THE term ‘handicapped’ has been used to describe biased reactions toward disabled people. Those reactions are not based on an individual’s qualities or performance, but on a presumption of what the disabled person must feel or must be like.
To be disabled means to be discriminated against. It involves social isolation and restriction. Disability is a significant means of social differentiation in modern societies. The level of esteem and the social standing of disabled people are derived from their position in relation to wider social conditions and relations of a given society.
In reality, a continuing problem for many people with disabilities is lack of acceptance as full members of our society, with the rights, privileges and services granted to any citizen. Despite apparent enlightenment given by the mass media and education, disability is to some extent a taboo in Pakistan.
By the older and/or less educated people, disability is still regarded with superstitious awe. They believe that forces or events beyond human control cause it and that only a spiritual leader of some sort can effect any positive change. Disability is considered as a punishment and a penance to be borne by the parents for their misdeeds committed in the past.
As a consequence, disability brings a stigma not only to the disabled person, but also to his entire family. It brings immense suffering and thus generates considerable emotions, particularly fear, guilt, shame and remorse.
In Pakistan, the disabled are kept hidden from everyone other than his own family. Expressions such as “the child no one knows” or “the child in the closet” are true reflections of how little we do for the disabled.
In 1983, a report threw light on the progressive development of the Pakistani society’s attitude towards the disabled in the country. The stages may be characterized by the following expressions, which progressively shade into one another:
* Disabled persons are a nuisance, a burden and beggars under a curse, fair game for mockery.
* Disability is the will of God, it is fate and nothing can be done.
* It is God’s will; it is not the disabled person’s fault, so he should not be mocked.
* It is not the disabled person’s fault, he should be pitied, and it is our religious duty to pity and pray for such people.
* It is our duty to help and to give alms to disabled persons.
* Pity and charity are not enough; loving care is required.
* There should be acceptance of disabled persons by community and active steps should be taken to ensure them a life of dignity.
* Human dignity requires that disabled persons be enabled to make their own contribution and be seen to participate as whole and equally worthy members of the community.
How society views people with disabilities forces an examination of the term community. We consider community as an environment surrounding an individual which affords one person the same rights and responsibilities as everyone else. Same rules and regulations for all, that provide the same opportunity to exercise a person’s interests equal to others, and which do not set him apart from others.
Depriving the disabled from the community fosters feelings of hopelessness on part of the handicapped and his family. If you are a responsible member of a community and feel that your community lacks any helpful programme for the disabled, then:
* Don’t let lack of know-how or funds stand in your way.
* If you are a parent or an individual who stands alone with these thoughts and plans, your first task should be to get in touch with other parents and individuals, organize yourselves into a group with an identity. It is, of course, an advantage if a professional with training in special education takes interest, since the resultant programmes are better planned and managed with less hit-miss quality.
* Determine the relative urgency of the needs based on actual facts.
* For the disabled you know, plan and bring about programmes. Then answer some simple questions. How many disabled children are there in various age categories and what do they need? After you have determined this, you can start finding ways to meet those needs.
* Approach the agencies that are already doing work in your neighbourhood and motivate them to include the disabled in their services.
* All this is possible if leaders in the health, education and welfare structure of your community are acutely aware of the needs of the disabled and are willing to do something about the problem.
* You might want to organize a speaker’s bureau. The main purpose is to give talks and speeches before civic groups and organizations in the community. The members of this bureau will, of course, want to read up very well on the subject or consult with professionals and observe ongoing service programmes beforehand.
* Write to the head of a special institution and ask for suggestions. Perhaps, he can give you the names of children and adults who cannot come to school because of transportation problems. In this case, you can organize a transportation pool for these children.
* Organize special classes for the disabled. Talk with the principal of a special school and explore how a special class can be started in your community. Just start with one class and one teacher.
* Bring about more diagnostic and parent-counselling services. Go to clinics, hospitals and tell them of the needs in your area. Provide them with materials on special children and enlist their aid.
* A group of woodwork hobbyists could make toys and teaching aids (under the direction of special teachers) and donate these to a special school.
* You can initiate a scout troop. Talk with the scout executive in your area and see if he can channel a leader to agencies or special schools.
* Initiate a camping programme in your community with the cooperation of welfare and civic organizations.
* One of the easiest ways to establish a relationship between the disabled and community is to have some form of visitations of the disabled to various parts of the community and to bring friends and neighbours into the home to meet disabled individuals. Special persons should travel, either as a small group or individually with some other person, to shopping centres, parks, recreational places or other activity. Not only does it increase the educational resources of the individual, but it broadens the number of persons surrounding him; expose him to various stimuli, creates a need to adjust to other persons, and provides opportunities to try out some newly-learned behaviour and knowledge. Community individuals must learn more about the disabled and by seeing them in a typical situation within the community, misconceptions may be modified.
Disabled children need more than just one programme; not a short period but a complete round of activities. As a community member and a professional, we have a responsibility to develop programmes and services that are coordinated, planned, directed and integrated. We must recognize that certain programmes and services will not work for all individuals, and we should be selective and willing to experiment and to modify. Viewing disabled people as individuals with special needs tells us much about how to respond to them.
On the other hand, people want to know how they should react and interact with special people. Their views are being changed gradually for the better by people who believe that their exclusion is primitive and unfair. Fortunately, through the cooperative efforts of NGOs and professionals, the disabled are less in the shadows and more in the light. Parental feelings are changing with greater acceptance of the handicapped and even governments are accepting responsibilities to include the handicapped in the services they provide.
