Yafaau's blog

The annual observance of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3 December, aims to promote an understanding of disability issues, the rights of persons with disabilities and gains to be derived from the integration of persons with disabilities in every aspect of the political, social, economic and cultural life.

Maldives, has been marking the International Disability Day(IDD) every year and I  hoped this year too, would have awarenes programs and events specifically to raise the issues scheduled for this day. However, I saw that *IDD has been shadowed by the Swine Flu cases spreading across the nation. It was also discouraging to see that the individuals specialized in co-ordinating the disability sector in the previous government were either relocated or moved to a totally different department which had made the stakeholders in the government to be new in this field and lacked expertise.

I was called by one of the staff at the “Department of Gender and Family” who is the main facilitator of the IDD events this year to meet and discuss on the events for today which included the Health Minister herself. In the meeting, the decision was made to hold a discussion forum on disability with relevant stakeholders. At the meeting, I did raise my point that there are some events organised by the *CSO’s/*NGO’s and that was mainly because there were no one in the ministry who initiated such events for this year. I heard Care Society, this year, was focusing on their *CBO’s in Atolls and *MDA also had plans which I honestly do not know about.

Earlier, Handicap International had been pushing the local authorities into these kinds of events and that is something we are missing around here. As a very young *NGO, ADD(Association for disAbility and Development) also has many challenges and are struggling to operate with just the parents donations. *ADD however was  involved in  assisting the “Dept. of Gender…” in creating an awareness leaflet, which I hear seem outdated now!

Before Handicap International left Maldives, they made a brilliant awareness video named “Opening Doors”(see a part of it on youtube) which I hear will be aired on TVM tonight at 11:25PM. *HI also wanted to circulate the inspirational stories booklets of 9 individuals. When asked about it, I was informed that due to some pointless reason, it will not be circulated this 3rd December.

So this year’s IDD events maybe ’silent’ compared to other times. But I hope that next year, we would be able to do actually ’something productive’ rather than getting on talk shows and… talk…

*Innitials used;

• IDD: Intenational Disability Day
• CSO: Civil Service Organizations
• NGO: Non-Governmental Organizations
• CBO’s: Community Based Organizations
• ADD: Association for Disability and Development
• HI: Handicap International
• MDA: Maldives Deaf Association

United Nations Secretary-General’s message on International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

This year’s theme  “making the Millennium Development Goals disability-inclusive.”

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