adminAccording to the party’s Central Committee Report to the 12th Annual People’s Conference that was held in Bulawayo last week, only one percent of physically challenged women are literate, while five to 10 percent of PWDs are enrolled at the country’s schools.
“The deaf are routinely left out of the country’s education system and cannot proceed beyond O Level because they cannot pass English Language at that level due to their language, the sign language, which is not recognised as an official language in Zimbabwe.
“Similarly, people with visual impairments do not have access to vital information because they read Braille rather than conventional print,” reads the report.
The report reveals that nearly 75 percent of registered disabled voters failed to cast their ballots in the 2008 general elections, mainly due to lack of disability-friendly facilities at polling stations.
Zanu-PF has mandated its Department for the Welfare of Disabled and Disadvantaged Persons to develop programmes and activities that promote the welfare of such people.
“Key objectives that guide the department in achieving its mandate include lobbying and advocacy for disability-friendly legislation and policies, capacity building and co-ordinating the activities of member organisations, and provision of research and information on the disabled,” reads the report.
It also states that the department is on a drive to remove stigma attached to disabled people at work, in the community and schools.
The department also conducted an investigation into voting patterns by the disabled in 2008.
“The salient points that emerged from the survey included the fact that just 25,6 percent of the disability respondents voted in the 2008 general elections,” the report reads.
“The failure of 75 percent of the respondents to vote was because they were not registered, 16,5 percent did not have national identity cards required to register to vote, five percent were not willing to vote, 11,75 percent were afraid of political violence while 20,47 percent had reasons that they did not want to disclose.”
The report noted that PWDs showed a great desire to actively participate in the political affairs of the country, but a number of challenges were preventing them.
“The 25,6 percent that voted complained about the voting process saying polling stations and voting furniture were not accessible to people with certain disabilities, about 37,5 percent of the voters complained about the inaccessibility of the built environment,” the report reads.
Family members of people living with disabilities said their relatives were affected by lack of transport to take them to polling stations and certain community beliefs that those living with disabilities should not vote.
In order to make empowerment a reality for PWDs, the party made a number of recommendations, which included calling on Government to implement a quota system, allocating 10 percent to PWDs in all empowerment programmes, ensuring representation of the disabled in all allocations, involving the group in capital generation and access to capital and providing skills training for them so that they are able to earn a living.
“Empowerment of PWDs can be achieved through ownership of the means of production. Ownership of the land gives owners control over what society is producing,” reads the report.
Online Reporter