Despite a volunteer escorting him along the steps, his wheelchair slipped off an edge and Adhikari, whose spinal cord is not functional, landed on the floor.
“Being a disabled, I have had to endure such experiences many times. However, going through this here felt very bad. There is total lack of disabled-friendly infrastructures be it elsewhere or in the capital,” said visibly disappointed Adhikari. [break]
Over 200 disabled people from across the country had gathered at Rastriya Sabha Griha on the Exhibition Road in Kathmandu for Sunday"s program.
Apart from the general assembly of the National Federation of the Disabled, Nepal (NFDN), an umbrella organization representing organizations for the disabled, the function saw Disability Bazaar, a showcase of talent of the disabled people, and the release of a report on the world"s disabled children by UNICEF.
Republica interacted with dozens of blind, deaf, mentally challenged as well as the family members of the people with several forms of disability. The frustration that resonated among them was their neglect by the able section of the society.
´The disabled feel extremely neglected both by the society and the state and blame it for their miserable life,´ pointed out Tika Dahal, general secretary at NFDN.
According to her, while the lack of awareness among people make the life of the disabled very hard, the government"s apathy has deprived them of even the minimum comfort and opportunities in life.
“And even among the disabled, most vulnerable are girls and women. Violence against disabled women and girls has just no count, be it in Kathmandu or elsewhere,” she said.
A mother of a mentally disabled girl who was keenly listening to Dahal moved closer to share the difficulty of raising a daughter like hers in a Nepali society. Rani Laxmi Duwal of Sukedhara in Kathamndu said that the attitude of the people toward her daughter is largely responsible for her daughter"s pitiable condition.
“My daughter was born with Down syndrome. She would not speak or play like other babies. She is now 32 years old and I am very worried about what would happen to her after I die,” said Duwal.
Duwal"s daughter Rita may or may not have other qualities. But she certainly has one. She touches your heart at once. Ask Rita her name and she asks back: ´What is your name?´ She then answers: ´My name is Rita.´
The innocence and sweetness she spreads around never fail to captivate any human heart. But then the young lady does not have a partner who really loves and cares for her, someone who is ready to become her hero.
“At this point of time, my daughter is desperate for nothing more but a loving man in her life. It sounds odd when I say it, but it is the truth. At a certain age everyone seeks a partner in their life and it is true also for the disabled people,” said Rani Laxmi.
“She feels attracted to good looking man these days. I think she would be alright if I married her to a man. But marriage is not a joke and I know she would not be able to handle it. But the main question is who would ever marry my daughter?” the mother added.
Emotional aspect of the disabled people is something nobody ever cares about, according to Dahal. “People tend to forget that love is something even disabled people need. They also need special relationships. It can be understood that normal people may not like to have such bond with disabled. But match could be fixed between the people with disabilities, which generally does not happen in our society,” commented Dahal. “Even their families are hardly serious about emotional life of the disabled people. So they are bound to live an incomplete life,” she added.
In case of Dayaram Adhikari, he considers himself lucky that the accident that crippled him occurred after his marriage. “Or else, who would like to marry a person in a wheelchair?” Adhikari said.
Dahal accuses the state and the media for being apathetic towards the issues of disabled. According to her, an evidence of the negligence is the latest census data where the number of the disabled has been quite "reduced."
“The census shows the number of the disabled to be just 1.94 percent of the total population which just cannot be true. We assume that it must be over 5 percent in view of the decade long insurgency that caused many people to be disabled,” remarked Dahal. “We have few demands we want the state to incorporate in the new constitution and its strict implementations, which will enable us to live with dignity. The media should support us for this.”
NFDN demands that it wants incorporated in the new constitution among others:
Braille script and sign language be given national language status
Disabled-friendly infrastructure at all public places
Special discounts for disabled at public and private hospitals
Skill oriented trainings for the disabled
Quota for disabled in all state mechanisms
Proper rehabilitation for the needy disabled
Access to information
Establishment of national disabled commission
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