women with disablities

Awareness campaign on community protection Disabled are the most injured category in the community who are faced with serious economic and social problems .Ten percent of the world population is formed by people with disability that three percent relates to Afghanistan. Eighty percent of them are living in developing or third world countries. The statement that what is disability and whom to call person with disability .The disability is the weakness on accomplishing the whole or part of individual or social life due to congenital, acquired and psychological defects, if tranquility and possibilities be given to them, they can act as ordinary individuals. The experts have divided the disabled into four type of corporal and movement disabled, mental disabled, deaf and blinds. The main reasons for emerging the disability are no vaccination or untimely vaccination, war, insecurity, less awareness of health and educational standards, poverty, environment pollution and mental and psychological pressures. The disabled are not powerless but they are with limitation and if these limitations be repelled, they will live like other ordinary individuals. Afghanistan posses the most number of the disabled in developing countries and most of them are with physical disability that three decades of fight is counted the cause of the disability. We want to assess the condition of problems and ability in the women with disability in this report. Based on the statistics out of 2.7 percent of people with disability in Afghanistan 40 percent are women with disability. Unfortunately the most disabled are the second category of the community in Afghanistan about whom indecent and negatives words such blind, deaf, crazy, limb and other are used which is arisen from unawareness about the causes and shapes of disability and most of the people and families counts the existence of the disabled in the family as a shame. They don’t know that disability is just limitation and the disabled has the equal rights and in the case of giving them the facilities they will act as other ordinary individuals .As the women are more injured, it seems that the disabled women are involved in more problems than men disabled. The disability is not weakness if possibilities and facilities be given to disabled they will act as or better than other individuals in the community .We have conducted interviews with women with disability who have appeared successful in the community in spite of having serious economic and social problems .Being under psychological pressure being called by different names everyone of them has significant achievements: Arefa Husaini is one of the women who has lost her leg in the war and has physical disability. Husaini in spite of the fact that is complaining from numerous problems about being insulted in the community, having no access to health and education recommends the disables that there is no use of sighing they should have initiative and learn craft and literacy. Arefa is a trainer in Organization of mine impressed Afghans and has been able to train 45 of her fellow -creature in tailoring of two terms of 6 months courses. These women are now independent tailors; she says that disability is not powerlessness “I got physical disability in civil war in year 1372 (solar year) as I lost one of my legs. I am a trainer in tailoring course and as you see the capacity of disabled raises in the learning a craft and can solve its problems hundred percent and I should say that the disability is not the weakness if we want we can do every work. I trained 21 tailors in first round and in second round I trained 26 tailors who are now able to solve their problems. There are so many women involved in difficulties in Afghanistan that they can solve their problems through going to organization where the crafts are taught, the women for whom the groundwork of education is not available can solve their problem through learning a craft, not having awareness about the rights of women is another problem that afghan women faces with.” Shakakila Nazari is one of the girls with physical disability who is now in the second year of management and administration department of faculty of psychology at Kabul University. Beside other problems that the disabled women are faced with, she states that misbehavior of the people with disabled specially with disabled women has bad effect on the morale of disabled, she asks the people to have good behavior with the disabled and should know that all individuals of the community are with equal rights. “My name is Shakila Nazari the member of board of ISO also one of the student of administration and management department of faculty of psychology , I also have disability in my leg, as I know 2.7 percent of people Afghanistan are with disability among which 41percent are women who are faced numerous problems in the field of studies and other social affairs. Their literacy so weak that they don’t know about the rights that Islam and human being has given them. On the other hand inhuman behavior of the people is in front of them as they are called in different names which puts bad effect on them but we should know that disability is not weakness , when somebody tells to a disabled that you could not do this work, it put very bad effect on them corporally and spiritually and this is due to lack of the literacy among the people, if the people have enough literacy and know their own rights and rights of disabled they find out that both of them have the same rights in the community .The awareness of the people about the rights of disabled is less. My request from the government is this to prepare work ground work for disabled whether they are men or women because they also have problems like other members of the community, every one of them has family, they don’t have caretaker, my other request from the government is this to give the awareness to the people to know about the rights of disabled and have good behavior with disabled. At the same time Ministry of Work Social Affairs Martyrs and Disabled says that mostly the disabled have been look at compassionately and regretfully and no heed taken place in their capacities and ability”. Soraya Paikan the deputy minister says that changing of the mentalities of the people against disabled is a big challenge which requires serious combat. “You know that the disabled were seen by a compassion and regret eye and it was taught that the disabled are away of from all abilities, activities, and capabilities and we should help them and regret about them but contrary to this numerous activities and laws in the world shows that disability itself is ability. We have accomplished activities in the field of awareness to the people in order to the level of awareness of people regarding the disabled be raised and it has been tried to draw out the disabled from begging and stretching hands to others .Though it is not an easy work to go from old to new and philosophically new and old is against each other but the activities that we accomplished with our cooperators we got to a place where hopes increased to level of disability be better and better. According to words of Miss Paikan the government accomplished works regarding raising the life level of the disabled and awareness about the rights of disabled. The law of privileges and rights of disabled has been approved and signed .Deputy minister says that biro racy in some ministries and governmental department has caused the postponement of the some works related to disabled. “Fortunately we are witness of law of people with disability, we have prepared procedure for getting the salary of the disabled but two ministries of finance and health have not been able to process the procedure and the ministry of culture and information is the only ministry which processed the procedure. The two ministries of finance got three days time but after passing three weeks they were not able to reply