Today, December 3rd, is the International Day for the Persons with Disabilities. The day is being observed in Bangladesh along with 176 other countries around the world to uphold this year’s theme “Promoting the Participation of Persons with Disabilities and Their Leadership: Taking Action on the 2030 Development Agenda.” At present, the world population is over 7 billion and more than 1 billion people of the world live with some form of disability. According to World Health Organization (WHO), about 15 percent of the world’s total population have some form of disability. And, a study of WHO shows that one in every five persons in the developing countries lives with any form of disability. It is therefore needless to say how important the International Day for the Persons with Disabilities is in Bangladesh’s context.
The persons with disabilities, up until today, are often subjected to discrimination and negative attitudes in Bangladesh and they live in an unfriendly and hostile environment. Every day, they encounter non-cooperation, ill treatment, social neglect, and economic vulnerability at the family, community, society and government levels.
Dhaka, where more than 20 million people live, is also home to a large number of disabled persons. But it is a matter of regret that the city still does not care for them. From the homes to footpaths, educational institutes to public transports, office buildings to shopping malls, everywhere the mobility of the persons with disabilities is obstructed. Though the Disability Right & Protection Act 2013, enacted by the government of Bangladesh, upholds provision to protect the rights of persons with disabilities and ensure their accessibility in common infrastructure, markets, hospitals, educational institutes, and other buildings, it is still a far cry. Our transport and communication sector, which has got the third highest share of the total budget, has no specific allocation to make roads, highways, footpaths, footbridges, and public transport disabled-friendly. It is very awful to know that in the recent years BTRC has bought 600 buses, however, none of these has any ramp. Again, the Dhaka Building Construction Rules 2008 has also been framed with the provisions of accessibility for the challenged people, still many buildings are being constructed in the city without keeping the accessibility of the disabled persons in mind. As per the Building Construction Act 1952 and National Building Code 2008, every establishment should be designed and made accessible to the persons with disabilities so that they can enter and exit the building without difficulty and the toilets in these establishments should also be accessible. But the reality is totally the opposite. The ministries at the secretariat do not have any ramps or pavements for the persons with disabilities at all.
Few days earlier, I went to New Delhi, India and I went to a shopping mall there to watch a movie. An elderly woman aged around seventy also went to the cinema hall to watch the same movie. With a surprise I just wanted to know if she faced any problems to come to the cinema hall. She replied, ‘I watch at least one movie every month coming to the cinema halls. And I don’t need help of others for my movement in the city as everything on my way is accessible’. But, in Dhaka, can we imagine that a wheelchair-bound person will travel from one place to another without anyone’s support?
The section 32 of the Rights and Protection of Persons with Disability Act, 2013, states that 5 percent of seats in any public transport should be reserved for persons with disabilities; the reality is different from what the law spells out. Most of the bus, train or launch stations do not have necessary infrastructure and support systems in place for these individuals. Therefore, persons with disabilities are facing a huge problem in the public transport space. Apart from this, using the train is next to impossible for the disabled people in Bangladesh, considering that even a fully-abled person faces difficulties getting onto a train. A majority of the rail stations are not having ramps. In the last term, the railway department imported 270 couches, and is importing 250 this term. Sadly, only 10 percent of them have some seats reserved for the disabled persons along with washroom facilities.
How would you feel if you can imagine that you have grown up old and are travelling by launch from Sadarghat on a wheelchair? Certainly you would not expect this to happen to you. According to the data obtained from Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), around 4.5 million journeys were undertaken by persons with disabilities (PWDs) through the Sadarghat-Barishal launch terminal in 2017-18. However, there has been little support delivered to the persons with disabilities travelling from the capital’s launch terminal. Launches do not use ramps for the passengers and the toilets in the launches are not even accessible too.
There is misconception that ensuring accessibility for persons with disabilities in Dhaka is expensive and unrealistic. The reality is, some accessibility arrangements are simple and can be easily done. Though it is also true that some are complex, but all are very important. Increasing access means creating an environment that can be used by all people including the persons with disabilities. By using signage, visual or auditory announcements, assistive services, and slip-resistant paths we can ensure accessibility for persons with disabilities.
Awareness has great potential to play a significant role in ensuring inclusive practises in the country and there is a greater need to change our perception towards the persons with disabilities as well. The policymakers must realise that persons with disabilities can also actively participate in the economic activities if they get necessary support and cooperation. The government should also implement the national action plan on disability 2019, which identifies and proposes a large number of activities to be executed by the relevant actors to ensure inclusive practises in the society. However, the government should give special emphasis on skills development, accessible education, accessibility in the public transport, job creation and health access to the persons with disabilities. Several international organisations including Sightsavers, UKAID and ILO are implementing specific programmes for the persons with disabilities in Bangladesh. The government should also work closely with them to bring about positive changes in the country.
Whether we want it or not, all of us are likely to experience some form of disability at some point of life, particularly when we grow older. However, disability inclusion has not still been a priority in the policy making framework of the country. If such a huge number of people remain unproductive due to lack of proper accessibility and inclusion in our society, the progress of Bangladesh, which has recently stepped into a developing country, will be imperfect and unexpected too.
The writer is a development practitioner and currently working at Sightsavers, a UK based INGO.