Allah has created every human with different and unique qualities none of us are lesser than any other but this is a human who judges and treated another human as superior to inferior, better to lesser. Individuals with disabilities in Pakistan have been treated in completely different ways. They have struggled to create a space in society whether it’s accessing education, employment opportunities, or finding a life partner.
Women are more likely than men to become disabled during their lives, due in part to gender bias in the allocation of scarce resources and in access to services. Disabled women in Pakistan are always treated in a sympathetic way usually consider a burden and often consider deserving of charity.
The UNDP has estimated that nearly 6.2% of Pakistanis have some form of disability.
According to the survey, Women’s Human Rights (HRW) estimates People with disabilities (PWDs) in Pakistan vary widely, ranging from 3.3 million to 27 million.
Obstacle
• Disabled women’s reproductive rights are grossly abused.
• Disabled women also face limitations on their rights to marry and found a family, and often lose custody of their children.
• Disabled women face high rates of violence, both at the hands of family members and of personal assistants. Their dependence on their caregivers makes it even more difficult for them to pursue a remedy than for non-disabled women.
• There are reports of high rates of physical and sexual abuse against disabled women and girls living in institutions for the disabled. In some countries, disabled women living in institutions are abused at twice the rate as those living in the community.
“Pakistani economy could get a 30 percent boost in GDP by closing the gender gap.” United Nations in Pakistan
The positive side is despite all the obstacles there are some women in Pakistan breaking down the barrier and live life differently and set examples for many people, Like Abia Akram, who has become the first ever Pakistani woman with a disability to be nominated as the Coordinator for Commonwealth Young Disabled People’s Forum and Global Coordinator at Global Network of Emerging Women Leader, Disabled People’s International.
The Supreme Court provided new impetus to make Pakistan a better place for PWDs via two rulings in 2020. These rulings were in response to a plea filed by members of the disability community themselves, based on which the judiciary instructed the federal and provincial governments to ensure the implementation of existing PWD laws. The federal government currently has a 2% quota for PWDs, which is quite disproportionate in comparison with the size of the PWD population.
Some encouraging steps have recently been taken in Pakistan, such as the introduction of special ID cards for PWDs to enable them to access a range of concessions. It is also no longer legal to use derogatory terms such as ‘disabled’, ‘physically handicapped’, or ‘mentally retarded’ in official documents. However, we need a change in the mindsets of our policymakers and the citizenry at large.
The writer is a teacher.
