The disabled need equal opportunities

The disabled need equal opportunities

Thailand has strong laws to protect the rights of people with disabilities, but large numbers of disabled people are still unable to use the skills they have and live their lives to their full potential.

The main reason for this is a discriminatory attitude and a lack of supportive equipment and facilities to enable people with handicaps to commute and live independently.

The People with Disabilities Empowerment Act guarantees the right of people with disabilities to access public facilities. For instance, Section 20 of the law states that “Persons with disabilities have the right to access and utilise public facilities including welfare services and other support from the government”.

The law also ensures that physically disabled people should have fair access to employment.

In reality, various public places or modes of transportation are not equipped with facilities to help people with disabilities commute. For instance, various public facilities do not have ramps for people in wheelchairs. Public buses do not accommodate those in wheelchairs or others with special needs.

This lack of necessary facilities for the people who need them is against the spirit of the law, which is supposed to be inclusive. In Thailand, there are 1.8 million registered disabled people among our population of 67 million. Of those 1.8 million, almost half need a wheelchair to move around.

Many people who are now disabled used to be skilled in various jobs and at sport before they became handicapped. It would be a wasted opportunity if society does not encourage these people to fully utilise the skills and knowledge they still possess and are capable of using.

People with disabilities do not have to stay idle and inactive, especially now that advances in science have made their lives easier.

The latest equipment and devices enable people to live their lives to the fullest. That is the real purpose of innovation. Hearing aids allow people with hearing issues to communicate with others. Artificial limbs enable people with no legs to run and others to do things they never thought they would be able to do.

However, many disabled people have been hampered by a lack of public facilities when they try to engage in social activities. Many find it discouraging when they try to go out.

It is almost impossible for people in wheelchairs to use the public transport system, such as buses. There are no elevators at many of the mass transit stations. The uneven public footpaths in Bangkok and many towns are difficult to walk along for able-bodied people, but impossible for those in wheelchairs.

This is a shame because it is a violation of those people’s rights to access public services, which should not be only available for the able-bodied population. Public facilities should be designed to cater to a diverse group of people covering every age, gender and people with special needs.

This lack of facilities also may be contributing to people’s attitudes towards the disabled, who are often sidelined when it comes to social and economic activities.

Some people look down at those with handicaps, seeing them as some kind of burden on society. Others look at them with benevolent prejudice and think these people crave sympathy and want to be taken care of.

In general, many people see the handicapped as having little economic opportunity. Therefore, the amount of investment in facilities for them is much less than for the able-bodied. This has to change.

People with physical disabilities can be a valuable resource. This is particularly the case when many laborious jobs can now be done by machinery. However, no machinery can replace a human’s ability to think and innovate. Some great minds may be confined to a wheelchair, but they can think and produce, if only society would provide them with the opportunity to do so via supportive facilities.

The perception of disabled people has to be changed. Physically disabled people should not be segregated. It is not their impairment that is the obstacle to living life to the full and contributing socially and economically. The biggest barrier for these people is a social one, and attitudes need to change.

In fact, society can achieve more from enabling these people and helping them live independently. The availability of some devices and facilities will give them the opportunity they crave to work and contribute to society.

Society has an obligation to accommodate their needs to enable them to experience life just like everybody else. Everyone deserves to live with dignity. People with disabilities don’t want sympathy — they are only asking to be able to live a meaningful life, which is their right.

Editorial

Bangkok Post editorial column

These editorials represent Bangkok Post thoughts about current issues and situations.

Email : anchaleek@bangkokpost.co.th

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