PHOTO: INP
LAHORE: A protest by visually impaired persons, who had gathered from different districts to demand jobs for themselves at Metro Bus Service near Kalma Chowk, entered its ninth day on Saturday.
The blockade of the metro bus service has not only caused a great nuisance for commuters, but also the protesters. However, all their pleas fell on the deaf ears of the government.
The protesters said they would not leave the area till a notification regarding their jobs was issued.
A group of the protesters from different districts of the province gathered outside the Lahore Press Club (LPC) on May 12 and held a sit-in to demand their rights. After a few hours of the protest, when no authorities responded to their demands, they headed towards Kalma Chowk Bus station of the Metro.
They have been staging a sit-in there for the last eight days and have disrupted the flow of the metro bus service. This has caused a great nuisance for the thousands of commuters who travel by the Metro Bus throughout the city.
During the sit-in, the protesters chanted slogans in favour of their demands. Their three main demands included jobs for all the visually impaired persons across the province, making daily wagers permanent and an increase in salaries.
Different dignitaries, including SP Model Town Faisal Shahzad, visited the demonstrators to convince them to end the sit-in. However, there has been a failure to reach an agreement thus far. The protesters insisted that the government issue a notification of their jobs and in favour of other demands. On the other hand, the government and its departments kept the matter lingering so that these problems would fall on the shoulders of the next government.
Meanwhile, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has called on the federal and provincial governments to meet the legitimate demands of visually-impaired protesters who staged a sit-in at Kalma Chowk.
The protesters have demanded that authorities pay greater heed to the labour rights of persons with special needs. This includes regularising the services of visually impaired persons working on daily wages and creating better employment opportunities for them, including a job quota.
Visually impaired protesters continue sit in
In a statement issued on Friday, HRCP chairperson Dr Mehdi Hsassan has said that it is the duty of all governments who call themselves "civilised" to protect the rights of vulnerable persons. The commission added that access to employment, fair wages and decent working conditions should remain unhampered by their impairment. “The fact that the protesters at have already spent a week at Kalma Chowk reflects poorly on the state's attitude toward persons with special needs.”
The protestors also allege that many visually impaired daily-wage labourers employed in different government departments have not been paid for several months, while the vacancies that are available for persons with special needs have not been filled. HRCP urges the state to redress these grievances swiftly.
The visually impaired persons have been protesting time and again since 2014. Their issue gained nationwide attention that year when participants of their rally, headed to Mall Road from Lahore Press Club, was allegedly assaulted by police. Many police officers, including a DSP, were suspended for this action. Since 2014, they have been coming onto the roads repeatedly after breaks of a few months.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 20th, 2018.
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