Afghanistan: The observance of the International Day for Disabled Persons

To highlight the problem of disability in Afghanistan and to promote a sense of self-confidence and self-reliance among disabled people, the Comprehensive Disabled Afghans Programme, together with the Afghan Campaign to Ban Landmines, observed the International Day of Disabled Persons on 1 December in Peshawar, Pakistan. CDAP/UNOPS/UNDP arranged a public meeting and a disability exhibition in the CDAP main office, and deaf and blind people also enacted a stage drama.
"The needs of disabled people are exactly the same as everyone else's, " said Peter Coleridge, Manager of CDAP. "The medical needs of a disabled person last for a short time when the disability is first acquired. After that, the disabled person lives the rest of their life with a powerful human need to be accepted as a full member of the human race. "

About 4 percent of the Afghan population, some 800,000 people, are disabled mainly due to war, landmines, polio and poor basic health care in the country. Annually CDAP provides rehabilitation services to some 20,000 disabled people. In addition, a number of NGOs and the ICRC are also working for disabled people, but the challenge remains enormous. Inadequate referral services mean that many minor disabilities that could be easily prevented become complicated and irreversible. Many disabled people, because of the lack of employment opportunities, become a socio-economic burden on their families and society.

3 December, the International Day of Disabled Persons, coincides with the ratification of the Landmine Ban Treaty. About 139 countries have so far signed the Ottawa treaty and 108 have ratified it.

In the Afghan cities of Kabul, Ghazni, Kandahar, Takhar, Mazar, Herat, Farah, and Jalalabad, the day was observed with public meetings, disability exhibitions, disabled people sports tournaments, and other events.

In Kandahar, the International Day of Disabled Persons was observed on 3 December at Kandahar Sports Stadium. During the event, the Ministry of Planning announced two new decrees issued by Mullah Omar. The first stated that all people are obliged to allocate 25% of their zakat (mandatory 10% charity donations) to disabled people. The Ministry also announced that the Taliban have established a countrywide fund for support to disabled people.