Help the weak: ‘Govt failing to honour provision of jobs for disabled’

Glaring absence of govt officials at seminar for people with disabilites.

SUKKUR/ KARACHI: The government is not providing jobs for the disabled, despite having allotted reserved seats for them, complained Mazoor Ittehad Association, Sukkur, president Shahnawaz Kandhro.

He was speaking at a seminar to mark the International Day for Disabled Persons on Tuesday. A large number of disabled persons attended the seminar. However, despite being sent invitations, no government officer or elected representative attended the event.

Talking about the association, Kandhro said that it was formed in 2005 with the aim to fight for the rights of the disabled and to help them through their difficulties. Since its formation, a total of 650 disabled persons have joined the association, the president added.



Kandhro said that the association has allowed many people with disabilities, who were previously condemned to begging, to gain respectable jobs through which they can earn a decent livelihood. The association president criticised the government and said that the government should take a more active stance in helping people with disabilities. Kandhro felt that the government should develop various institutes for the disabled, where they can be provided residence while learning different trade skills in order to earn a living.

Sanam Fakir Welfare Association president Sanam Fakir praised the efforts of Mazoor Ittehad Association and said that human rights issues in Pakistan are confined only to the constitution, with no practical application or efforts made to help those who need protection. Fakir, who fights for the rights of transgenders, refused to criticise the government. She said that if people want to see a change then they need to take responsibility and struggle for the rights of people with disabilities. “Don’t look towards the government for everything,” said Fakir. “Join hands and help each other.”

Fakir, while addressing the disabled, said that they should not use their disabilities as an excuse to beg and should learn skills that can help them earn a living.

DUHS holds seminar

The Dow University of Health and Sciences (DUHS) organised a seminar to increase awareness about prevention of disabilities in unborn children.

According to DUHS vice-chancellor Prof Umar Farooq and senior professorial research scholar Prof Qadhi Aurangzeb, approximately 14.7 per cent of the world’s total population suffers from some form of disability. The main cause of these disabilities is the development of abnormal cell tissue during fetal growth.

Both experts felt that it is essential that public awareness is improved so that the number of people born with disabilities is reduced. According to the speakers, pregnant women should avoid ground water and any unnecessary medications since they are the two leading causes of abnormal cell tissue development in an unborn child.

The experts discussed a new study that focuses on the prevention of multiple birth disabilities at the prenatal and postnatal stages. The study, if successful, will impact more than 710 million people with disabilities worldwide.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2013.