BANGLADESH

Governments and influential people around the world have been urged at a summit at the Qatari capital to implement the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to bring 'equality'.

Hassan Ali, chairman of the Shafallah Forum, made the call while opening its fifth conference that brought together nearly 300 participants including first ladies and policymakers.

The Convention, if signed and ratified by a state, demands access to healthcare, education, employment and all other fundamental rights for persons with disabilities.

At least 153 countries including Bangladesh have signed and 109 ratified the convention, but Ali said 'they (people with disabilities) are not getting benefits of the provisions.'

He said awareness of this convention is 'paramount' while the true implementation is 'also paramount'.

"If you were to walk down any main street in any major city in the world, including Doha, and asked people the question: Have you heard of United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the legal rights it gives persons with disability?

"The response of the majority would be that they have never heard of it and even if they had, it would not be a priority for them given the many challenges of everyday life, particularly now we are in the midst of a world economic recession."

Qatar emir's consort Sheikha Mozah, who spearheads social reforms in Qatar and also patronises the Shafallah Centre, was present amongst the audience drawn from first ladies and dignitaries when the chairman made the opening remarks.

Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina's sister Sheikh Rehana and daughter, a US-licensed psychologist, Saima Hossain Putul were also in the audience.

The chairman said 'true and meaningful' implementation of the Convention depends upon governments, and the people with the real influence to bring about changes.

He, however, noted that many of the signatory countries do not have the financial and human resources and expertise to properly implement the provisions of the Convention.

He suggested direct allocation of money, resources and required services to the persons with disability. "But it is not just a question of giving them money; it is much more than that. It is about ensuring equality. It is about ensuring access to resources and services that guarantee their rights are realised."

The chairman portrayed the 'despair and desperation' of the lives of persons with disabilities in refugee camps and said refugees with a disability are amongst the 'most disadvantaged and disenfranchised' of all people living in the world today.

"I firmly believe that if the world's governments and general public were made aware of the plight of persons with disability living in poverty, then they would respond in a positive way and provide help in any way they could, and within their capability."

"All of us can make real difference to the lives of one billion strong."

One Billion Strong is a campaign dedicated to disability awareness, rights and education. UN puts the number of people with disability across the globe at one billion.

The chairman also called upon media to make disability issues 'mainstream'. "A positive impact on their lives, in my view, cannot be addressed without the sustained help of local, national and international media."

With the theme 'Crisis, Conflicts and Disability: Ensuring Equality', the conference aims at helping people with special needs, while serving as a platform for dialogue and debate on issues and challenges facing different societies.

The forum has been seen as one of the world's foremost conferences on disability -related issues.

The focus of this year's forum is on the marginalisation of persons with special needs during recent natural disasters in Japan, Haiti, Pakistan and the US, as well as the ongoing crises and conditions in refugee camps in the Middle East and Africa.

Cherie Blair, wife of former British prime minister Tony Blair and also the co-chair of the Shafallah Centre, in her luncheon remark said no topic could be more timely and relevant for this gathering than disability, 'given the increasing rate and severity of natural disasters and the dire conditions in refugee camps.'