us, which is disappointing. We followed this process but we cannot to take one officer of one ministry to other ministry to show the way of the work. We send our representatives to other ministries to find out whether those ministries have allocated 3 percents of employment of their ministries to disabled or not? We get this information through sending letters and questionnaires; this work has a lot value for us” He adds that the existence of some of the unions under the name of disabled unions has caused the working permeation into affairs of some of the ministries and some of them abuse the name of the disabled. “Unfortunately sometime the disabled themselves create the problem and the established union stands in front of some affairs, but by my mind the government should implement its law otherwise if a person wants to abuse the name disabled in fact creates problem for him, community and especially for disabled. For example there are some people that they tell to the related minister: Compromise with us and give 30 or 35 percent. This shows nonexistence of transparency in the way of help to the disabled. I am strictly against this .There are some unions who ask the donor s for unknown share for example WFP says that someone has come and ask aid for 50 persons”. The deputy minister says that 41 percent of the disabled are the women who are faced with numerous difficulties. “Though surveys are not exact but it is said that 41 percent of disabled are women in the country. We have found that in the ministry of work and social affairs heed has not taken place for disabled but in the ministry of women affairs attention paid to this issue as every year they celebrate the 8th of March also it is mentionable that the government always tries to help the disabled specially disabled women but you know better that the government cannot to overcome on all difficulties by its possibilities it requires serious combat.” At the same time head of Women Garden in Shar Ara says that they had prepared required facilities for the purpose of utilization for disabled women in the garden. “We don’t account ourselves separated from ministry of work and social affairs and we are at the service of our sisters and brothers. The directorate of women garden will always be in your service. We have done some work through cooperation with Care International and ALSO organization in order to the disabled can climb on the hail. Our disabled sister can use the existent library, computers and internet facilities. The Italian embassy has program for training of the women in computer, English language and driving .This garden is like a pleasure ground for the sisters’ .any program that is arranged by ALSO office for disabled we are ready for help. The Ghazanfar group distributed a number of 300 set tailoring machines in year 1387 as the wives of the disabled women also can use these machines. The organization of Medica Afghanistan also treats a number of 100 disabled who has psychological illnesses by its three doctors and preparation of free medicine. The garden has a gymnasium and the USAID has provided the equipment for disabled by value of 70000 dollar. This is in the situation that Organization of Afghans Imposed by Mine is implementing a project for women with disability under the name of CAPACITY BUILDING project for women with disability. As a first step this organization held a two days workshop on capacity building and raising the level of women with disability in women garden. Mr.Solaiman Amini the director of the Organization of Afghans Imposed by Mine says “This project will train a number of 300 women with disability in long term workshops in raising the level of the awareness about legal issues and international conventions. Beside, other projects you are witness of inauguration of the Women Capacity Building project for women with disability. ALSO has planned to hold long term workshops and seminars for 300 disabled women. The goal of the workshops is raising the awareness level of the women with disability on the rights and conventions that relates to women and activities of the disabled women in the community. At the end of the workshops the related committees will be formed that ALSO wants to invite them for seminars for raising their capacity on solving their own problems. The committee will start its work and ALSO organization will prepare the curriculum that the committee will use this curriculum for capacity building in Kabul city and provinces. Beside this ALSO will implement the project in capacity building of disabled women through holding literacy and English language courses which enable the women with disability to find the job and solve their economic problems. We are witness that three decades of fight have created many problems for people especially for women that different institution such as ministry of women affairs has been trying to prepare groundwork where the disabled women can work without difficulties. The deputy minister of disabled and martyrs counts the implementing of this type of programs very effective in capacity building of women with disability. “This is the second step after March 8th that ALSO has taken for the capacity building of the women with disability and I hope that other organizations also have this type of initiatives. The women with disability can work as Shafiqa who is head of an union other women also can be taught that how is the work in an administration and how the structure is like and how the work is going on? I hope that the capacity of women be elevated; ministry of work and martyrs is ready to help. I have been trying a lot. The deputy minister of economy has told that this ministry had suggested a project by value of 5m million dollar, I hope the parliament approve it. It is shame to see the office of the disabled was in a very bad condition. We want to repair it and make it like a place. Shafiqa Salhzai director of Social Organization of Disabled women and Heir of Martyrs of Afghanistan says about the holding this type of workshops “These types of workshops are very beneficial for mentality of disabled women because most of the disabled don’t know which problems are they faced with? The workshop will build their capacity, they will also know about the works that disabled women are accomplishing in governmental departments in order not to be the load on the government. The disabled especially disabled women have many problems and don’t know where they can get their rights from, this is due to illiteracy and staying at home , so I request the organizations to hold the workshops and let the women to come out from the home and get their rights. It is seen that the disabled are not weak or sick but they have limitations. They have abundant of capacity. If the limitations are repelled and facilities be given them they will work actively as members of the community. Due to this fact apart from the limitation that the disabled have they have equal rights in the community and they should use all possibilities like other individuals in the community. It is more important that the people should have human behavior with them because the community can play good role in rehabilitation, acceptance and social comprisal of the disabled .Removing the negative viewpoint about the disabled and their comprisal as their fellow-creature with different ability , the community has played its role well as human family and prevented disability. The community can prepare an environment for facility of disabled in its environment that they can work in schools, offices without difficulties. The government also should establish, amend, change and enforce strategies free of fantastic and guarantee comprisal of the disabled in the development projects in cities and rural area and seek their economic, educational and social self-sufficiency in order that all disabled can use equally governmental possibilities and get access to health, educational, social, transport services.