International Day of Disabled Persons

Asha Sunar, 15, lives in a mountainous district of Nepal. She can't get to the second floor of her school because she has polio on both legs. Her school is not disabled-friendly and it and she has limited access to her school.

 Asha Sunar's life is even more difficult in the post-covid world. Life has become even more difficult for people with disabilities, such as Asha, due to the Covid's adverse effects this year.

There are millions of other people like Asha, 15 percent of the world's population live with some form of disability who do not have equal access to most of the manmade physical structures.
Kashi Sah of Mahottari district is blind. According to him, People with disabilities do not have equal access to many such offices and structures.

"I don't understand the news coming on TV and I don't understand the serials no matter how much I like it," says Kashi.

When I see others laughing while watching comedy programs, I also like to understand and laugh, but I can't. Baglung district's deaf sister Vinita DC said in a conversation with Hamro Patro. It is important to make society and the world disability-friendly. Inclusive means not only language, culture, geography but also to make the disabled people successful in the pace of development by bringing them together easily.

Even now, the hardships of life for people with disabilities have become more intense. People with disabilities have more problems with the COVID epidemic. The slogan for International Disability Day this year is "Building Back Better: Towards a Disability-Inclusive, Accessible and Sustainable Post COVID-19 World".

This year, the International Day of Persons with Disabilities will be commemorated throughout the week of 30 November- 4 December in conjunction with the 13th session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

If people with disabilities are given equal opportunity in a positive environment, they can face any challenges. Whether it's a writer like Jhamak Kumari or Helen Keller or Stephen Hawkins. World Disability Day has been celebrated around the world on December 3 every year since 1992. Today, various programs and seminars, rallies are organized, slogans of equality and encouragement resound and it is hoped that these voices will resound throughout the year.

Today, the positive and achievement stories of people with disabilities are observed and listened to by the world community through various mediums, while on the other hand, they are also lobbied for a disability-friendly society and structure.

Friends with disabilities need love, harmony, equal care, and encouragement. May their self-confidence always remain and may their continuous meaningful participation in creative and structural work sustain. Self-esteem and a sense of equality develops only when one does not have to depend on others for one's livelihood. The government, the international community, and non-governmental organizations also focus on creating livelihood and income-generating activity for disabled friends, which is a very good thing.

 By enabling disabled people to make a living by doing skill-based business, they should not be deprived of the warm light of education due to disability, get equal treatment in the society, and have easy health care accessing system.

 Happy December 3rd, this special day brings energy and solidarity for a better world.

Suyog Dhakal