Life Please bear in mind….
- By Line Wolf Nielsen

In any crisis, ensuing from war, from natural disaster or from political or economic upheaval, disabled people suffer more severely than other citizens. Disabled people’s ability to cope and survive may be completely dependent upon others, and the capacity of any family to support its disabled members is keenly tested in a crisis. Evidences from Nepal show that disabled people suffer particularly high rates of mortality and injury.

In course of the nine years long insurgency and conflict in Nepal, the country has witnessed an increase in incidences of impairment. In addition to those who were disabled before the onset of the crisis, many more have become disabled as a result of a range of factors:

· Combat injury and poor medical care behind the lines
· Mutilation used as a tool of war

· Bomb blast injuries and landmine injuries to warring parties and civilians

· Deterioration in medical services – especially in remote areas
· Interruption of preventive health care programmes

The vulnerability of the population as a whole is increased in a crisis; and, given the scarcity of resources people’s needs have to be prioritized. Those whose value to society is not recognized are given lower priority. Within displaced and refugee populations, disabled people are frequently abandoned and left behind, facing extreme hardships. Why? They get left behind because they have no transport, because they cannot travel on foot over mountains, or because their families are unable to carry them. They are left behind because priority is given to the survival of non-disabled family members.

The effects of an emergency and crisis, while significant for everyone concerned, are not equally felt. Long-held attitudes and established cultural norms determine who is valued in society, who deserves what, and who has access to power, decision-making, assets and

money. In emergencies and crises this results in un-equitable access to resources and services that should be basic rights. People who are accorded lower status are therefore usually very vulnerable and exposed to a higher risk of suffering. They become more dependent, even totally dependent, on others for food, water, assistance with basic bodily functions and information. We all have to bear this in mind and seek to meet the special needs of the disabled whether we work as development practitioners or not.

However important relief work and charity is in times of crisis, it is not the only way to address stigmatization and social exclusion. Thankfully - but sometimes not fully recognized - disabled people themselves are powerful advocates for social change. Development practitioners need to hear the voices of disabled women, children and men in order to plan inclusive development. And what organizations like MS Nepal partner DHRC ask for is a change in attitude: Nepal needs a paradigm shift from a charity-based approach to a rights-based approach. Only then will disabled people be able to face the challenges of the current conflict.

Uganda provides an impressive example of how disabled people can be fully included in community and civic development. Following twelve years of sensitization, lobbying, advocacy and organizing by disabled people, working together as a united movement, led to their representation within decision-making bodies at all levels of government. Currently, Uganda has five disabled members of Parliament and 56.000 disabled people serving as Councilors from village to district council levels. Achieving political representation is, however, a means rather than an end: Uganda’s disabled people are now set to challenge institutionalized barriers to equality from within the decision-making institutions of their communities. One can only hope that this will soon also be the case for Nepalese disabled persons too.

(Line Wolf Nielsen is information and advocacy advisor in MS Nepal)