a serious issue. Seven percent of Sri Lanka's population suffers from some form of disability. Out of seven percent of the disabled population, only two percent have access to education and appropriate basic services, according to official information. The war in the North and East for nearly two decades had lasting negative effects not only on the country's economy, but also among the youth. Many disabled people often find themselves excluded from accessing educational, vocational training or employment opportunities. They are forced to depend on others in the family and community for physical and economic support. Currently, there are about 1,500 development institutions registered with the Social Services Department as organisations for the rehabilitation and welfare of the disabled. However, little emphasis has been given to building the capacity of the disabled to attend to their day-to-day needs independently in many development programs targeted for the disabled, said a spokesman for the ITDG - Intermediate Technology Development Group, an NGO which promotes small technologies for rural development and provides practical answers to poverty. There should be special services and education and learning methods for the disabled or the differently-able people. Many other countries take special care of and have special measures to support and help the disabled communities. Manufacturers of various equipment in the developed countries always look into the fact that their equipment are being used by the disabled as well. In an event called Diriya 2004, organised by the ITDG South Asia and the Development with Disabled Network at the National Youth Services Council at Maharagama on Tuesday, these issues were widely discussed by a panel of presenters. They suggested various measures for the welfare of the disabled. "Disability is not simply a medical condition or personal problem. Rather, it arises out of the interaction between an individual with impairment, inaccessible physical environment and negative, stereotype attitudes. Therefore, getting rid of the barriers to integration depends not on the individual but on social change," the ITDG spokesperson said. This calls for a major shift in the approach to the disabled from a charity based on a more rights centred approach. "Diriya 2004 is a first step towards popularising appropriate technologies among the disabled and encouraging the manufacturers to go for disabled-friendly equipment and products in the future," the spokesperson said. For instance, the manufacturers can think about the disabled people and how they are going to use their products and equipment, when making or designing future products. So that the disabled will not feel that they are not being regarded as part of active people in society. In this way, we can hope for a better future for our disabled people, he said. What was unique about Diriya 2004 was, for the first time in the country, manufacturers of access and mobility devices for disabled, service providing organisations for the disabled, academics and people with disabilities gathered to share their experiences at a common forum. They also brought out various social welfare ideas for the benefit of the disabled persons. "Disability is not inability. As a society we have a responsibility to guide and direct the disabled to make their own income sources. We need to consistently support them with modern, but affordable technologies and education facilities to equip themselves with skills and knowledge," the spokesman said. Citing an example, he said the developed countries in the world have made various social welfare schemes for the disabled and even made facilities for them to travel to places of interest such as parks and museums on their own. "They have special access points for such places. So that the disabled do not feel that they are left out at any point. This is a great mind boosting factor. We are also looking into opening such convenient facilities for the disabled in the future," he said. What happens now is that since many disabled people find themselves excluded from accessing educational and vocational training, they are forced to depend on others in the family or in society. "Our aim is to get them out from that mentality and provide educational and employment opportunities to strengthen them economically. After all, disability is not inability", he said. |
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