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Manicaland Correspondent
DISABILITY activists should be more proactive in challenging systems and institutions that continue to perpetuate the subjugation of people living with disabilities, an official has said. Addressing members of the disability community at a national disability expo held in Mutare recently, Special Advisor to the President on disability issues, Dr Joshua Malinga said there was need for people living with disability to take an active role in challenging and changing public perceptions, behaviours and attitudes that continued to place them at a disadvantage.

He acknowledged that although the disability rights movement had made great strides in elevating the position of people living with disabilities and addressing their basic and strategic needs, it was still critical for them to be more involved than they presently were in the fight for their rights.

“History has not been kind to the disabled,” he said.
“We have been treated as invalids, dependants, stupid and useless and to this day in my opinion little has changed with regards to our conditions.

“As people living with disabilities we are still inflicted with the dependency syndrome as some of us now survive solely on handouts when we have other avenues of being self-reliant, which reinforces the perception that we are dependants.

“It is also disturbing to note that as a community we at times entrust our complete free will to able-bodied individuals to lobby on our behalf opting to take a back seat in the disability rights movement.”

Dr Malinga expressed concern over what he described as laxity by organisations that represented and lobbied for people living with disabilities.

“I am worried about organisations that deal with disability today,” he said.
“During our days, we were very vocal and outspoken about the need to implement and uplift disability rights, but organisations these days are becoming complacent.

“Duty bearers continue to show disregard for people living with disabilities, as demonstrated by the absence of people with disabilities in national programmes.

“This extends to even politicians who still expect us to vote for them yet they fail to include and consult us on key issues.”
Senator representing people living with disabilities, Annah Shiri reiterated that people living with disabilities needed to speak with one voice and take an active role in national issues.
“There is need for collective action and greater participation,” she said.

“We need to be at the forefront and constantly remind each other that we do not need to have people talking of issues that concern us without us as though their intentions might be noble yet the fight might fall short of the mark.

“It is us who know the depth of our problems, hence it should be us who should take an active role in lobbying for reforms and the eventual realisation of the rights of people living with disabilities.”