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The cry for human rights is one that has grown louder each day across the world and the human race makes giant strides each day from the rights of women to drive in some parts of the worldA� to the rights of the disabled to be treated as equal citizens in other parts of the world. A�
Once one section of the population, however, is allowed to exercise their right in one area, there is a tendency to overlook the fact that we need varying enabling structures to enjoy those rights equally.
Elsewhere in this edition we carry a story about the disabled who complain about not being given room to make reproductive health choices, where they are abused and the community turns a blind eye and are left at home when people attend meetings where major decisions that affect them are made.
We feel people living with disability deserve to be heard.A� Beyond that, in fact, they should be involved in making decisions that affect their lives. It is quite disheartening that many families that live with disabled people tend to overlook their sexual rights.
It is against this background that the disabled were crying out that they need to be treated as fellow human beings that can love and are capable of being loved, and have a right to make choices such as starting their own families.
Also, in this age of HIV and Aids, it has been observed that many disabled people were not being given information about the dangers of the infection and how they could protect themselves.
In a rural setting, where one such meeting took place, it was pointed out that since people walk long distances to meeting venues, the tendency had been to leave the physically handicapped at home thus denying them access to information that could save their lives.
Since they are dependent largely on those that care for them, some of the carers have also taken advantage of their positions to prey on these vulnerable individuals. That dependency, coupled with limited education among many of the disabled, especially in rural communities, has seen many being abused with impunity by close relatives.
It is quite important to puncture this veil of secrecy regarding the abuse of the disabled by relatives.A� What families should be asking themselves is whether protecting the so-called family reputation should come before the rights of the victims.
Let us expose such evil practices so that the disabled within our communities can fully enjoy the rights that our laws bestow on them. The legislative framework may exist to guarantee their safety but it takes a complete change in attitudes by our communities to ensure that they enjoy those rights that are enshrined in our statutes.
It is only then that we can talk of the observation of human rights, when all of us enjoy such rights without any prejudice from whatever quarter.
Online Reporter